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Virgin Media Cable Traffic management policy

We don’t like traffic jams

At Virgin Media, we want all our customers to get the best possible broadband service. That means speedy downloads for all customers - not just a few.

When someone is downloading and/or uploading a particularly large amount of information over a long period of time, it can slow down the broadband speed for other users in their area who might just be checking their email or browsing online. So to make sure our service is fair for everybody, we sometimes moderate the speeds of customers who are downloading and/or uploading an unusually large amount.

This helps to ensure that the service doesn't get blocked up with people using more than their fair share - which means less traffic jams.

What traffic management policies are you applying to the heaviest users?

That can depend on the broadband package you're signed up to and the type of online applications you are using.

For detailed information on how we manage individual customers who are uploading or downloading an unusually large amount of data click here.

This policy only affects the top 5% of customers on a daily basis - those whose usage of the service would affect other customers in their area if they weren't managed.

File Sharing:

We also moderate the total volume of file sharing traffic on our network between 5pm and midnight on weekdays and midday and midnight on weekends. This policy, which applies to all broadband packages, is restricted to Peer to Peer (“P2P”) applications and Newsgroups (which are commonly used to distribute large amounts of data)

This policy does not impact any applications other than Peer to Peer and Newsgroups, so things like watching iPlayer, online gaming, making calls via Skype, downloading music tracks from iTunes or streaming them from Spotify and sending an email or normal browsing are unaffected.

It's important to remember that these traffic management policies only apply at peak times when speeds are most likely to be affected by people using more than their fair share. Outside of peak times we do not manage traffic.

How do I know if I’m a heavy user?

The table below and the example that follows will help you understand what we classify as heavy usage:

File/activity type	Approximate size
Music track	4MB
Movie	700MB
30 minutes streaming a TV programme (at 800kbps)	175MB
HD movie	4GB

As an example, a size: XL customer on our 20Mb service can download 3,500MB between 4pm and 9pm on a weekday before they are traffic managed. During this time that customer would have to download 5 standard definition movies or 875 songs before a 5 hour temporary speed reduction was applied, and even then they can of course continue to browse the web and use services like the iPlayer without interruption.

How often will you change this policy?

The way that our customers use their broadband is changing all the time, so in the future we will adapt the policy in order to continue to provide the best service possible for all customers. Don't worry though, we'll always let you know on our website if we're going to make any changes, and its not going to change very often.

Heavy User Traffic Management policy

This management policy applies to the following broadband packages:

If your broadband has been upgraded to improved upload speeds, there's a separate traffic management policy for you.

If you’re in an improved upload enabled area, click here.

Click the Traffic Managament table below to see the full size table.

Section 1: Traffic management in relation to your broadband product (not including during busy times and places to manage network congestion see Section 2)
Name of broadband product: Broadband Size: M (10Mb)
Use and availability of services, content, application and protocols on this product
Are any services, content, applications or protocols always blocked on this product?**			N
If so what?	N/A
Are any services, content, applications or protocols always prioritised?			N
If so what?	N/A
Are any managed services delivered on this product?			N
If so what? What impact?	N/A
Data caps and downloads
What are the download/upload limits or data usage caps on this product?			Unlimited service
Is traffic management used to manage compliance with data caps and download limits?			N
Under what circumstances?	N/A
Level of speed reduction?	N/A
Duration of speed reduction?	N/A
Is traffic management used in relation to heavy users?			Y
Under what circumstances?	We manage downstream traffic each day between the hours of 10am to 3pm and 4pm to 9pm. We manage upstream traffic between the hours of 3pm to 8pm. This typically impacts less than 5% of users per day, and ensures the vast majority of customers have a great online experience when they want to use the internet the most.
Level of speed reduction?	75%
Duration of speed reduction?	5 hours
Section 2: Traffic management to optimise network utilisation (what happens during busy times and places in addition to traffic management as described in section 1)
Is traffic management used during peak hours?		Y
When are typical peak hours?	Weekdays: 5pm until 12am	Weekends: 12pm until 12am
What type of traffic is managed during these periods?***
Traffic type	Blocked	Slowed down	Prioritised
Peer to Peer (P2P)		p
Newsgroups		p
Browsing/email
VOIP (Voice over IP)
Gaming
Audio streaming
Video streaming
Music downloads
Video downloads
Instant messaging
Software updates
Is traffic management used to manage congestion in particular locations?			N
If so how?			N/A

* This KFI gives an overview of typical traffic management practices undertaken on this product; it does not cover circumstances where exceptional external events may impact on network congestion levels. **This excludes any service, content, application or protocol that an ISP is required to block by UK law and child abuse images as informed by the list provided by the Internet Watch Foundation. ***If no entry is shown against a particular traffic type, no traffic management is typically applied to it.

Large Package

Section 1: Traffic management in relation to your broadband product (not including during busy times and places to manage network congestion see Section 2)
Name of broadband product: Broadband Size: L (10Mb)
Use and availability of services, content, application and protocols on this product
Are any services, content, applications or protocols always blocked on this product?**			N
If so what?	N/A
Are any services, content, applications or protocols always prioritised?			N
If so what?	N/A
Are any managed services delivered on this product?			N
If so what? What impact?	N/A
Data caps and downloads
What are the download/upload limits or data usage caps on this product?			Unlimited service
Is traffic management used to manage compliance with data caps and download limits?			N
Under what circumstances?	N/A
Level of speed reduction?	N/A
Duration of speed reduction?	N/A
Is traffic management used in relation to heavy users?			Y
Under what circumstances?	We manage downstream traffic each day between the hours of 10am to 3pm and 4pm to 9pm. We manage upstream traffic between the hours of 3pm to 8pm. This typically impacts less than 5% of users per day, and ensures the vast majority of customers have a great online experience when they want to use the internet the most.
Level of speed reduction?	75%
Duration of speed reduction?	5 hours
Section 2: Traffic management to optimise network utilisation (what happens during busy times and places in addition to traffic management as described in section 1)
Is traffic management used during peak hours?		Y
When are typical peak hours?	Weekdays: 5pm until 12am	Weekends: 12pm until 12am
What type of traffic is managed during these periods?***
Traffic type	Blocked	Slowed down	Prioritised
Peer to Peer (P2P)		p
Newsgroups		p
Browsing/email
VOIP (Voice over IP)
Gaming
Audio streaming
Video streaming
Music downloads
Video downloads
Instant messaging
Software updates
Is traffic management used to manage congestion in particular locations?			N
If so how?			N/A

*This KFI gives an overview of typical traffic management practices undertaken on this product; it does not cover circumstances where exceptional external events may impact on network congestion levels.**This excludes any service, content, application or protocol that an ISP is required to block by UK law and child abuse images as informed by the list provided by the Internet Watch Foundation.***If no entry is shown against a particular traffic type, no traffic management is typically applied to it.

XL Package

Section 1: Traffic management in relation to your broadband product (not including during busy times and places to manage network congestion see Section 2)
Name of broadband product: Broadband Size: XL (20Mb / 30Mb)
Use and availability of services, content, application and protocols on this product
Are any services, content, applications or protocols always blocked on this product?**			N
If so what?	N/A
Are any services, content, applications or protocols always prioritised?			N
If so what?	N/A
Are any managed services delivered on this product?			N
If so what? What impact?	N/A
Data caps and downloads
What are the download/upload limits or data usage caps on this product?			Unlimited service
Is traffic management used to manage compliance with data caps and download limits?			N
Under what circumstances?	N/A
Level of speed reduction?	N/A
Duration of speed reduction?	N/A
Is traffic management used in relation to heavy users?			Y
Under what circumstances?	We manage downstream traffic each day between the hours of 10am to 3pm and 4pm to 9pm. We manage upstream traffic between the hours of 3pm to 8pm. This typically impacts less than 5% of users per day, and ensures the vast majority of customers have a great online experience when they want to use the internet the most.
Level of speed reduction?	75%
Duration of speed reduction?	5 hours
Section 2: Traffic management to optimise network utilisation (what happens during busy times and places in addition to traffic management as described in section 1)
Is traffic management used during peak hours?		Y
When are typical peak hours?	Weekdays: 5pm until 12am	Weekends: 12pm until 12am
What type of traffic is managed during these periods?***
Traffic type	Blocked	Slowed down	Prioritised
Peer to Peer (P2P)		p
Newsgroups		p
Browsing/email
VOIP (Voice over IP)
Gaming
Audio streaming
Video streaming
Music downloads
Video downloads
Instant messaging
Software updates
Is traffic management used to manage congestion in particular locations?			N
If so how?			N/A

*This KFI gives an overview of typical traffic management practices undertaken on this product; it does not cover circumstances where exceptional external events may impact on network congestion levels. **This excludes any service, content, application or protocol that an ISP is required to block by UK law and child abuse images as informed by the list provided by the Internet Watch Foundation.***If no entry is shown against a particular traffic type, no traffic management is typically applied to it.

XXL Package

Section 1: Traffic management in relation to your broadband product (not including during busy times and places to manage network congestion see Section 2)
Name of broadband product: Broadband Size: XXL (50Mb) – information below relates to areas that have been upgraded to new and improved upstream speeds.
Use and availability of services, content, application and protocols on this product
Are any services, content, applications or protocols always blocked on this product?**			N
If so what?	N/A
Are any services, content, applications or protocols always prioritised?			N
If so what?	N/A
Are any managed services delivered on this product?			N
If so what? What impact?	N/A
Data caps and downloads
What are the download/upload limits or data usage caps on this product?			Unlimited service
Is traffic management used to manage compliance with data caps and download limits?			N
Under what circumstances?	N/A
Level of speed reduction?	N/A
Duration of speed reduction?	N/A
Is traffic management used in relation to heavy users?			Y
Under what circumstances?	For areas that have from the free upstream upgrade to 5Mb, we manage upstream traffic each day between the hours of 3pm to 8pm. This typically impacts less than 5% of users per day, and ensures the vast majority of customers have a great online experience when they want to use the internet the most. We do not manage downstream traffic at a subscriber level on this product.
Level of speed reduction?	65% reduction of upstream speed in areas that have from the upstream speed upgrade to 5Mb.
Duration of speed reduction?	5 hours
Section 2: Traffic management to optimise network utilisation (what happens during busy times and places in addition to traffic management as described in section 1)
Is traffic management used during peak hours?		Y
When are typical peak hours?	Weekdays: 5pm until 12am	Weekends: 12pm until 12am
What type of traffic is managed during these periods?***
Traffic type	Blocked	Slowed down	Prioritised
Peer to Peer (P2P)		p
Newsgroups		p
Browsing/email
VOIP (Voice over IP)
Gaming
Audio streaming
Video streaming
Music downloads
Video downloads
Instant messaging
Software updates
Is traffic management used to manage congestion in particular locations?			N
If so how?			N/A

*This KFI gives an overview of typical traffic management practices undertaken on this product; it does not cover circumstances where exceptional external events may impact on network congestion levels.**This excludes any service, content, application or protocol that an ISP is required to block by UK law and child abuse images as informed by the list provided by the Internet Watch Foundation.***If no entry is shown against a particular traffic type, no traffic management is typically applied to it.

100 MB Package

Section 1: Traffic management in relation to your broadband product (not including during busy times and places to manage network congestion see Section 2)
Name of broadband product: Broadband Size: 100 (100Mb)
Use and availability of services, content, application and protocols on this product
Are any services, content, applications or protocols always blocked on this product?**			N
If so what?	N/A
Are any services, content, applications or protocols always prioritised?			N
If so what?	N/A
Are any managed services delivered on this product?			N
If so what? What impact?	N/A
Data caps and downloads
What are the download/upload limits or data usage caps on this product?			Unlimited service
Is traffic management used to manage compliance with data caps and download limits?			N
Under what circumstances?	N/A
Level of speed reduction?	N/A
Duration of speed reduction?	N/A
Is traffic management used in relation to heavy users?			N
Under what circumstances?	N/A
Level of speed reduction?	N/A
Duration of speed reduction?	N/A
Section 2: Traffic management to optimise network utilisation (what happens during busy times and places in addition to traffic management as described in section 1)
Is traffic management used during peak hours?		Y
When are typical peak hours?	Weekdays: 5pm until 12am	Weekends: 12pm until 12am
What type of traffic is managed during these periods?***
Traffic type	Blocked	Slowed down	Prioritised
Peer to Peer (P2P)		p
Newsgroups		p
Browsing/email
VOIP (Voice over IP)
Gaming
Audio streaming
Video streaming
Music downloads
Video downloads
Instant messaging
Software updates
Is traffic management used to manage congestion in particular locations?			N
If so how?			N/A

* This KFI gives an overview of typical traffic management practices undertaken on this product; it does not cover circumstances where exceptional external events may impact on network congestion levels. **This excludes any service, content, application or protocol that an ISP is required to block by UK law and child abuse images as informed by the list provided by the Internet Watch Foundation.***If no entry is shown against a particular traffic type, no traffic management is typically applied to it.

Small Package

Section 1: Traffic management in relation to your broadband product (not including during busy times and places to manage network congestion see Section 2)
Name of broadband product: Broadband Size: S (2Mb)
Use and availability of services, content, application and protocols on this product
Are any services, content, applications or protocols always blocked on this product?**			N
If so what?	N/A
Are any services, content, applications or protocols always prioritised?			N
If so what?	N/A
Are any managed services delivered on this product?			N
If so what? What impact?	N/A
Data caps and downloads
What are the download/upload limits or data usage caps on this product?			Unlimited service
Is traffic management used to manage compliance with data caps and download limits?			N
Under what circumstances?	N/A
Level of speed reduction?	N/A
Duration of speed reduction?	N/A
Is traffic management used in relation to heavy users?			Y
Under what circumstances?	We manage traffic each day between the hours of 9am to 9pm. This typically impacts less than 5% of users per day, and ensures the vast majority of customers have a great online experience when they want to use the internet the most.
Level of speed reduction?	75% of downstream speed, 50% of upstream speed
Duration of speed reduction?	12 hours
Section 2: Traffic management to optimise network utilisation (what happens during busy times and places in addition to traffic management as described in section 1)
Is traffic management used during peak hours?		Y
When are typical peak hours?	Weekdays: 5pm until 12am	Weekends: 12pm until 12am
What type of traffic is managed during these periods?***
Traffic type	Blocked	Slowed down	Prioritised
Peer to Peer (P2P)		p
Newsgroups		p
Browsing/email
VOIP (Voice over IP)
Gaming
Audio streaming
Video streaming
Music downloads
Video downloads
Instant messaging
Software updates
Is traffic management used to manage congestion in particular locations?			N
If so how?			N/A

* This KFI gives an overview of typical traffic management practices undertaken on this product; it does not cover circumstances where exceptional external events may impact on network congestion levels.**This excludes any service, content, application or protocol that an ISP is required to block by UK law and child abuse images as informed by the list provided by the Internet Watch Foundation.***If no entry is shown against a particular traffic type, no traffic management is typically applied to it.

Glossary
Traffic management:

Traffic management is the term used to describe a range of technical practices undertaken to manage traffic across networks.

The different outcomes achieved by the use of technical practices can include:

the prioritisation of certain types of traffic in busy times or busy areas to ensure that it is of an adequate quality
the slowing down of certain traffic types that are not time-critical at busy times or busy places
ensuring compliance with a consumer’s contract, for example slowing down of traffic for the heaviest users
supporting the delivery of managed services, for example to ensure a guaranteed quality of service for a specific piece of content

Managed services: The majority of internet traffic is delivered on a "best efforts" basis. A managed service, on the other hand is one whereby an ISP offers "quality of service" that can guarantee a certain level of performance, so that the content, service or application can be delivered without risk of degradation from network congestion. Such a quality of service arrangement can be made between an ISP and a content or service provider or directly between an ISP and the consumer.

Best Efforts: This phrase relates to the delivery of internet traffic where traffic management is applied without distinctions based on the source of that traffic.

Slowed down: This outcome is achieved by the deployment of technologies that can decrease the priority of traffic types deemed to be non-time critical on the network e.g. slowing down traffic such as downloads during busy times and busy periods.

Prioritised: This outcome is achieved by the deployment of technologies that increase the priority given to certain traffic types, e.g. time-critical traffic such as video. This outcome can also be achieved as a consequence of slowing down other selected traffic which reduces the overall data flow on the network.

Heavy users: Heavy users can cause peak traffic volumes to exceed the engineered maximum load. In practice this refers to a very small proportion of users of a network whose use is excessive to the extent that it impacts on other users.　

As a founder member of the Broadband Stakeholder Group, and a principal participant in its transparency Code of Practice initiative, we are committed to being transparent about our traffic management policy. Click here to view Key Facts Indicators (KFIs) for all our cable broadband products. You can access more information about the Code of Practice at: http://www.broadbanduk.org/content/view/479/7/.

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Help for Cable customers

Broadband and Internet :

Broadband Connection

Virgin Media Cable Traffic management policy

We don’t like traffic jams

What traffic management policies are you applying to the heaviest users?

File Sharing:

How do I know if I’m a heavy user?

How often will you change this policy?

Heavy User Traffic Management policy

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Help for Cable customers

Broadband and Internet :

Broadband Connection

Virgin Media Cable Traffic management policy

We don’t like traffic jams

What traffic management policies are you applying to the heaviest users?

File Sharing:

How do I know if I’m a heavy user?

How often will you change this policy?

Heavy User Traffic Management policy

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