SaskTel, the dominant Saskatchewan, Canada area telco, has launched an ambitious seven-year plan to build a Fiber to the Home (FTTH) network throughout its serving regions.
Under its Next Generation Broadband Access Program (2011 - 2017), SaskTel will spend CAD 207 million (USD 216 million) this year and about CAD 670 million (USD 699.7 million) over the next seven years to build the FTTH network in its nine largest urban centers--Saskatoon, Regina, Moose Jaw, Weyburn, Estevan, Swift Current, Yorkton, North Battleford and Prince Albert.
This year, SaskTel will invest CAD 16 million (USD 16.7 million) on its Next Generation Broadband Access Program, which includes a mix of both DSL and Fiber to the Premises (FTTP) targeting 100 percent of homes in the province`s nine major centers by 2017. The FTTP service will be initially available to residential customers in both Regina and Saskatoon.
Initially, SaskTel`s FTTP network will deliver speeds up to 200 Mbps with plans to raise them higher as part of the ongoing network upgrade cycles. Of course, the new FTTP-based platform will support the ongoing rollout of applications like its Max IPTV offering.
Outside of FTTP, SaskTel will invest CAD 28 million (USD 29.2 million) in its Rural Infrastructure Program, which includes CAD 15.6 million (USD 16.3 million) to upgrade 220 basic DSL communities from 1.5 Mbps to 5 Mbps by the end of the year and another CAD 12.5 million (USD 13 million) to improve its existing wireless network. Since last March, SaskTel has upgraded 209 communities with the higher DSL speeds.
