Confused?

Shared bandwidth is network service that is not dedicated to a single user. For instance, a 1024Kbps download by 128Kbps upload (1024x128) shared service may not actually reach 1024x128 speeds at all times.

Each provider has different methods for how they share bandwidth. Hughes, Satlynx and Tachyon offer contended (shared) services, in which the bandwidth is distributed. iDirect is an additional service available, which offers both contended and dedicated options. Please refer to Internet Speeds and Contention Ratios Explained for further information.

Providers use shared bandwidth schemes in order to lower the cost of providing Internet service. By predicting how frequently a channel will be used, they can split usage of expensive dedicated channels among multiple users. Shared bandwidth systems typically cost 1/4 to 1/10 as much as dedicated bandwidth.

All advertised speeds, independent of which company one is referring to, pertain to a 'site' and are independent of how many IP addresses that 'site' has.

Hughes DirecWay, now utilizing the new WA3 satellite with 256Kbps in-route speeds, is a shared bandwidth system and shares each bandwidth channel among multiple customers. Hughes advertises common averages for each service because download rates may not reach the maximum. In reality, Servicesat has found, that even these advertised averages can sometimes be unreachable, during peak hours.

Operating a sophisticated Fair Access Policy (FAP) mechanism, Hughes monitors traffic to each site in real time. The system is designed to punish sites that are doing continuous downloads for extended periods of time. In reality, the VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) can download a lot more per day if the traffic patterns are evenly spread out during the day.

Hughes FAP has two levels of throttling. Once you reach the first level of data volume it applies a "soft" throttle that restricts you to half of your burst speed. Should the continuous download be sustained the system enters a "hard" throttle state where you are restricted to less than 64Kbps.

When traffic stops, the system slowly comes out of the throttling mode. If the system has reached a state of hard throttle, it could take as long as 12 hours to clear and start fresh.

Our experience shows that if a system is used for browsing, e-mail, chat, and some reasonable downloads then there is no issue of FAP. FAP primarily enters the equation when heavy downloading such as music and movies occurs.

Tachyon service is technically a shared bandwidth system. However, Tachyon service uses a "priority" system that is different from Hughes' service. When service is prioritized, it is similar to dedicated bandwidth.

Under this system, customer traffic is given priority as long as the contracted data limits are not exceeded. Therefore, the upload and download speeds are 95% guaranteed for 95% of the time, while within these data limits. This feature forms the basis of their Service Level Agreement (SLA), and is a major differentiator from other suppliers.

Tachyon's services are slightly more expensive which may, in part, be due to the standards offered in their SLA. Top-up data amounts, in increments of 500MB and 1000MB, can also be purchased on a month-to-month basis, if monthly data limits have been exceeded. This can be a one off purchase or every month. However, if you were 'topping-up' every month, it would probably be wise to switch to a higher service level.

Satlynx uses its best efforts to provide the speeds quoted in their various grades of service. Satlynx will allocate bandwidth according to the amount of capacity ordered. The volume of inbound and outbound data consumed by each VSAT will be monitored and volume in excess of the amount ordered will either trigger additional fees (volume based pricing) or result in a degradation of the speed of service (FUP). One of these options can be selected along with the activation of service. Clients have the opportunity to purchase further data amounts (top-up) in increments of 1000MB or wait until the next 30-day period.

Inbound and outbound data volumes will be measured independently and will cause the implementation of individual traffic restrictions. Outbound restrictions will be applied on a VSAT if the measured outbound volume exceeds the defined outbound threshold of the service provided, inbound restrictions will be applied accordingly based on the defined inbound threshold. The restrictions will be removed once the aggregated volume for the defined period goes below the threshold again.

Users are likely to avoid these restrictions if their use is typical for the majority of Internet users and comprises Web surfing and a reasonable amount of data download. Typical behavior that may incur restriction comes from excessive use of peer-to-peer (file-sharing programs) and supplying large communities of PC's connected to a single VSAT.

The iDirect solution was developed to be inherently flexible; specifically to meet the changing communications needs of developing markets. IDirect offers contended (shared) and dedicated service. iDirect's contended service offers a variety of services with contention ratios ranging from 4:1 to 50:1 and iDirect's dedicated service can be designed to suit your business needs.

The iDirect technology can support three types of services:

Shared access

An individual site shares the same capacity with other sites of independent interests. The Service provider controls the contention ratio and enforces a Fair Access Policy to restrict service abusers. The service is usually defined by burst data rates and a contention ratio.

Dedicated capacity point to point or point to Teleport

Specific capacity is assigned to a site. The capacity could be for connectivity of the site to the Teleport or to another site. The service is defined by the transmit and receive data rates. The benefit of the iDirect based dedicated capacity service is the simplicity of the VSAT HW (as opposed to the more traditional SCPC/DVB systems) and the built in TCP/IP acceleration.

Dedicated capacity multipoint to teleport

Specific capacity is assigned to a group of sites of common interest (Corporate customer type). The capacity is shared amongst these sites only. Priorities can be set to differentiate sites. In its simplest form the service is defined by the transmit and receive data rates of the dedicated capacity.

With a large variety of choices, the iDirect solution can be used by a variety of types of users although it is especially beneficial to large organizations through its offering of a variety of services including, but not limited to, VPN, large file transfer (including image transfers), and video.