Billing Policy
Data Billing
We utilize a pooled, "pay-as-you-go" billing system, which we call "Flex Billing". Customers only pay for the amount of data actually used, and data is pooled across all cameras on the billing account. The total monthly bill is comprised of connection fee, data fee, SMS fee, and optional add-ons, such as extended cloud storage and Barn Owl Care (camera insurance)
Billing Cycle
Our software initiates a monthly billing cycle when the account is activated. A valid credit card is required to activate an account.
Invoice Payments
By default, invoices are charged to the credit card on file at the end of each monthly billing cycle.
Account owners who wish to pay annually can apply a credit to their account to cover the estimated fees over a 12-month period. If the account credit is exhausted before the 12-month period is complete, the cameras on the account will be suspended until additional credit is applied to the account.
Invoice Items
The total monthly bill is comprised of the following items:
- Connection Fee
- Data Use Fee
- SMS Use Fee
- Optional Add-ons: Barn Owl Care (Camera Insurance) and Extended Cloud Storage
Connection Fee
This fee covers the cost of SIM activation, cellular network access, 1-month of photo storage, and basic customer support. The connection fee depends on the camera’s status, Active or Suspended.
Active = $5/mth
The camera’s SIM card has access to cellular data and the user has access to the camera’s media history. A camera is set to Active when it is added to a user’s account. A camera is considered to be Active for a billing period if either it is set to Active at the end of the billing period or it has transmitted data in the billing period.
Active - Personal = $5/mth.
Barn Owl has previously allowed customers to use their own SIMs in their cameras. As of December 17, 2021, customers will no longer be able to add new Personal SIMs to their Barn Owl account. Existing customers who utilize Personal SIMs may continue to do so. Grandfathered users who utilize their own SIM cards and data plans are responsible for their own data charges. Barn Owl will still charge for SMS commands to those SIMs due to carrier charges on SMS messages.
Suspended = $0/mth
The camera’s SIM card does not have access to cellular data, but you will still have access to the camera’s media history up to your Retention Limit (see below). Cameras can be manually or automatically Suspended.
- Manual Suspend. Cameras can be manually Suspended at any time in the app (Camera Menu → Camera Profile → Camera State = Suspend). Cameras that have transmitted data in the billing period will still be charged the $5 connection fee for that period. To reactivate a manually Suspended camera, simply set it back to Active in the app. Please note, it may take up to a few hours for carriers to reactivate a Suspended SIM card.
- Automatic Suspend for non-payment. If a billing period’s invoice is not paid in full, the account will be frozen with all cameras automatically moved to Suspended. When an account is frozen for non-payment, users will not have access to cameras or media history. The account will be fully restored when the invoice is paid.
Removed = $0/mth
If a camera is no longer needed, it can be permanently “Removed” from the account. When a camera is removed, all media and settings history for that camera will be permanently deleted. Removed cameras can be reactivated through the Add Camera process. Cameras that are Removed and then re-added will not have any media history associated with them when they are reactivated, and it may take up to a few hours for the carriers to reactivate the SIM card.
Pooled Data Use Fee
Customers only pay for the amount of data actually used, and data is pooled across all cameras on the billing account. Data used is rounded up to the nearest KB and charged by the KB at the end of the billing cycle. The cost per image decreases as data use increases.
Pooled Data Pricing
Data Cost Calculator - use our calculator to approximate your bill.
SMS Use Fee
$0.03 per SMS. The fee covers SMS costs charged by the network carriers.
SMS messages are used in the following situations:
- Sending a command to the camera to change settings
- Sending a command to the camera to take a photo or video
- Text alerts using direct SMS. Note, each phone number that receives an alert is a separate SMS message.
- If you do not wish to pay for SMS alerts, email alerts and in-app notifications are free.
Optional Account Upgrades
Cloud Storage
When a camera is Active or Suspended, all photos and videos are accessible up to the account’s retention limit. Retention limits are per account and apply to all cameras in the account.
Thirty (30) days of retention are included for free. Account owners may choose to increase their retention limit. Any photo or video marked as a favorite will be retained as long as the camera is Active, regardless of the cloud storage option you choose.
Retention Limit Pricing per Account
- 1 Month = Included with all Active cameras.
- 6 Months = $5/mth per account
- 12 Months = $10/mth per account
- Unlimited = $20/mth per account
Extended cloud storage rates are per account and do not increase with more cameras.
Barn Owl Care
Previously called “Camera Insurance”, Barn Owl Care is an optional service that protects the user’s cameras. Barn Owl Care premiums and coverage will be applied to all cameras in the account that are either Active or Suspended.
See our Barn Owl Care Policy for full details.
Billing Policy Changes
Because cellular carriers and cloud services frequently change their billing policies and rates, we reserve the right to change these policies in the future. Account owners will be notified by email of any billing policy changes.
Contact
If you have any questions about our policy, please contact us.
- Phone: (307) BARN-OWL (2276-695)
- Email: info@barnowl.tech
