Canada's Telus said it plans to introduce an LTE network in early 2012 after it launches dual-carrier HSPA+ technology in the first half of of this year.
Dual-carrier HSPA+ will double the network's peak data rate to 42 Mbps. In late 2009, Telus flipped from CDMA to HSPA+, which now covers 95 percent of the Canadian population. The operator did so via a network partnership with BCE, which operates under the Bell Canada brand.
After Telus launches dual-carrier HSPA+ this year, it will deploy LTE to urban areas in Canada using the Advanced Wireless Services (AWS) spectrum that Telus purchased at auction in 2008. Telus said the completion of the rollout into rural Canada will be dependent on the Industry Canada auction of frequencies in the 700 MHz band.
Rival Rogers Communication is expected to introduce LTE services this year.
For more:
- see this Zachs Equity Research post
- read this release
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