1. Bluecruzer's Avatar
    the following story is an excerpt from numerous newspapers including the Ottawa Citizen, Edmonton Journal, and so on. Before I quote though, does anyone else see the link between the cash cow attempt by Bell and Telus to grab money for text messages (by my estimate it would have generated an additional $150,000,000 per carrier per year) and this infrastructure cost?

    BCE Inc. and Telus Corp. are set to announce an upgrade to a next-generation wireless network next week that will allow the companies to provide the same popular mobile devices, such as the iPhone 3G, that industry leader Rogers Communications Inc. offers, sources say.

    Multiple sources in the telecom industry said Bell Canada and Telus are expected to share the costs of upgrading from their current code division multiple access (CDMA) networks to the globally adopted highspeed packet access (HSPA) network. It is estimated to cost the two companies as much as $1 billion and take about one year to install.

    The announcement will put pressure on Rogers because its two entrenched competitors will be able to offer a similar high-speed network, and new wireless companies may now choose to negotiate with Bell or Telus for roaming agreements, giving the two incumbent telcos a revenue boost.

    The new network will allow the companies to support such popular mobile devices as Apple Inc.�s iPhone 3G and Research In Motion Ltd.�s BlackBerry Bold, which are already offered by Rogers but so far unavailable to Bell and Telus customers due to incompatible networks.

    Nokia Siemens Networks, one of the largest telecommunication-equipment makers in the world, is said to be the vendor that will provide Bell Canada and Telus with the HSPA network upgrade.

    Sources said Bell and Telus won�t offer so-called �2G� GSM devices to avoid their customers paying roaming charges that would eventually go to Rogers, the only wireless provider in Canada with a GSM network.
    Genuity Capital Markets equity analyst Dvai Ghose said avoiding a GSM network build-out will help the companies save capital expenditure costs while being able to tap into the �plethora� of new HSPA devices that will become available to cellphone users in the next year.

    �It may not be an immediate reason to do it for the cost savings, but there�s a more immediate reason to do it for the iconic devices,� Ghose said.

    Representatives from Bell Canada and Telus declined to comment.

    The timing of the network announcement may be no accident. This Wednesday will be the due date that wireless companies will have to pay Industry Canada after the conclusion of Ottawa�s spectrum auction in July.

    After more than a month of bidding by 15 companies, several new potential cellphone companies emerged, including Quebecor Inc., Shaw Communications Inc., Data & Audio-Visual Enterprises (DAVE) Wireless Inc. and Globalive Communications Corp., which looks set to become Canada�s next national wireless carrier.

    According to Industry Canada, to encourage competition in the $14-billion industry, any new entrant will be allowed to roam on an incumbent operator�s network for five years while building out its own infrastructure.
    08-30-08 11:53 AM
  2. Spuds93's Avatar
    My major concern is that I just recently got the BlackBerry Pearl 8130 for a three year contract. Will my phone be on "old" technology and run slower that will require me to upgrade my phone or can the new technology be updated on my current phone.
    I was really fearing that new technology would come out and I would be stuck with an "old" phone.
    Please discuss
    08-30-08 08:21 PM
  3. tacsniper's Avatar
    ^ i won't worry about it... who knows when they are gonna start installing the new system. After they start, it will take 1 year if everything works out well with no delays.
    08-31-08 11:43 AM
  4. valiantstudio's Avatar
    Before I quote though, does anyone else see the link between the cash cow attempt by Bell and Telus to grab money for text messages (by my estimate it would have generated an additional $150,000,000 per carrier per year) and this infrastructure cost?
    please tell me how you arrive at this number???

    you do realize that with both telus and bell as long as you subscribe to a txt msging bundle you still get free incomming right?

    example on bell.. MOST people take caller id and voicemail for $10. this package also gives you 100 txt so you have FREE incomming!!!
    08-31-08 09:38 PM
  5. avmsam's Avatar
    i heard a lot about telus moving to gsm/3g also. i really hope its true cuz i like telus way more than rogers, but i am with rogers cuz telus is not gsm and that limits what handsets i can use.

    it would also be smart for telus to add gsm because currently rogers gets all the money for roaming in canada from any people that are on vacation and using a gsm phone form a foreign provider. so essentially rogers gets a ****load of money for roaming and they don't really have to do any work to get it and there is no competition.
    09-01-08 03:33 AM
  6. everywhere_but_nowhere's Avatar
    I hope this is true. Being able to get HSPDA devices when they first come out and not having to wait for companies to make a CDMA version will be great. Although Rogers always had more phone selection, I never went back because of their prices and their poor reception. Rogers claims they are the network with fewest dropped calls but I was on Rogers back when I was in Saskatchewan where everyone was on SaskTel and I was always the one with no reception. It will be good to see Bell and TELUS beat Rogers once and for all. Maybe that will put Rogers in their place. I don't understand who they think they are to charge what they do. It's no wonder Apple is P.O.'ed at Rogers...Maybe Apple will push iPhone to Bell and TELUS and recede from Rogers. Although I would sooner go with a BlackBerry Bold
    09-02-08 07:54 PM
  7. tjaffer's Avatar
    I was reading on one the blogs, that the CDMA carriers in states and Canada already run 3G. Maybe i miss understood, is that true for canadian carriers who have cdma (telus/bell).
    09-03-08 07:37 AM
  8. BlackBerry Guy's Avatar
    Technically Telus and Bell are already 3G networks and have been doing so for a few years now.

    EVDO = 3G CDMA
    HSPA = 3G GSM

    It's just the way GSM carriers advertise it, they make it sound like 3G is a GSM thing only.
    09-03-08 11:24 AM
  9. slayerx's Avatar
    yes, 3G has been around on Telus for a couple of years now. rogers is just making noise to promote the fact that they have now caught up to CDMA 3G speeds.
    The next jump though should push the CDMA guys into GSM which happens to be a WORLDWIDE standard, not just a couple of cities outside Canada/US.
    09-05-08 09:28 AM
  10. Bluecruzer's Avatar
    please tell me how you arrive at this number???

    you do realize that with both telus and bell as long as you subscribe to a txt msging bundle you still get free incomming right?

    example on bell.. MOST people take caller id and voicemail for $10. this package also gives you 100 txt so you have FREE incomming!!!
    Yes I know - thanks. I removed the caveat "as long as" - this is the second cash cow - telus (and whoever) make a killing on charging customers and telling them afterwards that if they had a different plan they would not have been charged.

    The numbers were based on Telus' and Bell initial response to how texting has increased and why this was necessary - it was gluttony on their part.
    09-06-08 09:57 AM
  11. Bluecruzer's Avatar
    it would also be smart for telus to add gsm because currently rogers gets all the money for roaming in canada from any people that are on vacation and using a gsm phone form a foreign provider. so essentially rogers gets a ****load of money for roaming and they don't really have to do any work to get it and there is no competition.
    Good point. How would they sort out who receives the roaming fees after?
    09-06-08 09:59 AM
  12. everywhere_but_nowhere's Avatar
    Good point. How would they sort out who receives the roaming fees after?
    I think, although not entirely sure, that they would strike a deal with worldwide carriers which will most likely be better than what Rogers offers and new handsets will be set to work on TELUS/Bell towers and old handsets have the availability to upgrade their roaming lists. Not sure if GSM handsets can do this over-the-air, I know CDMA ones can.
    09-06-08 12:30 PM
  13. Spuds93's Avatar
    yes, 3G has been around on Telus for a couple of years now. rogers is just making noise to promote the fact that they have now caught up to CDMA 3G speeds.
    The next jump though should push the CDMA guys into GSM which happens to be a WORLDWIDE standard, not just a couple of cities outside Canada/US.
    Ok so am I correct to assume that CDMA was actually a faster and better technology than GSM. I used to work for a Rogers Wireless and all of their training (brainwashing) all states that their technology is the most up to date and fastest. If this is the case I am very glad to know that I trusted my gut and went with Telus. I know GSM is good for worldwide compatabilities, but didn't realize that 3G was actually on CDMA already and GSM caught up to us now!!
    09-06-08 05:22 PM
  14. anon(522121)'s Avatar
    3G GSM (HSPA) is theoretically faster than 3G CDMA (EVDO/EVDO rev A), the difference is Telus rolled out 3G CDMA almost two years ago now. Rogers is just bringing out 3G GSM out now. The next generation of mobile data networks (4G) will most likely cause a convergence of technologies. It is rumored that almost everyone will be using LTE technology for their next generation networks, this will most likely be the time that Telus/Bell would switch to GSM for their voice networks.
    09-07-08 09:47 AM
  15. anon(522121)'s Avatar
    If they completely shut down the EVDO network then they will have no choice but to give everyone with a data plan a new phone.
    09-18-08 04:44 PM
  16. Spuds93's Avatar
    Given their history for excellent customer service, I imagine that will boost them over the edge for excellence. Hard to believe, but would be an extremely wise move!!
    09-23-08 07:43 AM
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