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What is an internet service provider (ISP)?
An internet service provider (ISP) is the company that connects your home or business to the internet. Usually, you pay the ISP a monthly fee based on the speed and capacity you want from your internet connection. In return, the ISP connects you to its data cable network, allowing you to use the internet for remote work, gaming, video chat, and all the other 21st-century necessities. The fees you pay enable the ISP to maintain and upgrade their cable infrastructure.
ISPs 101: What you need to know
When the internet first became mainstream in the 90s, a relatively small number of ISPs existed, and most were phone companies that provided only slow dial-up internet. As broadband technologies like DSL emerged and internet service became a must-have, increasing numbers of ISPs with a wider variety of service offerings entered the market.
Today, the definition of an ISP has expanded, and ISPs come in many different shapes and sizes, offering a full variety of services and service tiers. Some focus primarily on home and business internet service. Others offer the internet as one service among many, potentially including anything from mobile data to cable TV to landline phone service. Increasingly, many ISPs also offer fiber internet access — the fast and reliable gold standard of 21st-century broadband.
Choosing your ISP
You’ll often have multiple options for ISPs near you, and selecting the right one makes a big difference in your digital lifestyle. These are some of the major factors to look at when you’re considering who to choose as your internet provider:
Bandwidth: What is the maximum bandwidth in Mbps (megabits per second) the ISP provides, and how much do you need? Many ISPS offer multiple service packages with different bandwidth levels, so consider how the ISP’s offerings match up with your needs.
Price: Does the ISP offer competitive pricing for the services you’re interested in? Is it easy to find an accurate monthly price for each service package, or are there a lot of conditions and hidden fees?
Fiber Access: Does the ISP provide access to the next-level speed and reliability of fiber internet service? While fiber isn’t yet available everywhere, an increasing number of metro areas have at least one ISP that offers fiber connections.
Bundling: Does the ISP offer other services you’re interested in, such as home phone service? You might be able to save by choosing a bundled offering.
Data Caps: Does the ISP slow down or “throttle” data speeds after your account hits a certain monthly usage? Many people look for ISPs offering unlimited data plans to avoid having internet speeds dip if they’ve recently used a lot of data.
Contract Terms: Does the ISP lock you into a long-term contract, possibly with rates that go up over time? Many ISPs use long and complex contracts, but not all do.
Customer Experience: Is the ISP’s website easy to navigate and use? Are its customer service representatives knowledgeable and friendly, and do they seem part of a culture that cares about customers?
Brightspeed is a customer-friendly ISP that delivers state-of-the-art internet service at an affordable, transparent price. We believe our customers deserve a better internet experience, so we offer service with no data caps, no annual contracts, and no hidden fees. Find out if Brightspeed is available where you live, and discover how we’re setting a new bar for internet service providers.
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