[Nfbf-l] {Disarmed} Fw: [blindusersVerizon] Fw: [The-Facts-Machine] Warning for AT&T DSL Customers

[Sherri]

All who have A T &T, please note the following email. If you use a lot of 
broadband width, watch out. Apparently in May they are going to start 
charging.

Sherri
----- Original Message ----- 
From: Richard McKinley
To: Verizon Phones
Sent: Friday, March 18, 2011 3:45 PM
Subject: [blindusersVerizon] Fw: [The-Facts-Machine] Warning for AT&T DSL 
Customers




Got this from my list.  An idea as to what's coming in the future.

I just received a notice with updated terms and conditions for those of you 
getting AT&T internet service either through uVerse or DSL.  One of the 
things they are implementing on May 2 is data usage limits.  Here is the FAQ 
on that:

Broadband Usage FAQs

Are there any usage limits for my broadband service?

Yes.  As of May 2, 2011, AT&T's residential DSL High Speed Internet plans 
will have a usage allowance of 150 Gigabytes ("GB") per month, and its 
residential
U-verse High Speed Internet plans will have a usage allowance of 250 
Gigabytes ("GB") per month.  The usage allowance is the amount of data you 
can send
and receive each month.

Why is AT&T implementing a usage allowance?
AT&T has experienced a dramatic increase in the amount of data that is sent 
and received over its wireline broadband networks.  This dramatic increase
is driven primarily by a small fraction of our customers.  In fact, the top 
2% of customers use about 20% of the total capacity on our network.  A 
single
high traffic user can utilize the same amount of data capacity as 19 typical 
households.  Lopsided usage patterns can cause congestion at certain points
in the network, which can slow Internet speeds and interfere with other 
customers' access to and use of the network.

What is a gigabyte?
A gigabyte is a unit of measurement of the amount of data that is 
transmitted over the Internet.  Approximately 50,000 single-page e-mails 
(without attachments),
for example, equate to about 1 GB.  It is important to remember that a GB 
represents the amount of data sent over the network, and not the amount of 
time
spent using the Internet.

How much is 150 GB?
150 GB is far more data than most customers ever use in a month.  Our 
average DSL customer uses only about 18 GB per month.  In fact, less than 2% 
of DSL
users utilize more than 150 GB per month.  We estimate that 98% of our 
customers will not be affected by this change because the monthly usage 
allowance
includes so much bandwidth.

How much do I get with 150 or 250 GB?
You can do a lot with 150 or 250 GB. Here is an example.

table with 3 columns and 7 rows
Monthly Activity
150 GB
250 GB
Send/receive one page emails

10,000 emails

-and-

10,000 emails

-and-

Download/upload a medium resolution photo to social media site like Facebook

3,000 photos

-and-

4,000 photos

-and-

MP3 Songs downloaded

2,000 songs

-and-

3,000 songs

-and-

Stream a one-minute YouTube video (standard quality)

5,000 views

-and-

5,000 views

-and-

Watch hour-long TV Shows (high quality)

100 shows

-and -

200 shows

-and -

Stream full length movies (Standard Definition: SD; High Definition: HD)
20 SD or 10 HD movies
25 SD or 13 HD movies
table end

 Usage examples are estimates based on typical file sizes and/or duration of 
file transfer or streaming event.

Will spending a lot of time on the Internet cause me to exceed my monthly 
usage allowance?
Time alone is not the determining factor; it is the activity that matters. 
You could spend several hours reading e-mails, for example, and use less 
than
1 GB of data.  You could spend 30 minutes downloading a movie, on the other 
hand, and use 2 GB of data.  It is important to remember that it is what you
are doing on the Internet, not how long you do it, that determines the 
amount of data that you use.

Can anyone other than someone in my immediate household affect my bandwidth 
usage?
If you have not secured your wireless gateway/router, someone nearby with a 
computer or Wi-Fi enabled device could access your home network and use your
High Speed Internet Service, which could increase your monthly usage.  AT&T 
recommends that you secure your wireless router/gateway to prevent others 
from
using your High Speed Internet Service.  We suggest that you use common 
encryption protocols, such as Wireless Encryption Protocol (WEP) or Wi-Fi 
Protected
Access (WPA) for security.  Check
www.att.com/esupport
 for support with AT&T provided devices, or your manufacturer's support 
website for help with securing your wireless router/gateway.

What will happen if I exceed my monthly usage allowance?
You will receive a notice the first time your usage exceeds the applicable 
monthly allowance.

In the following months, we will send you additional notices each month when 
your usage exceeds 65%, 90% and 100% of your monthly usage allowance.  If 
you
exceed your monthly allowance a second time, AT&T will send you a notice 
advising you that the next time you exceed your allowance - the third time - 
you
will be billed $10 for each 50 GB of data over your allowance.

We will continue to send you courtesy notifications when your usage exceeds 
65%, 90% and 100% of your monthly usage allowance to keep you informed about
your usage patterns.  All of these notices will remind you of what your 
monthly usage allowance is, provide you with information to help you 
understand
broadband data usage, offer you tips on how to effectively control your 
usage to stay below your monthly allowance, and explain what your options 
are if
you exceed your allowance in future billing periods.  For example, you can 
modify your usage patterns to stay below your monthly usage allowance; 
continue
your normal usage patterns and pay $10 for each additional 50 GB of data 
over your monthly allowance; or terminate your service, consistent with the 
terms
of any special pricing offer that you previously accepted.

Importantly, if you do not receive a notice from AT&T, it means that you 
have not exceeded your monthly usage allowance.  In some cases, it may mean 
that
we cannot measure your usage yet.  Either way, you should not be concerned 
about your usage patterns for billing purposes.

Where will I receive notices about my broadband usage?
You will receive notices about your broadband usage at the primary e-mail 
address that you set up when you registered for Service.  We will send a 
letter
by U.S. mail if we cannot reach you by e-mail or do not have your e-mail 
address.
How will AT&T help me to monitor my usage?
AT&T will provide a website with two options to assist customers in managing 
their High Speed Internet usage.
First, AT&T will provide a personal usage report at
www.MyUsage.att.com
 where customers can view how much actual data they have used in a given 
month from the January 2011 bill cycle to the most recent billing cycle.  To 
protect
confidential customer information, this site is password-protected.  The 
login process requires your Internet access login and password.  The login 
is
your AT&T primary account email address (e.g., John_smith at att.net).  The 
password is the same password used to access your att.net homepage and 
primary
email account.

AT&T initially will report usage data on a weekly basis.  When a customer 
uses 70% of their monthly usage allowance, we will supplement their personal 
usage report
on a daily basis.  A customer's usage will be posted on the website within 
1 - 4 days after it is collected.

Second, AT&T will provide a website with examples of what kind of Internet 
activity can impact your actual usage.  In addition, on the same site AT&T 
will
provide a usage calculator, which will enable customers to input data about 
how they typically use their Service and calculate an estimate of how much
data they are likely to use in a given month.  This website will be 
available in late April 2011.

I can't seem to access the usage tool. What should I do?
Many of our customers have access to this tool already. For those who don't 
today, until your usage is available for viewing on
www.MyUsage.att.com,
you should not be concerned about your usage patterns for billing purposes. 
Once the tool is available, you will be notified if you exceed your 
allowance.

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