# The service offered by Open Web does not, in fact, have a “cap” on the volume of traffic a customer may transmit or receive, but there is a limitation imposed on the speed of the users connection once a certain traffic threshold is reached.
# Given the general understanding in the market of the terms “capped” and “uncapped”, it is reasonable for Open Web to market this service as “uncapped”.
The respondent submitted that it is not selling “unlimited” ADSL accounts, but “uncapped” ADSL accounts. Because the user will always have an Internet connection, irrelevant of bandwidth usage, the package remains uncapped. Users who download more than their allocated amount of data are restricted in terms of access speed, but will still have Internet access.
This is distinctly different from models where a user is blocked entirely from accessing Internet content once a specific amount of traffic has been transmitted. According to ISPA, this sort of service is usually referred as a “capped” service. The model used by Open Web does not seem to match the generally understood meaning of a "capped" service, as the flow of information is never stopped. At worst, it is hampered when thresholds are reached, a fact that is clearly communicated to the consumer.
Based on the above the Directorate is of the opinion that the advertisement is not misleading
