The Customer Service Guarantee
The object of the CSG Standard is to encourage improvements in service and guard against poor service. It requires telephone companies to meet minimum performance requirements and to provide customers with financial compensation when these are not met.

Services covered by the CSG
The CSG Standard covers the supply of standard fixed line telephone services, including voice grade services and services used to access the Internet or for facsimile machines.

Certain special call-handling features, when activated by a telephone company, are also covered by the CSG, including call waiting, call forwarding, call barring, calling number display and calling number display blocking.

The CSG Standard does not apply to customers who have more than five lines or customer equipment with more than five telephone lines. Mobile phone services are not covered by the CSG

What is ADSL?
Asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) is a broadband technology offering high speed internet access. Asymmetric means data is transmitted downstream to the customer faster than it is sent upstream to the service provider. This meets the data needs of most internet users, that is, users typically download substantially more data than they upload.

What are the advantages of ADSL?
ADSL offers high data rates, allowing fast file transfers and internet downloads. The downstream/upstream data rates of ADSL are typically 256/64 kilobits per second (kbit/s), 512/128 kbit/s or 1500/256 kbit/s depending on pricing plans. ADSL is an always on service, that is, you will be connected to the internet whenever your computer is on. ADSL uses the copper telephone lines that currently carry your voice traffic to deliver broadband internet, yet you can make a telephone call and be browsing the internet or receiving an email simultaneously, with no interruption to either service.

This means that there is:

• no need for an additional phone line;
• no need to dial-up the ISP; and
• no connection drop-outs as may be experienced with a dial-up modem.

A customer can also have different service providers for their telephone and ADSL internet access services.

Can I get ADSL?
The availability of ADSL is dependent on a number of factors, including the area in which you live, the quality of your existing phone line and the distance to your nearest telephone exchange.

To provide ADSL services, a customers local exchange must be ADSL enabled.

To confirm that your local exchange is ADSL enabled, contact your ADSL service provider.

ADSL services also require an unconditioned telephone line. Unconditioned means the telephone line that provides your current telephone service is continuous all the way back to the local exchange. In addition, the telephone line must not have any network conditioning devices or components that might modify its inherent electrical characteristics attached. If other network devices or components are attached, you will not be able to access ADSL services.

The distance to the local exchange will also affect the availability of an ADSL service. ADSL services are typically available to customers within approximately four kilometres of their local exchange.

To confirm that you are able to receive ADSL internet access services, contact your ISP