SaskTel extends 4G wireless coverage to 8 locations (Canada)
SaskTel has expanded its 4G wireless network to 8 more locations across the province of Saskatchewan.
Ron Styles, SaskTel President and CEO, has said that the 4G wireless network delivers increased bandwidth, greater international roaming and a wider selection of wireless devices. Further, 4G will enable SaskTel to make a smooth transition to future generations of wireless technology.
Three of the locations were completed as part of the previously announced First Nations Program, which will provide high speed internet and 4G wireless service to 28 Saskatchewan First Nations by the end of 2012. The project is jointly funded by the Government of Canada and SaskTel. The latest locations are: Big Island Lake Cree Nation, Carry The Kettle First Nation and Ochapowace First Nation.
The other five tower locations, along with 4G coverage details, are Collins Bay which provides coverage to the mining region near Points North Landing. Also, Scout Lake, which provides coverage to the area south of Assiniboia including highway 2; Smoky Burn (Carrot Creek), which provides coverage to the area northeast of Carrot River including highway 55; St. Walburg North, which provides coverage to the area north of St. Walburg including highway 26 and Waskesiu Lake Rural, which provides improved coverage in the Waskesiu area including highway 264.
The 4G network provides increased bandwidth with download speeds approximately 4 times faster than existing speeds (up to 21 megabits per second). It is also compatible with more than 80 per cent of all networks around the world. SaskTel plans to support the existing CDMA digital network for the foreseeable future to ensure that all wireless customers continue to enjoy a full selection of wireless services that best suit their needs.
SaskTel plans to launch LTE services in 2012 (Canada)
SaskTel (Saskatchewan Telecommunications Holding Corporation), a leading service communications provider in Saskatchewan, has announced plans to deploy Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology in 2012. The current SaskTel 4G wireless technology has a download speed of about 21 Mbps while the LTE technology is expected to have a download speed of 100 Mbps and an upload speed of 50 mbps. Sources claim that according to Bill Boyd, Minister Responsible for SaskTel, the LTE technology will have a major significance in improving the customer experience by providing customers with faster data speeds than the existing 4G network.
The initial deployment of the LTE technology is expected to begin in the fall of 2012 to Regina and Saskatoon, and surrounding areas. Reports also suggest that LTE will be deployed to other urban and rural areas starting in 2013 based on the demand for incremental data services. SaskTel is the first wireless service provider to begin work for the LTE technology in the Province.
SaskTel to launch W-CDMA/HSPA-based 3G/3.5G network
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Commercial services over a W-CDMA/HSPA-based 3G/3.5G mobile network will be launched by Saskatchewan-based operator, SaskTel, on July 1, 2010. The aim of the network will be to cover 98% of the province’s population by the end of the year.
The network building work worth USD170 million is already under way. Company’s network sharing agreement with Bell and Telus is also in place to allow nationwide HSPA roaming for SaskTel’s customers. Currently, 3G/3.5G mobile services via CDMA2000 1xEV-DO/Rev A technology is provided province-wide by SaskTel.
According to Robert Watson, CEO of SaskTel, legacy analogue cellular network has to be shut down within the next twelve months or even earlier as it is a no longer supportable and 3,200 customer using the analogue network will have to be notified.
Groove Mobile Brings the Music to Canada
Canadians love music, eh? At least that is the hope of communications service provider SaskTel, which has signed a deal with Groove Mobile that will enable its customers to access a new mobile music store.
The SaskTel Mobile Music Store will provide full-track music downloads direct to mobile handsets, access to multiple charts and downloadable album art. The service will enable users to browse, preview and shop for selections. According to the companies, the music service also will support dual downloading in which customers purchase music over the air and download a copy of the track to their handset and get a copy delivered to their PC. This feature enables customers to play the song on their laptop, transfer it to an MP3 player or burn it onto a CD.
The store will feature more than 300,000 music tracks from artists on the Sony BMG, Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group labels.
The company plans to offer the SaskTel Mobile Music Store as a preloaded feature on the Samsung A920 and A900 and Sanyo 7500 handsets. Additional handsets are on tap, SaskTel says.
Groove is the technology behind Sprint Nextel’s Sprint Music Store, which enables customers to download full-track selections over the air (OTA). The Sprint service recently celebrated its 1-year anniversary, announcing that more than 8 million songs have been downloaded since the inception of the service.
While Groove is committed to its business with the carriers, the company also has expressed interest in exploring an off-portal business, especially in Europe.
Source- wirelessweek Wireless Mobile Telecom
