Any terms in capitals not defined in these Usage Policies will have the same meaning as in your Contract. These Usage Policies apply to you and anybody you allow to use Sky Broadband. Any reference to “you” shall be interpreted to mean you and anybody you allow to use Sky Broadband. You are responsible for the use of Sky Broadband by any person you allow to use it including anyone who accesses Sky Broadband because you have removed the wireless encryption security on your Wireless Router.
How we update our Usage Policies
The way our customers use Sky Broadband is changing all the time so we may need to change our Usage Policies to adapt to our customer’s needs. Our latest Usage Policies will always be posted on our website at www.sky.com so please keep checking for updates.
USAGE CAPS
Broadband
If you subscribe to a Product that has a cap on the amount of data that you download or upload via your Sky Broadband internet access each month ("Usage Cap"), your usage must not exceed that Usage Cap each month. For the current Usage Caps on each Product, please go to www.sky.com/broadband.
If you exceed your Usage Cap, we will contact you to let you know that you have done so.
If, in subsequent months, your usage continues to exceed your Usage Cap, we will continue to contact you to ask you to reduce your usage immediately. If after a reasonable period of time your usage still exceeds your Usage Cap, then we may do one or more of the following things by notice in writing (including by email):
(a) charge you fair and reasonable costs for your usage (and any reasonable administration costs) in excess of your Usage Cap;
(b) change your subscription to a Product with a higher Usage Cap, in which case we would also notify you of the new price you will be charged;
(c) suspend your use of Sky Broadband for the relevant month; or
(d) end your Contract in accordance with Condition 11 of your Contract;
Sky Broadband Max gives you unlimited downloads of music, movies, sports clips and online gaming - no fair use policy applies.
E-mail
Whatever Product you take there are also limits on the use of the Sky Broadband email accounts by you and anyone you allow to use an email account.
(a) There is an upper limit on the size of each mailbox account. This will restrict the amount of Messages you are able to store in your mailbox account using Sky Broadband; and
(b) There is an upper limit to the size of each Message which you can send using a Sky Broadband email account.
You must not exceed these usage limits.
You must only use a Sky Broadband e-mail account for normal e-mail purposes and not, for example, as a storage facility. For the current usage limits, please go to www.sky.com/email.
If you exceed these email usage limits or use a Sky Broadband e-mail account for abnormal purposes, for example the storage of large files, then we may immediately suspend the email account or we may send you an email telling you to reduce your mailbox size or usage (as the case may be). If you do not act on our notification we may then suspend the relevant email account, or end your Contract in accordance with Condition 11 of your Contract.
SKY BROADBAND CONNECT TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT POLICY
In addition to the monthly Usage Cap, this Traffic Management Policy applies to you if you take Sky Broadband Connect.
Excessive use during peak time
We will monitor your Sky Broadband usage during peak times from 5pm to 12am each day. This is when the majority of customers use the network and when speeds could be affected by the excessive usage of a minority. If we consider that your usage is excessive during peak times we may slow down your connection for the rest of the day so that it has less affect on others. Only a very small number of customers will be affected by this (less than 2%). If you are affected, we will only slow down the speed you can get during peak times for applications which use a lot of bandwidth (for example, streaming, peer-to-peer and newsgroups) and which have a negative affect on other customers. You will still be able to use Sky Broadband to do other things normally such as browsing, email, instant messaging and VOIP. There are no restrictions in place outside of peak times.
Traffic management of our Network
To ensure we provide a sustainable quality broadband service to our customers, we continuously monitor and efficiently manage the Sky Network as a whole. To do this, during peak times (from 5pm to 12am each day), we may slow down the speed that all Sky Broadband Connect customers can get on certain applications which we consider use up a lot of bandwidth (for example peer-to-peer and newsgroups) and which have a negative affect on other customers There are no restrictions in place for applications such as browsing, email, streaming, instant messaging and VOIP during peak times. We do not put restrictions on our network outside of peak times.
ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY
Irrespective of which Product you have subscribed to, our Acceptable Use Policy (“AUP”) will apply to you and those who you allow to use Sky Broadband.
If you have any queries about our AUP, you can contact us by emailing abuse@sky.com.
Don't use Sky Broadband illegally!
Sky Broadband and the Sky Network may only be used for lawful purposes in accordance with all laws, statutes and regulations in force from time to time in the United Kingdom (“Laws”).
You may not use Sky Broadband and/or the Sky Network to send, receive, store, distribute, transmit, post, upload or download any materials or data which:
• violates any Law;
• is defamatory, offensive, abusive, indecent, obscene, or constitutes harassment;
• is or may be harmful to minors;
• promotes or encourages illegal or socially unacceptable or irresponsible behaviour;
• is in breach of any third party rights (including any third party intellectual property rights);
• has any fraudulent purpose or effect or involves you impersonating another person or otherwise misrepresenting yourself as the source of any communication; or
• damages or may damage our name and/or reputation or the name and/or reputation of our sub-contractors or agents.
We have put technical measures in place to prevent you from accessing certain websites that contain illegal images of child abuse that are identified from time to time by the Internet Watch Foundation ("IWF"). Although these filters are comprehensive, they do not provide an absolute guarantee that you will be unable to view such illegal images on the internet. In addition, these measures do not filter other content which you may find distasteful, such as "adult" material. On this basis, we recommend that you consider installing additional software on your computer to prevent access to inappropriate websites or content on the internet.
For further information regarding the IWF, please visit their website at www.iwf.org.uk.
Do not violate anyone's systems or network security
You must not use Sky Broadband to violate Sky Network’s security or any third party’s system or network security by any method including:
• unauthorised access to or use of data, systems or networks, including any attempt to probe, scan or test the vulnerability of a system or network;
• unauthorised monitoring of data or traffic on any network or system without the express authorisation of the owner of the system or network; or
• unauthorised interference with any user, host, system or network without the express authorisation of the owner of the system or network.
You must not send, receive, store, distribute, transmit, post, upload or download any materials that are designed to violate Sky Network’s security or any third party’s system or network security. Examples of such prohibited material may include (but are not limited to):
• programs containing viruses, worms, corrupted files, hoaxes, Trojan horses or any other items of a destructive or deceptive nature;
• tools designed to compromise the security of other sites;
• programs or services designed to send or facilitate the sending of unsolicited advertisements; or
• programs or services designed to encourage or facilitate a breach of this AUP or any acceptable use policy of another internet services provider.
You must not connect the Sky Network to insecure machines or services able to be exploited by others to carry out actions which constitute a breach of this AUP.
You must not adapt, modify, decompile or reverse engineer any part of Sky Broadband.
You are responsible for all materials and/or data originating from the machines and/or networks that you have connected to the Sky Network. You must immediately disconnect (and subsequently secure prior to reconnection) machines generating materials and/or data which contravene this AUP once notified of such activity by Sky.
Messages
You must not send Messages to anyone who does not wish to receive them. We acknowledge that email and instant messaging are informal methods of communication however you must refrain from sending Messages to another user after receiving a request to stop.
You must not send unsolicited bulk Messages or any other form of abusive electronic communication. In particular, unsolicited advertising mailings (whether commercial or informational) are strictly prohibited.
You must not operate, host, provide hosting facilities to or assist in any way any web site, email address, or any other online service which is advertised or promoted by means of unsolicited bulk Messages (whether commercial or informational), any mass messaging facility or any other form of abusive electronic communication.
You must not send, distribute, or reply to mail-bombs. Mail-bombing is either sending copies of a single message to many users, or sending large or multiple files or messages to a single user with the intention of disrupting their internet experience.
You must not use false Message headers or alter the headers of Messages to conceal their email address or to prevent internet users from responding to messages. You must not use any email address that you are not authorised to use.
You must not suggest or imply that any Message you send is from, authorised or endorsed by, any Sky company or relates to any Sky business.
We will scan your incoming Messages for viruses and remove any Messages from the Sky Network which contain viruses. Although these filters are comprehensive, they do not provide an absolute guarantee that you will not receive viruses via Messages and you are advised to install appropriate anti-virus software on your computer.
We will scan your incoming Messages for spam and move any suspected spam to a separate folder in your email account where you can inspect it to ensure that non-spam Messages hasn’t been inadvertently identified as spam. Items of suspected spam will be deleted after 30 days.
World Wide Web and surfing the net
You will be solely responsible for your use of the internet and any web pages owned and/or operated by you that you connect to the Sky Network using Sky Broadband. You must not use world wide web pages within or outside the Sky Network to violate any part of this AUP or to disrupt or attempt to disrupt another internet user’s internet experience.
How do you make a complaint?
If you wish to notify us of a breach of this AUP, or if you wish to make a complaint regarding content, data or material that has been stored and/or accessed via the Sky Network or Sky Broadband, please email us at
The actions we can take
Firstly, you should be aware that we will block any electronic communication that we reasonably consider to have breached this AUP.
Secondly, if you have breached this AUP, or we or a third party, reasonably suspect that you may have breached this AUP we will notify you by email (provided that this notification does not prejudice any investigation) and we may also:
(a) immediately suspend your access to Sky Broadband until such time as we are satisfied the breach has stopped;
(b) immediately end your Sky Broadband Contract;
(c) notify and/or pass on the details of the breach of the AUP to any relevant government, statutory, self-regulatory or law enforcement authority;
(d) investigate the alleged breach of the AUP, which may include gathering information from you and/or the complaining party (if any) and the examination of any other data or material on the Sky Network or our servers;
(e) remove (either temporarily or permanently), copy, store, monitor or otherwise deal with data and/or other material on the Sky Network and/or our servers; or
(f) suspend some or all of your Email Tools.
Sky will use your personal data and other account information in connection with any investigation carried out by Sky in accordance with this AUP, including by disclosing it to any third party authority that Sky considers has a legitimate interest in any such investigation or its outcome.
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SKY GROUP COMPANY DETAILS
Sky Broadband S.A. Société Anonyme. 23 Avenue Monterey, L-2086 Luxembourg R.C.S. Luxemburg B-118.641.
Sky In-Home Service Limited is registered in England (No. 2067075). Registered office: Grant Way, Isleworth, Middlesex TW7 5QD, UK.
Sky Subscribers Services Limited is registered in England (No. 2340150). Registered office: Grant Way Isleworth, Middlesex TW7 5QD, UK.
British Sky Broadcasting Limited is registered in England (No. 2906991). Registered office: Grant Way Isleworth, Middlesex TW7 5QD, UK.
Easynet Telecommunications Limited is registered in England (No. 2883980). Registered office: 44-46 Whitfield Street London W1T 2RJ.
THIRD PARTY COMPANIES
Google Inc.is registered in America. Registered office: 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, United States.
Google Ireland Limited is registered in Ireland (No. 02906991). Registered office: Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4.
You can read Ofcom's Voluntary Code Of Practice: Broadband Speeds by downloading our PDF of this document (requires Adobe Reader or similar).
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