Keeping the internet moving

Our broadband packages are designed with different types of people in mind.

The Basics	Best if you mainly just browse the web and check emails.
The All Rounder	Great if you like to watch videos and get music and TV over the internet.
The Works	Ideal if you use the internet a lot, particularly for watching movies and gaming.

These different experiences are made possible by a bit of technology called traffic management. It works by limiting the speed of two types of online activity – videos and streaming, and sharing files (peer-to-peer). We don't limit download speeds on any other type of internet use – for example, web browsing and e-mails.

For those types of internet activity that are traffic managed, the speed you get depends on the package you've chosen. The better the package, the faster the speed. For all other activities (like web browsing), you'll get the best speed that your line and home can support.

Here's how it all breaks down:

(Busy times – 4pm to midnight on weekdays. 12pm to midnight on weekends.)

Package	Activity	The speed you'll get
The Basics	Watching videos and streaming	0.8 meg (any time)
	Sharing files (peer-to-peer)	0.05 meg (busy times) 0.1 meg (the rest of the time)
The All Rounder	Watching videos and streaming	8 meg (any time)
	Sharing files (peer-to-peer)	0.1 meg (busy times) 0.25 meg (the rest of the time)
The Works	Watching videos and streaming	As fast as your line/home can handle (any time)
	Sharing files (peer-to-peer)	0.25 meg (busy times) As fast as your line/home can handle (the rest of the time)

For our Access package, we do things slightly differently.

At busy times (midday to 2am) we make sure the speed for things like browsing the web, instant messaging, streaming and making calls is the best it can be. So everyone gets a good experience. And we limit the speed for file-sharing (including using Rapidshare and Megaupload) to 50kbps.

The rest of the time we don't limit the speed for file-sharing. But we still prioritise the speed for browsing, streaming videos etc.

For all our packages, remember to check how many meg you can get on your line at home. That'll be your top speed. So for example, you won't be able to get 8 meg of streaming if you've only got a 4 meg line. You can check this with a speed measurement site, such as www.speedtest.net.

Finally, remember also that if you're on The Basics, this package has a 20 GB monthly usage limit. If you go beyond this limit, then your overall speeds for all web activity will be reduced to 0.25 meg for the rest of your billing month (then you'll get normal speeds back once you're in your new billing month). So bear this in mind if you're on The Basics and your speeds on everything seem a bit slow. It could be you've gone over your monthly usage limit.

O2 Home Broadband - Key Fact Indicators

For details of the traffic management policies we use, click on the name of the package you want more information about and decide which one works best for you