What? My sister in Fredericton, Canada can get faster broadband than most of the US? What’s wrong with this picture? Canada’s Bell Aliant has launched a new 170 Mbps downstream and 30 Mbps upstream fiber to the home service called FibreOP.
The FibreOP 170/30 is C$249, providing an option no matter the speed or bandwidth requirements of its customers. There are various prices based on bundled options. They range from home phone, FibreOP Internet and FibreOP TV bundles at C$124.95, to a second tier of C$149.95, its most popular bundle with an HD DVR, or third tier for C$164.95.
The three bundles have a promotional rate of $99 for the first three months.
In the midst of a $350 million fiber build out between 2011 and 2012, it expects to have FTTH available for more than 600,000 homes and businesses by the end of 2012. FibreOP pay-TV has over 200 channels, 60 HD channels and over 98 music channels.
Kelly Duplisea, VP FibreOP and TV at Bell Aliant, said, “The demand for bandwidth is always growing, and delivering not only the speed but the capacity to direct to each customer’s home means that no matter what your communication and entertainment needs are, the FibreOP network is future-ready as more services and applications are introduced.”
Bell Aliant, 44% of which is owned by Bell Canada, operates in Eastern Canada provinces and cities such as Fredericton, Saint John and Moncton. It says it’s the first service provider in Canada to cover an entire city with FTTH technology.
We might point out that homes on Bayou Manchac in Louisiana’s rural Ascension parish can also get faster broadband than most homes in the US. The US truly does not have a broadband policy, does it?