OTTAWA – Bell has successfully completed Wireless to the Home (WTTH) trials in the 3.5 GHz and 28 GHz spectrum bands in three small Ontario communities, and announced plans to roll out WTTH to rural locations beginning this spring.
Bell said Tuesday that the trials were conducted in Orangeville, Feversham and Bethany using Huawei's 5G-oriented Massive MIMO and 8T8R technology to test and refine the capabilities of WTTH services for rural areas. As one of its next major steps in deploying high-speed home broadband in Canadian communities large and small, Bell said that deployment of WTTH to rural locations will begin in the second quarter of 2018.
“The success of our first 5G trials and these new rural WTTH trials underscore that we're leading the way in delivering the next generation of broadband technology throughout Canada," said Bell's chief technology officer and EVP Stephen Howe, in the news release. "Innovation in WTTH complements Bell's extensive broadband fibre build, and our ongoing 5G trials and impending deployment of WTTH in rural and urban locations underscore our focus on full utilization of our assigned wireless spectrum resources."
"We are proud to work with Bell utilizing the WTTH solution to achieve the company's high-speed broadband goals," added Huawei's wireless network marketing & solutions sales VP Mao Dun. "TD-LTE technology is rapidly maturing. Other 5G-oriented technologies, including carrier aggregation, 8T8R and Massive MIMO, can deliver fibre-like access speeds while supporting Bell's multiple services such as Fibe TV. We believe these advanced technologies will benefit all Canadians."
