FAQ: Index

We’ve prepared answers to some of the most common questions people ask about our services. If you are an existing customer, visit our help and support section in Bulldog Lounge.

» General questions about Bulldog services
» Broadband (all services): General questions
» Broadband: Pay-As-You-Go
» Broadband: Anytime
» Broadband: Unlimited
» DoubleSpeed Broadband: General questions
» DoubleSpeed Broadband: Speed
» DoubleSpeed Broadband: Equipment
» DoubleSpeed Broadband: Existing customers
» Bulldog Line
» Bulldog second phone line
» Billing
» Technical requirements
» Installation and Equipment

Broadband: Pay-As-You-Go

Pay-As-You-Go service

What is Bulldog pay-as-you-go broadband?
How does it compare to dial-up?
Who can benefit from Bulldog pay-as-you-go broadband?
Can I purchase just the broadband package or the phone package separately?
What is the contract length of Bulldog combined broadband and phone services?
How does the pay-as-you-go feature work?
What is the usage charge for Bulldog Pay-As-You-Go?
Is there a connection period cut-off point?
Where can I see the charge for my internet usage with these services?
How do I know how many minutes I have been online?
How accurate or current are the minutes recorded in terms of my online time?
What can I do online for "free" with pay-as-you-go?
Is there a limit on how long I can use the service within one month?
Are there any data caps/limits with Bulldog Pay-As-You-Go?
What will Bulldog Pay-As-You-Go allow me to do?
Can I run concurrent internet sessions?
Why offer a pay-as-you-go metered service, not a (data) capped service?

What is Bulldog pay-as-you-go broadband?

Bulldog pay-as-you-go means you’re not paying a subscription charge at all. The total cost depends on your internet usage. Our simple pay-as-you-go start-stop facility allows you to determine when the clock starts ticking. Access to various services provided in BulldogHome, such as unlimited emailing (with spam and virus -protected 4 accounts), web space, photo album, and file storage, is included in the price. What's more, in BulldogHome you'll find a really useful function called FetchMail. It lets you get all your email from various sources (like Yahoo!, Hotmail, or previous providers) in one place. It's a cinch to set-up and really helps you take control of your communications.

How does it compare to dial-up?

Very favourably. In terms of downloading, a useful guide with dial-up vs. broadband is "for minutes read seconds". For instance, downloading a music track (4 MB MP3 file) will take around 10 minutes on dial-up but under 5 seconds with Bulldog up to 8 meg broadband. Try downloading a movie on dial-up – it’s virtually impossible and highly impractical. It could take around 27 hours (based on a 700 MB movie file), but with 8 meg Bulldog broadband, you’re looking at around 13 minutes. Even for simple emails, there’s little comparison. For instance, emailing a photo attachment (of 1 MB) will take nearly 4 minutes with dial-up; but 10 seconds with Bulldog broadband.
Of course, broadband is an instantly available service – unlike dial-up where it can take you a minute just to connect (maybe another to reconnect, and so on). Then, if you receive a phone call on dial-up, you’ll either lose your connection or the call. With broadband you can talk and surf at the same time without interruptions and having to reconnect.

Who can benefit from Bulldog pay-as-you-go broadband?

Bulldog pay-as-you-go broadband is ideal for dial-up users looking to take their first step into broadband, as well as for families – in fact anyone who spends a limited time online, whose online usage varies on a daily basis, or who wants a super-fast broadband service but doesn’t want to pay a premium for an unlimited service.
The amount you pay depends on your time online, which you can instantly check at payg.bulldogbroadband.com whenever you’re online or on your Bulldog online account for each month.

Can I purchase just the broadband package or the phone package separately?

No. The services are available only as a total package that includes the broadband service with pay-as-you-go feature, BulldogHome and phone line.

What is the contract length of Bulldog combined broadband and phone services?

The contract term is just twelve months, offering you both flexibility and convenience.

How does the pay-as-you-go feature work?

On the pay-as-you-go page, which you’ll find at payg.bulldogbroadband.com,you'll be able to get on the internet by entering the same password that you use for your broadband equipment, and then clicking on the START button. You have the option to save your password, so you don’t need to enter it again the next time around. You can terminate pay-as-you-go internet access at anytime by clicking on the STOP button.
Once you click on the START button, you will be charged at the relevant cost per minute (i.e. 1p/min for weekend use, 2p/min for evening use and 3p/min for daytime use). Think of the START-STOP button as a switch: when you click on START, you start being charged; when you click on STOP, you stop being charged. This means that you’re always in control of your online time and costs – so no nasty surprises.

What is the usage charge for Bulldog Pay-As-You-Go?

1p per minute for weekend use, 2p per minute for evening use and 3p per minute for daytime use. Remember that most services available within Bulldog Lounge can be used without clocking up time online (with the exception of the Bulldog TV service). And if you use your Bulldog email (via web or with an email client like Microsoft Outlook Express), there is no additional charge either.

Is there a connection period cut-off point?

Yes. To ensure that you don’t get hit with unexpected charges, in the event that you leave your connection on unattended, it will cut off after 60 minutes. In this case, you’ll receive a web notice to alert you beforehand with the opportunity to keep your connection open by clicking on the RENEW button on the pay-as-you-go page.

Where can I see the charge for my internet usage with these services?

Your monthly bill will detail all charges including any Bulldog phone service purchased in conjunction with the pay-as-you-go broadband service.

How do I know how many minutes I have been online?

You’ll have a password-protected account on BulldogLounge (www.bulldoglounge.com on "my bulldog account" section) where you can keep an eye on how many paid-for minutes you have been online. Minutes spent using Bulldog email, accessing BulldogHome or visiting bulldogbroadband.com are included and not charged. We’ll provide details on how to access this area in your emailed order confirmation.

How accurate or current are the minutes recorded in terms of my online time?

Your time online is recorded to the nearest second, and your online information in your password-protected areas is never more than four hours old. When billed, charges will be rounded up to the nearest penny.

What can I do online for "free" with pay-as-you-go?

Data transfer between Bulldog customers is included and not charged. You can use Bulldog email, downloading as many emails and attachments as you want, free of charge. You can use both web-based email (through BulldogHome) and client-based email (like Microsoft Outlook Express). And if you want to keep using different email accounts (such as Hotmail, for example), you can still use them by redirecting your emails to your Bulldog accounts. In BulldogHome you'll find a really useful function called FetchMail: it lets you get all your email from various sources (like Yahoo!, Hotmail or previous providers) in one place. Time spent using other services in BulldogHome (web space, online photo album and file storage) is also included and not charged. On top of all that, you can visit www.bulldogbroadband.com without any additional charge.

How do I make the most of my time online?

Is there a limit on how long I can use the service within one month?

No. You can use Bulldog Pay-As-You-Go as long as you want in any month. Time online will be charged at 1p, 2p or 3p per minute depending on the time of day (weekend, evening and daytime use respectively) .

Are there any data caps/limits with Bulldog Pay-As-You-Go?

No, there is no data-cap or limit on our Pay-As-You-Go service. Instead, Bulldog Pay-As-You-Go charges for the time you spend online, exactly in the same way you are accustomed to with dial-up but with added advantage of superfast up to 8 meg speed. Even with included services, like Bulldog email, there is no cap or limit on the amount of data you download.

What will Bulldog Pay-As-You-Go allow me to do?

Bulldog’s super-fast up to 8 meg services mean you can do so much more in such less time. For example, in 16 minutes per day usage, you can download 960 MB, that’s nearly 30 GB per month. Bear in mind that up to 8 meg is 16 times the speed of standard 512 kbps broadband or almost 160 times that of dial-up.

Can I run concurrent internet sessions?

Yes. Once you start pay-as-you-go broadband, you can use it on more than one PC. Obviously, when you stop pay-as-you-go broadband on one PC, it will be terminated on all other PCs as well.

Why offer a pay-as-you-go metered service?

Customers with some internet experience are likely to have an idea as to how long they may spend online on a daily basis. However, in terms of how much data they are downloading, most users will have little idea. Also it is very difficult to track data usage, whilst with Bulldog Pay-As-You-Go, you can readily see your time online, and get no nasty surprises.
Since Bulldog is offering super-fast broadband of up to 8 meg, you’ll also find that you can do so much more online in a matter of minutes, compared to what you can with your current connection.
Keep in mind that we do our Anytime service for customers who prefer a data-capped package.