Fair usage with own gateway, why not offer a more generous fair usage plan?

lclora
Thu, 22 Jan 2026 11:13:06 +0000

Thank you for the interesting reply. I’m only just starting on this so its all great information.

I can see how it may cause extra traffic, but wouldn’t devices having a local gateway just turn down their transmit power, so those more distant gateways stop receiving the signal, so helping compensate for a bit more fair usage? It wouldn’t be as though every single person using the community platform would immediately go out and buy a gateway just to get a bit more fair usage, or increase their usage if they have a gateway already, and we are talking, in todays terms, about tiny amounts of data.

With a lowish fair usage policy, it is likely driving people to use other alternatives, i.e. just have their own network for themselves (e.g. Chirpstack), then they can go all the way up to whatever is legal in their country for airtime. This is then worse for TTN as they are also receiving all those other packets that can’t be tamed by TTN’s fair usage but they still have to process anyway.

I just thought it would be the right thing to do, some acknowledgment from TTN, after all the gateway we buy and add at our cost may be helping them with their commercial contracts and clients by providing extra coverage and accepting and passing on that traffic.

Yes I have a gateway on order and will set it up for my local town, it will be interesting to see if any traffic starts arriving through it, and I’m quite happy to give back.

Thanks again.