Canadian mobile operator Telus has announced it will launch LTE next year and has called on regulators to ensure more spectrum is available to ensure widespread rollout.
In a statement, Telus – the country’s third-largest operator – said that construction of the new network will begin in the latter half of 2011 in “major urban markets” across Canada.
It will initially operate on the Advanced Wireless Services (AWS) spectrum (1700/2100MHz) that the operator purchased for C$882 million (US$918 million) at auction three years ago.
Telus has already deployed an HSPA+ network across 95 percent of the Canadian population, which it built-out in conjunction with rival Bell Mobility. However, it is unclear if the two will also collaborate on LTE. Market-leader Rogers Wireless began testing LTE last October.
Telus described its forthcoming LTE network as ‘4G+’ and claimed it will support peak download speeds of up to 150Mb/s and upload speeds of up to 70Mb/s.
However, the operator admitted that it would need to acquire lower frequency 700MHz spectrum – due for auction next year – in order to cover Canada's “expansive rural geography” with LTE.
“It will be critical for the Federal Government to enable an equitable opportunity for Telus to acquire 700MHz spectrum in the auction planned for late 2012 to support our plans to expand availability of 4G+ LTE wireless service to rural markets,” said Telus CEO Darren Entwistle.
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