Verizon’s FiOS broadband service might technically be uncapped but often the company may reach out to users who consume an excessive amount of bandwidth to threaten them with disconnection if the usage behavior doesn’t change. Most users who use this “unlimited” service should be good since the point that triggers a response from Verizon appears to be quite high and it has to be consistent over several months. Verizon did recently reach out to a FiOS user who consumed 7TB of bandwidth for a few consecutive months.
The letter sent to that user by Verizon reads that the company has taken notice of “excessive usage” on their account, adding that the internet usage level “violates the TOS.” Verizon then threatens the customer with disconnection if the excessive usage continues after May 31st.
The user pays $315 per month for Verizon’s 500Mbps plan but the letter they’ve received doesn’t point out what the acceptable bandwidth usage limit is. This obviously leads to confusion and a lack of clarity about the allowed limits on a technically uncapped connection.
Verizon goes on to propose an alternative to the user if they don’t want to decrease the usage that involves signing up for a Verizon Business package that caters to such high usage, albeit for a higher price.
Update: Verizon has emailed us a statement in which it vaguely explains the excessive bandwidth usage a customer must exhibit before they’re ultimately told to tone it down or move to a business connection.
“Verizon’s robust broadband networks enable our customers to go where they want and do what they want online. Every customer agrees to and is expected to comply with the terms of service for the type of product they have chosen to purchase. For example, we distinguish between residential services and business-class services. Business-class services are designed to meet significantly higher requirements than those utilized by residential/consumer customers.
“A small number of FiOS Internet residential service customers are consuming volumes of data every month at levels that far exceed the monthly residential customer average for their service. To put this in context, FiOS Internet residential customers we have contacted would have to watch at least 6,660 movies per month or 222 movies per day to consume the amount of data they are using per month. We have asked these customers who are using their home Internet service at these volumes to (1) curb their usage; or (2) consider changing to a business-class service that is appropriate for their data usage.
“Verizon’s broadband networks provide a remarkably reliable and robust home Internet experience. The terms of service help ensure a consistent experience for every customer.”
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