 
Raptor
Not a Dumptruck
join:2001-10-21
London, ON
 ·Rogers Hi-Speed
 ·Bell Sympatico
| +1 for the Prairies "1. Upgrading the underlying rural backbone infrastructure to create an enhanced transport network to provide basic high speed Internet access (5 Mpbs)" Funny how the US definition for Broadband is 768kbit, and how ISPs are always whining about deployment in sparsely populated areas, and SaskTel/the province is going after 5mbit which they're dubbing "basic". I lol'd.
Good work Saskatchewan. You give the have not province of Ontario something to aspire to.
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....where's my fiber? | |
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 | wilburyan
join:2002-08-01
1 edit | Re: +1 for the Prairies The rural high speed is also priced different from cities... (read: more expensive)
There is also no faster or slower tiers... which are available in the larger centers where competition exists, but hey... we can't win em all  | |
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BF69
join:2004-07-28
Camden, TN
| Re: +1 for the Prairies said by wilburyan  :The rural high speed is also priced different from cities... (read: more expensive) well right now in the US people in rural areas have 2 choices at most for broadband. Satellite which is $50 for 512kbps -1 Mbps up to $80 for 1.5 Mbps. Meanwhile city folk can get speed in the 10-20 Mbps range for the same price. The other choices is broadband via mobile company which is $60 a month and you get a measly 5 GB monthly cap with overage fees between $250-$500 per GB. So yeah I think most people in the boonies would take 5 mbps broadband even it it was more expensive. | |
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zod5000
join:2003-10-21
Edmonton, AB | Public $ I think thats the only way to get it deployed in rural areas is government subsidies. Its probably not financial feasible from a private companies point of view. Public dollars well spent i would think. | |
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BF69
join:2004-07-28
Camden, TN
| Re: Public $ said by zod5000 :I think thats the only way to get it deployed in rural areas is government subsidies. Its probably not financial feasible from a private companies point of view. Public dollars well spent i would think. the US did this with both electricity and phone service to the benefit to ALL Americans yet Americans would be against doing this for broadband. I'm not sure how Canadians feel about this. | |
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JasonOD
@comcast.net
| Good one....... I appreciate their ambition and enthusiasm, but I don't know how this is going to be possible. Nobody to date has been able to do this with urban areas large or small in North America. I'd think getting 100% coverage to PEI would be very challenging, let alone Saskatchewan. | |
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travisc
join:2001-11-09
Port Perry, ON | Re: Good one....... Saskatchewan is very flat - wireless would work quite well there. | |
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| | wilburyan
join:2002-08-01 | Re: Good one....... LOL... the south is somewhat flat... North of that... not so much. | |
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VikingBob
join:2004-06-05
Ste Anne, MB
·MTS
| Re: Good one....... The Southwest part where I grew up isn't flat at all! The hills have hills there... The "Thrill Hills" were a local favourite. 60 miles per hour, and your stomach floats into your mouth as you go over the top. 
I'd like to see if SK can pull this off, especially way up north with all the trees and rocks and bears. Will Ole Olaffson and his pet moose Bjork be able to watch HD streaming video in their cabin? We shall see... | |
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Retired telco
@sk.ca
| Geography Lesson Take a look on Google Maps and see just how flat Saskatchewan is or isn't. Lots of terrain features to get in the way of wireless signals. 95% coverage will be amazing if achieved. I worked for the telco for three decades so I had first hand experience with both the geography and the limits of technology. | |
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MillionaireExec
@comcast.net
| And why not? The US subsidizes the wealthy capitalist insurance, banking and soon automotive executives with billions of corporate welfare handouts and other government cheese.
At least by subsidizing rural broadband, the Canadian taxpayers will realize some benefit from their tax dollars. | |
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| jj_frap
join:2003-12-15
·Bell Sympatico
| Re: And why not? Here's the part that will really make your head spin: Brad Wall and the Saskatchewan Party are very right-wing. I'm surprised there's anybody on the right who's still capable of understanding ideas that don't involve neo-liberalism and market fundamentalism, but good for Saskatchewan. | |
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hmm
@cox.net | wow lol canada has internets eh
thought they were on strike | |
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MrMoody
But the Grinch ... did Not.
join:2002-09-03
Smithfield, NC | Good for them I wouldn't call 400 miles narrow.
SK is as rural as almost anywhere in the lower 48. I hope they succeed, and that others take note. | |
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Saskatchewan To Get 100% Broadband Coverage