Inukshuk Internet, Allstream and NR Communications launch new broadband wireless access network in Cumberland, Ontario
March 12 2004 - 9:22AM
PR Newswire (US)
Inukshuk Internet, Allstream and NR Communications launch new
broadband wireless access network in Cumberland, Ontario Unique and
innovative commercial offerings from Fido and Allstream deliver
high speed, ease-of-use and wireless Internet portability
CUMBERLAND, Ontario, March 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- A new
choice for high speed Internet access emerged today in Ontario, as
the new venture recently created by Allstream Inc., Inukshuk
Internet Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Microcell
Telecommunications Inc., and NR Communications, LLC, launched a
Multipoint Communications Systems (MCS) network in Cumberland, a
rural community some 30 kilometres east of downtown Ottawa. The
three companies joined forces last November with the aim of
usingadvanced wireless technology to offer integrated high-speed
Internet, IP-based voice and local networking services to selected
markets across Canada. Since that time, the MCS networks were
launched in Yellowknife, NWT, and Iqaluit, Nunavut, along with
partners SSI Micro and Nunanet Worldwide Communications, and on
March 4, 2004, broadband wireless service was launched by the new
venture's partners in Richmond, British Columbia. On March 10,
2004, the venture announced that AOL Canada will trial the
venture's new wireless high speed access technology in Toronto. The
venture will finalize its plans by mid-2004 to deploy the offering
nationally. "I speak for all the partners involved when I say we
are delighted to be announcing our commercial deployment in
Cumberland today, building on the momentum of our recent service
launch in Richmond," said Andre Tremblay, President and CEO of
Microcell Telecommunications and Inukshuk Internet. "For Inukshuk,
this represents another step towards realizing ourvision of
connecting Canadians through innovative broadband technologies, as
well as the opportunity to extend the scope of our already rich and
compelling Fido service offering. "By combining the unique
strengths and complementary assets of the three companies, we have
been able to deliver a very compelling offering to consumers and
businesses in a capital efficient manner. We all have tremendous
confidence in this venture and look forward to building on this
strong base to deliver exciting new services such as Voice over IP
and local networking services in the near future." Don Boudria,
Member of Parliament for the Cumberland area, concluded: "I'm
delighted that Cumberland is one of the first communities in Canada
to benefit from this innovative new technology. I believe it will
open up many opportunities for the community, particularly for
learning and business. On a wider level, the deployment of the MCS
network across Canada is very important in terms of connecting
Canadians to each other and the rest of the world." With the launch
of this new network in Cumberland, two new service offerings are
being simultaneously offered: one from Microcell Solutions Inc.
under its Fido(R)O brand, and one from Allstream. Microcell and
Allstream will provide competitive high speed Internet services
using this broadband wireless access (BWA) technology, to consumers
and businesses. Microcell is launching iFido(TM), a residential
wireless high speed Internet service; and Allstream is introducing
a bundled wireless high speed service for small office and
teleworking applications, as well as for enterprise customers with
remote branch locations. Inukshuk, as the spectrum licensee,
operates the MCS network providing wholesale BWA services. The new
network operates across Inukshuk's licensed MCS spectrum, thereby
offering customers the security, reliability and predictability of
wireless systems that are able to use exclusively licensed spectrum
bands. The commercial service uses a unique plug-and-play broadband
wireless technology, provided by NextNet(R) Wireless, a leading
provider of next generation broadband wireless access solutions.
NextNet's Expedience(R) system is a reliable and proven system that
permits true non-line-of-sight service and delivers consistent
broadband speeds across a broad coverage area. This technology
combines the simplicity of a true plug-and-play system, with
reliability, portability and competitive pricing. Installation of
the portable customer premise equipment (CPE) is quick and easy --
it does not require an external antenna or a service provider truck
roll. The CPE can be moved as readily as a laptop computer to
function almost anywhere within the Cumberland network footprint.
One key competitive advantage is the CPE operates up to 2.5 km away
from any network base station located throughout the service area.
The Expedience system is currently deployed in 20 markets in the
United States, Canada, Asia, Africa, and Central and Latin America,
including the largest deployment of this system in Mexico. About
Inukshuk Internet and Microcell Inukshuk Internet Inc. is a wholly
owned subsidiary of Microcell Telecommunications Inc. (TSX: MT), a
Canadian provider of Personal Communications Services (PCS) under
the Fido(R) brand name. Inukshuk Internet was granted licences from
Industry Canada for Multipoint Communications Services (MCS)
spectrum in the 2500 to 2596 MHz frequency band, to build a unique,
"last mile" broadband wireless access network. The licences cover a
population of some 30 million people, comprising all the provinces
and territories of Canada, with the exception of Manitoba and
Saskatchewan. For more information,visit http://www.inukshuk.ca/ ,
and http://www.microcell.ca/ . Note toMicrocell investors The
statements made in this release concerning Microcell's future
prospects are forward-looking statements that involve risks and
uncertainties, which may prevent expected future results from being
achieved. For those statements, we claim the protection of the safe
harbour for forward-looking statements contained in the securities
laws. The Company cautions that actual future performance could be
affected by a number of factors, including technological change,
regulatory change and competitive factors, many of which are beyond
the Company's control. Therefore, future events and results may
vary substantially from what the Company currently foresees.
Additional information identifying risks and uncertainties is
contained in the Company's Annual Information Form from 2002 and in
other filings with securities commissions in Canada and the United
States. About Allstream Allstream is a leading communication
solutions provider with a world-class portfolio of Connectivity,
Infrastructure Management and IT Services. Focused on the Business
market, Allstream collaborates with customers to create tailored
solutions that meet their unique needs and help them compete more
effectively. Spanning more than 18,800 kilometres, Allstream has an
extensive broadband fibre-optic network and the greatest reach of
any competitive communication solutions provider in Canada, and
provides international connections through strategic partnerships
and interconnection agreements with other international service
providers. Allstream is a public company with its stock traded on
the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbols ALR.A and ALR.B and
the NASDAQ National Market system under the symbols ALLSA and
ALLSB. Visit Allstream's website, http://www.allstream.com/ for
more information about the company. Note to Allstream Investors
This news release includes statements about expected future events
and/or financial results that are forward-looking in nature and
subject to risks and uncertainties. For those statements, we claim
the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements
provisions contained in the United States Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The Company cautions that actual
performance will be affected by a number of factors, many of which
are beyond the Company's control, and that future events and
results may vary substantially from what the Company currently
foresees. Discussion of the various factors that may affect future
results is contained on page 1 of the Company's Annual Information
Form dated May 2, 2003, which is filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission, the Ontario Securities Commission, and SEDAR.
About NR Communications NR Communications, LLC is a private company
that makes financial investments in telecommunications ventures and
is proactively seeking investment opportunities in selected sectors
that it believes are driving the evolution of the communications
industry. Fido is a registered trademark of Microcell Solutions
Inc. iFido is a trademark of Microcell Solutions Inc. NextNet and
Expedience are registered trademarks of NextNet Wireless, Inc. For
related press releases today, see also: FIDO BRINGSPLUG AND PLAY
WIRELESS HIGH-SPEED INTERNET ACCESS TO CUSTOMERS IN CUMBERLAND,
ONTARIO; AND ALLSTREAM LAUNCHES WIRELESS HIGH SPEED INTERNET ACCESS
SERVICE IN CUMBERLAND, ONTARIO. DATASOURCE: INUKSHUK INTERNET INC.
CONTACT: Microcell (media): Claire Fiset, (514) 992-1368, ;
Microcell (investors): Thane Fotopoulos, (514) 937-0102, ext. 8317,
; Allstream (media): May Chong, (416) 345-2342, ; Allstream
(investors): Brock Robertson, (416) 345-3125, or Dan Coombes, (416)
345-2326,
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