Practical alternatives for managing off-peak and congestion

[CordlezToaster]

Im glad it has now turned constructive. It provides hope that we may get a better deal.
The biggest issue for me is i use my onpeak quota every month with out fail, having my onpeak increased with out a quota adjustment seems unfair.

I propose
Option one
Now that we have 2 hours added to our on peak we should have an increase in onpeak quota with a reduction in off peak quota.
Example my plan is 20gb/54gb make it 30gb/44gb. off peak time remains at 2-12.

Option two
Allow customers to opt into different offpeak times with different quota levels. example: 2-2 20gb/54gb 2-12 30gb-44gb.

[JasonM]

I can't say there will be a change similar to suggested by CordlezToaster, but if it was contemplated, the differences in usage would not be identical as off peak data is valued less than peak data.

So, take the 10GB figure CordlezToaster posted, and turn it into 5GB peak, which is a bit more realistic.

[sable]

Even you are too generous Jason

To take a real example the now withdrawn PAYU plans had off peak priced at 20% of peak(20c and $1 per Gb respectively) so the 10Gb in the example becomes 2Gb

[johnmatrix]

What if off peak data was the same amount as on peak? so instead of 24gb\60gb, what if it was 42gb\42gb? would that reduce the incentive to wait until a particular time period to start downloading? I certainly wouldn't bother waiting, the only reason I wait is to conserve my on peak data because as you said it is perceived as higher valued. If they're the same then that perception difference will be gone.

[JasonM]

What if off peak data was the same amount as on peak? so instead of 24gb\60gb, what if it was 42gb\42gb? would that reduce the incentive to wait until a particular time period to start downloading? I certainly wouldn't bother waiting, the only reason I wait is to conserve my on peak data because as you said it is perceived as higher valued. If they're the same then that perception difference will be gone.

Prices would rise to cover link upgrades.. The more usage the users are supplied with, the higher the likelihood they will use it more often, and therefore capacity upgrades are more likely to be required.

It would remove the 'start of off peak' issue, but it would create a much worse situation.

[Dazzled]

With some of these proposed schemes we should remember that most customers barely touch their off-peak quota, and use only a fraction of the peak quota. Exetel's pricing will be based on an estimate of average throughput, not the habits of the keener downloaders.

[Yoshi_900]

i really dont care bout the 2 hours loss of off peak downloading. i am one of those ppl that start there downloads at 12 but its usually one and it downloads at 200kb/s (where i can download at 1mb/s for windows stuff)

could someone do a calculation on how much u could download in a month with 10 hours per day and 30 days at 300 kb/s ... and another one at 900 kb/s

just to see how much is possible to push though

[CoreyPlover]

could someone do a calculation on how much u could download in a month with 10 hours per day and 30 days at 300 kb/s ... and another one at 900 kb/s

10 hours per day x (assume) 30 days per month x 300KB/s = 324GB/month
10 hours per day x (assume) 30 days per month x 900KB/s = 972GB/month

You only need a sustained average speed of 56KB/s to max out your off-peak downloading at 10 hours/day

[Yoshi_900]

could someone do a calculation on how much u could download in a month with 10 hours per day and 30 days at 300 kb/s ... and another one at 900 kb/s

10 hours per day x (assume) 30 days per month x 300KB/s = 324GB/month
10 hours per day x (assume) 30 days per month x 900KB/s = 972GB/month

You only need a sustained average speed of 56KB/s to max out your off-peak downloading at 10 hours/day

well there u go so if ur speed is under 56KB/s then the 2 less hours are bad for u. everyone else should be sweet still

[tulett]

Let's get this back on topic with constructive suggestions.

This suggestion uses the previous three off-peak timeslots 0.00-12:00, 01:00-13:00 and 02:00-14:00.

Give everyone 14 days to nominate a timeslot. Those that don't choose get allocated a timeslot. If the timeslots are not balanced then reallocate selected timeslots. New users get allocated a timeslot (maybe let them choose). You could possibly set up an automated timeslot swapping service to allow users to change timeslots while keeping the timeslots balanced.

I also quite like the idea of larger off-peak data quota for less/changed off-peak hours. This would move the heavy downloaders to the least congested times, e.g.
20GB - 00:00-12:00 (12 hours)
30GB - 01:00-13:00 (12 hours)
40GB - 02:00-14:00 (12 hours)
60GB - 02:00-12:00 (10 hours) Default
80GB - 03:00-09:00 (6 hours)
Someone smarter than me can play with the numbers to acheive the neccessary spread of users/least whingers.

Comment:
I think it is quite reasonable for Exetel to adjust the off-peak usage as required. If Exetel have to buy additional bandwidth just to satify the midnight rush, then we have to pay for it. If they smooth out the usage we don't pay. I wish people would realise that one of the reasons Exetel can offer such cheap deals is that they manage their input costs, including bandwidth. I'm glad they do. I want my cheap, with frills, ISP to stay in business and stay cheap.

[aiki]

Maybe from another perspective, an option to have an alloction for lighter users of say 10 to 20gb all up with no peak or off peak.
Exetel will know what they can allocate for the price, I think it could be a good alternative for "average" users.

[RedTail5]

How about 50% of the users get shifted on the 2am-2pm one month, and the others get stay on the 12am to 12pm, for the month. Then the two groups of users can alternate each month.

[soaper]

i there some reasn why people have to start down loads at 12mn??

i truly dont understand that.

i dont do heavy downloads, but if i did, i imagine i would learn how to manage that download and program for whatever were the decided off peak hours

since no one is going to loose the *capacity* to actually get their allotted amounts .......i just cant see the problem in change.
the ones like me who want to watch something at 12 mn other than a near frozen screen, will also have the negative fact that we are eating into our peak amount.
or maybe there is a way to download Iview and save it up that i dont know of ??

some parts of the change affects us all.... but last i heard .......humans have the power to adapt.
i hope it hasnt been bred out of us yet ???????

a very duhhhhhhh question.
if it so happens that a lot of heavy downloaders are on one same exchange........does that make that exchange more over loaded?
if so how can u program some of the proposed changes to make things better if all the heavies were living nearby each other?

[dgabriel]

From what i can tell the source of negativity is
1. Not being compensated in the peak quota (more chance of going over peak limit now)
2. That everyone hasn't been put in the same boat

If possible add an extra 1-2gig to peak quota and put EVERYONE on 2am-12pm off-peak.

[ryanb]

From what i can tell the source of negativity is
1. Not being compensated in the peak quota (more chance of going over peak limit now)
2. That everyone hasn't been put in the same boat

If possible add an extra 1-2gig to peak quota and put EVERYONE on 2am-12pm off-peak.

Bit slow aren't you? This thread is about managing congestion, not whining about the decision.

Anyway, have a read through this thread and it should address your concerns: http://forum.exetel.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=32839