Sky offers truly unlimited broadband

Sky’s top end broadband package, “Broadband MAX”, has had the fair-use policy removed.

The broadband max products costs £10 per month on top of an existing Sky TV package, and offers line speeds up to 16Mbps.  Whereas most broadband packages, even high end ones still maintain a fair-use policy, Sky has taken the opposite stance and removed it.

The reason for fair use policies is generally to ensure that network traffic flows smoothly for all users.  So when the heaviest users download songs and movies for hours on end, this sometimes has a knock-on effect on the provider’s other customers.  Traffic management is normally then applied to limit the download speeds of heavy downloaders to ensure consistent speeds for all users.

However, thinkbroadband.com spotted a section in their terms and conditions which basically states that they are allowed to protect their network and maintain quality of service.  So if network speeds for all users are affected by downloaders who leave their PC’s on 24-7 for days and days, and are continuously downloading (and possibly uploading) movies, Sky may need to take some form of action.

On the other hand, Sky looks like it has made some provisions to cater for heavy users.