Prime time

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With main time or office hours (Engl. Peak ) is called in telecommunications that usually valid for rush hour on weekdays window of time in which relatively high connection apply prices.

In contrast, called the rest of the time, are in the discounted call charges, idle time or free time (Engl. Off-peak ).

In times of analog telephone technology and the scarce long-distance line and switching capacities of the classic telephone network , the tariffs at peak times were considerably more expensive; the capacities of the telephone networks were to be kept free for business connections during the day, while private communication was thus concentrated in the evenings and on the weekend when the telephone network was only slightly used for business purposes.

At the beginning of the 21st century, in view of the new, more generously dimensioned network structures of the telecommunications networks and the switch to next generation network technology, which provides for always-on use, price differentiation began to weaken or even disappear entirely.

Arbitrary peak and off-peak times in the Internet-by-call

The registration-free internet-by-call a variety of uses dial-up - Internet access providers a pronounced differentiation of connection charges with time windows, the time zones are not oriented more to the original division into business hours and off-peak and not with the aim of a uniform capacity utilization of the network capacity to be differentiated; rather, with favorable signal prices in certain time windows below their own costs, the participants should be encouraged to use a tariff permanently even in the time windows with high prices, which is why prices and time windows are regularly subject to strong fluctuation - see also telecommunications companies in the criticism .

literature

  • Jacek Biala: Cellular and Intelligent Networks. 2nd revised edition, Friedrich Vieweg & Sohn Verlag, Wiesbaden 1996, ISBN 978-3-322-87271-5 .
  • Andreas Walter, Torsten J. Gerpott: Compass telecommunications. Erich Schmidt Verlag, Berlin 2004, ISBN 3-503-07859-2 .
  • Robert F. Pelzel: Deregulated Telecommunications Markets. Springer Verlag, Berlin / Heidelberg 2001, ISBN 978-3-7908-1331-9 .

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