QoS Deployments (22): Demon [UK] Offers "Game Pro" Plan - w/Traffic Prioritization

 

Demon, a UK ISP, launched a new "Game Pro" service plan that "offers the usual benefits that Demon Broadband offers, along with lower latency and better ping rates."

See "Demon launches gaming broadband service" press release and blog post, here.

The new plan offers, for £22/month (12 months contract): Up to 20Mb downstream and 1Mb upstream, no usage restrictions off peak, 100GB peak (8am to 11pm), traffic prioritization and a free static IP address.

A comparable plan is Demon's Home2+, with 50GB volume and no prioritization, offered for £15.28 month (24 months contract) and subject to Demon's Fair Use Policy ("FUP" - here). FUP states that "Usage will be monitored on a continuous basis. Customers that exceed the permitted data download over a rolling 30 day period will be affected by the THUS FUP. This is currently defined as per the limits detailed below, although we reserve the right to amend these limits in accordance with the terms of your Agreement. ". 

According to KITS ("UK's largest adsl/broadband resource & information sites"), Demon is using Ellacoya (now part of Tektronix Communications) DPI products to implement FUP (here).

Will the Game Pro subscribers just bypass the DPI process, or will Demon use the Ellacoya devices to prioritize certain [gaming] traffic? Does it remove P2P restrictions [if any]?

Anyway, this is one of the few QoS based tiered services offering, targeting an ARPU increase of ~£6-7/month (50%!).