Becoming an extremely heavy user relates to the active and continuous downloading of files, usually using peer-to-peer (P2P) services. As an extreme example, using AOL Broadband 24 hours a day, every day, to continuously download large files is not reasonable use for a residential service. We do not publish specific figures for excessive usage as they may change.

The majority of AOL Broadband Members will not trigger the policy by normal activity including personal surfing, email and file uploading or downloading. Having a computer or router just connected to the internet will not trigger the policy. The intention of a residential broadband service is to provide an extended, continuous link to the internet. It is not to facilitate continuous downloads of large files.

Heavy usage is measured by data downloaded over a member's connection for each session (a session is the period between when you sign in and out of AOL Broadband, or the time spent connected to the internet on your computer or router).