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| | | | FAQ Revisions | Editor: KeysCapt 
Last modified on 2008-08-11 14:10:01
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3. Contracts·What does FAP mean?
·Why does my ISP prefer me to sign a contract?
·What do I look for in a contract?
·Will I have to pay a lot if I move houses?
·Can I switch ISPs anytime? is there a penalty?
·The phone company offers DSL so cheap! what's the catch?
·What is this USF tax?
·Who do I complain to?
·What is a reseller? why should you avoid them?
·Getting Complaints Resolved
·Answer to question: Can I break a contract?
| | | Fair Access Policy - a limit on the amount of bandwidth you can use within a certain amount of time.
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by Jigsaw edited by KeysCapt
last modified: 2002-07-22 18:32:53 | | | ISPs usually must commit to a certain quantity of lines from the big DSL networks. Contracts make this more likely to be achieved. Contracts are preferred because of the investment in infrastructure the DSL providers and ISPs have made. They don't expect to make much money from you initially, especially as a new user usually needs expensive installation time, and often gets discounts on the equipment. This is similar to the beginnings of the cellular phone market, where the equipment was tied to a cellular provider, and sold at a discount, in return for a minimum service term. As DSL becomes more common, these contract lengths will probably be reduced or eliminated. No contract service is certainly available, just ask for it. It may cost more or you may have to pay for installation though.
ISPs also keep an eye on the capital value of you as a customer. People on contracts are more valuable to them in the case of a future sale or ISP takeover, than people on month-by-month. The value of you as a 2 year DSL customer now, in a takeover deal, can be over $1000 !
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| | | Terms and conditions need to be read carefully. Understand that most special offers require you to sign up for 1 or 2 years! So in particular, you should watch for any clauses that allow the provider or ISP to charge you for early termination, or for moving from one location to another. In addition, the contract may specify what is not allowed, and this list, apart from the usual things like "no spam" and so on, may include more widely applicable terms, for instance, they reserve the right to terminate your line and charge you disconnection costs if you do anything they believe is "destabilizing" to the system. Without a clear definition of what "destabilizing" is, they are basically free to terminate your line anytime they want, and you have no right to argue about it.
Not really a subject for terms & conditions, but, also check what optional service costs are, like additional IP addresses and DNS service etc.
Also be careful to check for any traffic restrictions both up and down, or limits on supported configurations, or running servers at home. On the plus side, you should hope to see guarantees from them on committed information rates. And what your rights are when minimum service levels are not met.
If you like what the sales people say, make sure you get it in writing, and ask if they apply for the duration of the contract, because terms and conditions have a habit of changing after you signed up.
So here is a final checklist:
what are any system requirements the DSL provider/ISP expect?
Is rental an option for the CPE (premise equipment)
Does the ISP offer any phone number for dial-up access backups? what about roaming
How long does it take for service to be activated?
What promised speeds are there, what happens generally at peak periods?
Is there any recourse if promised rates are not met?
Are all charges included in the quoted monthly fee?
Are there are any data-transfer limits on download or upload side?
Does the installer care about the PC or Operating system you have
Will additional interior or exterior wiring be necessary?
Who pays for any installation expenses?
Do accounts come with any home directory, ftp or web space?
What's the limit on e-mail addresses provided?
Technical:
Does the ISP monitor the state of the line for you?
Is there a 24hour number for network operations center?
Is routed IP available, and at what extra cost?
Is this a PPPoE setup, are their plans to switch to PPPoE?
What will the routing be from you to local internet sites?
Will you be allowed to host a Web site?
Does the ISP support reverse DNS lookups?
What's the limit on IP address provided?
What's the cost of extra IP addresses?
If you have a home network, can you share the connection over it?
If shared access is allowed, is any hardware or software support provided for it?
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| | | If you plan to move, you should certainly ask exactly what the costs are of early termination of your current contract, prior to 12 months, and after 12 months, and whether you can take your equipment with you (if it is rented) to the new location, assuming it is serviced by the same DSL provider, and whether there are any discounts over a new install price given for such a situation. Also how much notice you have to give them.
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| | | ISP switches are usually easy. You arrange this with the ISP, checking first if there are any penalties, then you locate another ISP that uses the same DSL carrier, and get them to arrange the switch-over. If your new ISP uses a different DSL carrier, you have to treat this as a complete termination and restart.
Your old ISP usually has to process a release form of some kind, which can be difficult to get if they are uninterested in being helpful.
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| | | Some telcos are offering ADSL at great price. They want to own this market. Of course, offering it, and being able to deliver it effectively, are two different things.
Recently, USWest has started offering Megabit Select DSL. This is designed so when you want to use it, it trys to connect if there is a free line, and your contract is designed to allow only a certain amount of connection time in any one period.
Other telcos offer very low CIRs (committed information rate) for their fast ADSL, as they are selling quantity and may not be matching that with back-end bandwidth either themselves or their partner ISPs.
Telcos also do not have a great track record in ISP services, and may even duck out of that completely, so be careful when comparing two products priced differently, that you are comparing like with like.
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| | | The USF (Universal Service Fund) is a tax the FCC imposed on long distance carriers, to fund telecommunications expansion in rural areas, among other things.
USF usually appears on your PHONE bill as a small percentage (4%) of your long distance charges, or sometimes (AT&T) a flat rate, regardless of your charges.
Unfortunately, despite the FCC ruling that ISPs are not (yet) contributers to the USF Fee, some ISPs are charging it to the customer anyway, perhaps because they too are charged when they buy some telco services at retail prices (the FCC does not prohibit passing the tax along).
If you are charged a USF on your entire bill, object, as it is clearly profit for the ISP. The FCC itself has hinted that USF should not be passed onto consumers, and is not an internet access tax.
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| | | To lodge a serious complaint about an ISP or a Telco (or CLEC), your two forms of attack are the BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU and the PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION (PSC) for your state. This may also be referred to as the Public Utilities Commission or the Public Utilities Control Authority. A search should find the one for your state or area.
Read about the BBB on their home page. ISPs that are not going out of business hate the BBB and try hard to resolve issues that get raised there.
The PSC is the only body your Telco is afraid of. Use them if normal dispute resolution is getting you nowhere. Again, your state PSC home page should provide current information on how to lodge a complaint.
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by KeysCapt
last modified: 2004-03-13 06:53:33 | | | In the DSL world, a reseller is a virtual ISP, it takes your order, and passes it to a real ISP. You may not be told which ISP is actually providing your line.
Resellers are not recommended because
• You are another step away from the people who support your line
• A reseller will normally find the cheapest ISP, which is probably not the ISP you would have picked
• A reseller cannot adequately support you, and yet you are not allowed to contact the real ISP either.
• A reseller may not be in business for the long term, and may be hard to contact if there are problems
• The ISP that controls your line may go broke, and disconnect you, even though you are paying on time.
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| | | Besides or in addition to contacting the BBB or Public Service Commission, try writing a letter to the President of the DSL Service Provider or Parent Company. I recently had problems with PacBell (and from the message boards, I'm not the only one), I wrote the CEO of SBC Communications and within a week, they had folks from throughout the organization calling me to resolve the problem.
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by jlamdsl edited by DrTCP | | | That question is best answered by calling the company you have the contract with. In most cases however contracts cannot be broken by you unless the company is not performing to the terms of the contract. Since the company usually makes provisions for instances that would negect a contract, it takes alot to get out of them. If the problem is with a Telco you can also contact your states Utilities Consumer Affairs department to investigate the Telco. For Washington State it is: WUTC Consumer Affairs, PO Box 47250, Olympia, WA 98504, 1-800-562-6150. Most cases though you have to give the company notice of what service is not being provided to the contract terms, and time for them to correct it. You may also want to seek legal council depending on the serverity of penalties you might incrue for breaking a contract.
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by ruthven78 edited by DrTCP |
Also read About DSL for lots more information
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