A bit late to the party, Rogers announced it is starting to roll out Canada’s first 5G network. The company will begin its 5G deployment in downtown Vancouver, Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal with plans to expand to over 20 more markets by the end of the year. Rogers also plans to turn on 5G in the Rogers Centre, Scotiabank Arena and Rogers Arena.
Its 5G network will initially use 2.5 GHz spectrum, and will expand to use 600 MHz 5G spectrum and 3.5 GHz spectrum later this year.
Rogers chose Ericsson as the vendor for its 5G deployment. The company says it’s been working with Ericsson since it launched wireless services in 1985. In the future, Rogers will also start using Ericsson’s dynamic spectrum sharing (DSS).
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DSS allows an operator to run 4G and 5G on the same spectrum band and dynamically allocate spectrum between the two. Ericsson’s DSS re-schedules spectrum every millisecond, effectively handling both the time and frequency variables.
Rogers 5G services will initially be available exclusively on Rogers Infinite plans with unlimited data.
“5G is not just another G. It is a global technology that requires local development to deliver the best social and economic benefits to Canadians,” said Rogers CTO Jorge Fernandes, in a statement. “Through our multi-year program we will invest in our wireless network and partner with leaders to drive innovative use cases for Canadian consumers and businesses.”
Rogers has established Canadian collaborations, including R&D partnerships with the University of British Columbia, the University of Waterloo and an incubator at Communitech. Rogers is also working with government and industry through Ryerson University Rogers Cybersecure Catalyst and ENCQOR 5G.
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Rogers has also joined the new 5G Future Forum, which was just announced this week. Other founding members of the forum include Verizon, Vodafone, Telstra, KT, and América Móvil.