Fargo, Odessa, and Emporia customers now have services with Unlimited data!
Customers on our ''Plus'' plans that sign up with us after February 1, 2018:
All plus plans sold after February 1, 2018 include unlimited data. Customers who use more than 5TB of data during a data cycle may be subject to reduced speeds of 10Mbps x 1Mbps for the remainder of their billing period.
Please refer to the Acceptable Use Policy for details concerning data plans and data policies.
Other Customers (Not on ''Plus'' plans sold after February 1, 2018):
All Internet plans include a data plan as outlined in the Acceptable Use Policy. However, after February 1, 2018 and until further notice, customers who are not on ''Plus'' plans will no longer receive notifications if they use more data than their data plan. The data plan will still appear on the bill and when a customer logs into their account, however, overage notifications will no longer be sent.
Additionally, until further notice, the data policy as outlined in the Acceptable Use Policy for customers who use more than their data plan will not be applied.
Customers who use more than 5TB of data during a data cycle may be subject to reduced speeds of 10Mbps x 1Mbps for the remainder of their billing period.
- Q: How will I know the amount of data usage I have used during the current billing cycle?
- A: Sparklight has a personalized section on your online customer portal, which will give you up-to-date, detailed information on your daily and monthly data usage. This is available by logging into the customer portal.
- Q: What is and is not counted towards the data usage?
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A: Any task using the Internet is counted. This includes checking email, surfing the Internet, uploading and downloading documents, pictures and files, downloading and streaming music and movies, gaming, online chat, visiting social media sites, and VOIP telephone service. Sparklight Phone service data is not counted as part of data usage.
- Q: What is a usage meter?
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A: A usage meter is a program used to measure the amount of data you are using and is available to you 24/7. You can view this usage meter on your online account.
- Q: How do I know that my usage is being gathered accurately?
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A: Data collection is gathered using an industry-standard protocol called IPDR (Internet Protocol Detail Record). IPDR is a software-based technology that counts data usage on a per-subscriber basis using the customer's cable modem MAC address. Since a MAC address is used to collect data usage, upstream and downstream data usage for any device(s) connected through or to the modem is collected.
NetForecast is a 3rd party company that independently audits the accuracy of Internet Service Providers' data usage meters, drawing on a decade of experience auditing meters for ISPs serving 80% of US wireline Internet customers.
NetForecast performed active reference tests on Sparklight's broadband internet in which a NetForecast PC and server generated the only traffic on dedicated test lines. NetForecast performed independent traffic measurements, obtained hourly usage meter records from Sparklight for each location, and compared NetForecast's measurements with Sparklight's records.
Netforecast recently released a report validating the accuracy of Sparklight's broadband data usage meter system. According to the president of NetForcasting, Peter Sevcik, it was determined that Sparklight's meter is accurate and better than the industry standard.
You can view the complete report HERE
You can also view additional articles below:
- Q: What are some tips for reducing my bandwidth usage for my high-speed internet service?
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A: Verify that your wireless Cable Modem is pre-secured with a password. Please be mindful when providing this password to other residents that each device that connects will be using additional bandwidth. If you are unsure if your wireless security information, please view the following article for further detail:
Locating Wireless Security Key
Bandwidth usage is directly affected by the video quality of each program used. For example, watching a movie in high definition will use more bandwidth than watching a movie in standard definition. Depending on your preferences, you may want to consider limiting your viewing experience to a lower quality. This will limit the amount of bandwidth the video will consume. The following links from some major 3rd party streaming providers include information and tips on managing the video quality for their service.
Note: Most providers will have similar quality settings, though you may need to check with your specific provider for additional details if it is not listed below.
Netflix
Hulu
YouTube - Q: What is a gigabyte?
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A: A gigabyte (GB) is a measure of data storage capacity. It is roughly equal to a billion bytes. For a better understanding about how much usage 1 GB is, please try our Usage Calculator. This will give you a good estimate of how much data several types of activity will consume. However, each service can have a different level of optimization than our estimates provide, and your total usage may vary.