Ryan Remiorz
BCE Inc.'s Bell Canada will flip the switch on a $1-billion broadband wireless network today it says will give people high-speed Internet access whether they live in a metropolis like Toronto or a rural community such as Rainbow Lake, Alta.
Much of the attention has focused on the ability of the network, built in collaboration with rival Telus Corp. , to carry Apple Inc.'s iPhone, thereby ending Rogers Communications Inc.'s stranglehold on the device. Bell will begin selling iPhones today and Telus as early as tomorrow, when it begins service on the network.
"People talk about Canada being behind in wireless," George Cope, president and chief executive officer, said in an interview. "This network we've built, with this coverage, is more extensive than anything the U.S. has from a broadband wireless perspective. Beyond the obvious - the articles being written constantly about the excitement of the iPhone and us against our competitor Rogers and all that - I think its an industry game changer."
The network build-out began a year ago and extends Bell and Telus's existing 3G (third generation) wireless network to include the same technology standard employed by Rogers Wireless, the nation's largest cellphone company.
That standard, known as high-speed packet access (HSPA), as well as its precursor GSM, is the most common form used by carriers outside of North America. Bell and Telus have built most of their network using the most advanced version of the technology, called HSPA+, which boasts download speeds of up to 21 Mbps, or about ten times faster than most of today's transmission speeds.
"These speeds change the wireless Internet game completely," Mr. Cope said.
He expects an explosion of demand for cellular modems that plug into notebook computers, and says the technology will do a lot to close the digital divide that has left many rural areas without the same connectivity as Canadian cities.
"This is an answer that people hadn't anticipated. That wireless would bring this type of speed to rural areas of the country this quickly. That to me is a new investment opportunity," he said.
Bell, Telus and Rogers have never revealed how much of their growing wireless data business ties to plug-in modems, but Mr. Cope said it represents an new product segment that has opened up for the wireless industry in the last year and will gain speed in the coming months.
In preparation of its HSPA launch tomorrow, Telus said last week it is removing its standard $6.95 monthly "system access fee" and reducing the vast number of pricing plans available. The company will also boost the core price of its plans by $5 a month.
The move follows a similar decision this month by Rogers, which is replacing its system access fee with a new, but cheaper "regulatory fee."
The changes come as several new wireless players prepare to enter the Canadian market in the coming months.
Bell has not detailed any plans to cut its system access fee, which is the highest in the country at $8.95 a month. But Mr. Cope said Bell will stay competitive, implying price cuts could be in the works.
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