Bell, Telus to Finally End Rogers Monopoly?

The Financial Post is reporting that Bell and Telus have formed a pact to upgrade to a next-generation wireless network. This announcement is said to be made next week and it will allow the companies to provide the same popular mobile devices, such as the iPhone 3G, that Rogers offers.

Multiple sources in the telecom industry said Bell Canada and Telus are expected to share the costs of upgrading from their current code division multiple access (CDMA) networks to the globally adopted high speed packet access (HSPA) network. It is estimated to cost the two companies as much as $1-billion and take about one year to install.

The announcement will finally put pressure on Rogers by adding two viable competitors in the mobile market. Bell and Telus will both be able to offer the iPhone 3G and the Blackberry Bold which currently are unavailable to their customers due to incompatible networks.


The Financial Post is reporting that Nokia Siemens Networks will be the vendor that will provide Bell Canada and Telus with the HSPA network upgrade.

Their sources also say that Bell and Telus won't offer "2G" GSM devices to prohibit Rogers from making money off roaming charges since Rogers is the only wireless provider in Canada with a GSM network.

This announcement (if made) will coincide with the due date that wireless companies have to pay Industry Canada for the recent cellular spectrum auction. Bell and Telus may look to earn revenue by allowing the new cellular entrants to use their networks when needed.