Horry Telephone Cooperative, Inc. (“HTC” or “Company”) provides this Network Transparency Statement in accordance with the FCC’s Restoring Internet Freedom Rules to ensure that you have sufficient information to make informed choices about the purchase of broadband services. Information about HTC’s other policies and practices concerning broadband are available at www.htcinc.net (“HTC Website”).
HTC engages in network management practices that are tailored and appropriate for achieving optimization on the network considering the particular network architecture and technology of its broadband Internet access service. HTC’s goal is to ensure that all of its members experience a safe and secure broadband Internet environment that is fast, reliable and affordable. HTC wants its members to indulge in all that the Internet has to offer, whether it is social networking, streaming videos and music, to communicating through email and videoconferencing.
HTC will not unjustly or unreasonably prevent or interfere with competition among Content, Applications, Service, or Device Providers.
HTC’s network management includes congestion- and security-protocol-management and members generally will not be impacted by the protocols and practices that HTC uses to manage its network.
A. HTC’s Network Transparency Disclosures
HTC uses various tools and industry standard techniques to manage its network and deliver fast, secure and reliable Internet service. HTC believes in full transparency and provides the following disclosures about its network management practices:
1.Blocking: HTC does not block or discriminate against lawful content.
2. Throttling: HTC does not throttle, impair or degrade lawful Internet traffic.
3.Affiliated Prioritization: HTC does not prioritize Internet traffic and has no plans to do.
4. Paid Prioritization: HTC has never engaged in paid We don’t prioritize Internet for consideration to benefit particular content, applications, services or devices. HTC does not have plans to enter into paid prioritization deals to create fast lanes.
5. Congestion Management: HTC monitors the connections on its network in the aggregate on a continuous basis to determine the rate of If congestion emerges on the network, HTC will take the appropriate measures to relieve congestion.
On HTC’s network, all members have access to all legal services, applications and content online and, in the event of congestion, most Internet activities will be unaffected. Some members, however, may experience longer download or upload times, or slower surf speeds on the web if instances of congestion do occur on HTC’s network.
Members using conduct that abuses or threatens the HTC network or which violates the company’s Acceptable Use Policy or the Internet Service Agreement will be asked to stop any such use immediately. A failure to respond or to cease any such conduct could result in service suspension or termination.
HTC’s network and congestion management practices are ‘application-agnostic’, based on current network conditions, and are not implemented based on members’ online activities, protocols or applications. HTC’s network management practices do not relate to any particular member’s aggregate monthly data usage.
HTC also checks for abnormal traffic flows, network security breaches, malware, loss, and damage to the network. If a breach is detected or high-volume users are brought to light by complaint, HTC provides notification to the member via email or phone. If a violation of HTC’s policies has occurred and such violation is not remedied, HTC will seek to suspend or terminate that member’s service.
6. Application-Specific Behavior: Except as may be provided elsewhere herein, HTC does not currently engage in any application-specific behaviors on its network. Members may use any lawful applications with HTC.
7. Device Attachment Rules: Members must use PPPoE for authentication of point-to-point connections between devices on the network. There is a limit of one (1) PPPoE session per For best results, DSL modems, wireless modems, or other proprietary network gateways used on the HTC broadband network should be provided by HTC. Members may attach devices of their choosing to their modems, including wired or wireless routers, laptops, desktop computers, video game systems, televisions, or other network-enabled electronics equipment. However, members are responsible for ensuring that their equipment does not harm HTC’s network or impair the service of other members. HTC is not responsible for the functionality or compatibility of any equipment provided by its members. Members are responsible for securing their own equipment to prevent unauthorized access to HTC’s broadband network by third parties and will be held responsible for the actions of such third parties who gain unauthorized access through unsecured member equipment.
8. Network Security: HTC knows the importance of securing its network and members from network threats and The company promotes the security of its network and patrons by protections from such threats as spam, viruses, firewall issues, and phishing schemes. HTC also deploys spam filters in order to divert spam from an online member’s email inbox into a quarantine file while allowing the member to control which emails are identified as spam. Members may access the spam files through the email. Spam files are automatically deleted if not accessed within 30 days.
As its normal practice, HTC does not block any protocols, content or traffic for purposes of network management, but HTC may block or limit such traffic as spam, viruses, malware, or denial of service attacks to protect network integrity and the security of our members.
9. Impact of Non-BIAS Data Services: The FCC defines Non-Broadband Internet Access Services (Non-BIAS) to include services offered by broadband providers that share capacity with Broadband Internet Access Services (BIAS) (previously known as “Specialized Services”) also offered by the provider over the last-mile facilities. At this time, we are not offering any non-BIAS data services.
B. Network Performance
1. Service Descriptions: HTC deploys hardwired broadband Internet access to its subscribers via different transport technologies including, cable modem, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) and fiber optic technologies.
2. Network Performance: HTC makes every effort to support advertised speeds and will dispatch repair technicians to member sites to perform speed tests as needed to troubleshoot and resolve speed and application performance caused by HTC’s network. HTC measures availability, latency, and aggregate utilization on the network and strives to meet internal service level targets. HTC is also required by the FCC to test a random set of members for speed and latency periodically during the year. This transparency statement discloses that HTC will perform these tests. If additional equipment is required for a selected member for this testing, HTC will contact the member to schedule installation of the equipment.
However, the bandwidth speed at which a particular distant website or other Internet resources may be downloaded, or the speed at which your member information may be uploaded to a distant website or Internet location is affected by factors beyond HTC’ control, including the speed of the connection from a distant web server to the Internet, congestion on intermediate networks, and/ or limitations on your own computer equipment, including a wireless router. In addition, your service performance may be affected by the inside wiring at your premise. Accordingly, you, the member, must consider the capabilities of your own equipment when choosing a HTC broadband service. Your computers and/or wireless or other networks in your homes or offices may need an upgrade in order to take full advantage of the chosen HTC broadband plan.
|
Residential Cable Modem Tier |
Advertised Speed Download |
Advertised Speed Upload |
Performance Latency |
Performance Packet Loss |
|
Standard |
1 GBPS |
35 MBPS |
25 ms |
-1% |
|
Residential Fiber Tier |
Advertised Speed Download |
Advertised Speed Upload |
Performance Latency |
Performance Packet Loss |
|
Standard |
1 GBPS |
1 GBPS |
25 ms |
-1% |
|
Premium |
2 GBPS |
2 GBPS |
25 ms |
-1% |
|
Business Tier |
Advertised Speed Download |
Advertised Speed Upload |
Performance Latency |
Performance Packet Loss |
|
Standard |
750 MBPS |
20 MBPS |
25 ms |
-1% |
|
Premium |
1000 MBPS |
35 MBPS |
25 ms |
-1% |
Members can test their actual speeds using the speed test found on the Cooperative’s website http://htcnetracer.speedtestcustom.com or https://www.speedtest.net. HTC utilizes available systems and processes that allow the Cooperative to measure the performance of the HTC controlled network against advertised speeds. If a member has HTC Smart Wi-Fi, a more accurate speed test can be found in the Plume Home App.
C. Specialized Services
HTC does not provide specialized services at this time.
D. Device Attachment Rules
HTC provides DSL modems, FTTH residential gateways and cable modems as part of its broadband ser- vices. Members may attach any industry standard device beyond the residential gateway, DSL modem or cable modem. If HTC discovers a member device is harmful to its network, HTC has the right to request that the member remove such device.
E. Other Notices
In addition to this Network Management Policy, all other notices as listed below can be found on the HTC website. [https://www.htcinc.net/policy-guidelines/]
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- Acceptable Use Policy
- Internet Service Agreement
- Internet Privacy Policy
- Spam Policy
- Website Legal Disclaimer
- Free Webspace Guidelines
- Digital Millennium Act of 1998
- Network Management FAQ
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F. Current Pricing
HTC current pricing is included in the Pricing Appendix and can also be found by selecting the following link. [https://www.htcinc.net/internet/] or Broadband Nutrition Labels
G. Redress Options
For questions, complaints or requests for additional information, please contact HTC at: https://www.htcinc.net/customer-service.
In addition to this Policy, members may also find links to the following on our Website:
REVISED 06.23.2025
