Two Canadian network operators yesterday joined the ranks of companies that have announced gigabit network plans, creating some interesting Canada Gigabit momentum.
Cable and wireless provider Rogers said it will make gigabit service available throughout its cable service territory, which includes four million homes in Ontario and Atlantic Canada by the end of next year.
And on Canada’s west coast, incumbent telecom provider Telus said it will bring fiber to the majority of homes and to businesses in the City of Vancouver over the next five years. Initially customers will be offered speeds of up to 150 Mbps but the company said it will offer increasingly higher speeds over the gigabit-enabled network in the “coming years.”
Canada Gigabit: Rogers
Rogers is approaching gigabit in a manner different from what we have seen from other gigabit providers to date. The company is tying its gigabit offering together with 4K video service in what the company claims is “the world’s largest commitment to live broadcasting in 4K with HDR.”
High dynamic range (HDR) is a “leading edge technology that produces real-life images with richer color saturation, contrast and resolution,” Rpgers explained in a press release announcing its gigabit and 4K plans.
The company said it will charge $149.99 (apparently monthly) for 4K TV, a 4K set top box and gigabit Internet with unlimited usage. The company also pledged to offer a considerable amount of 4K content including:
- Every Toronto Blue Jays 2016 season home game
- Over 20 “marquee” NHL games
- Over 100 hours of 4K movies, series and TV shows on shomi
- A catalog of Netflix original series in 4K
Telus Plans
The Rogers announcement did not specify how much money the company would invest in delivering gigabit service. But Telus said it will invest $1 billion in Vancouver over the next five years and that it will invest $4 billion in British Columbia through 2018 on top of previously committed funding, bringing its total investment in British Columbia over the next four years to more than $11.5 billion. The company also said it would invest $100,000 in the Vancouver Public Library to support literacy programs and to “help connect people to each other.”
Additionally the company pledged to connect healthcare providers and “educators.”
