Bell Aliant (Toronto: BA-UN.TO) has added a number of new enhancements to its FibreOP Fiber to the Home (FTTH) set with new symmetrical download/upload speed tiers and enhancements to its IPTV service offering.
On a speed level, FibreOP 2.0 has increased the speeds of its asymmetric 25 Mbps/5 Mbps service to symmetric 30 Mbps down/30 Mbps. The 30 Mbps symmetric data speed complements Bell Aliant's 170 Mbps/30 Mbps speed tier.
But the new service upgrades aren't just about faster speeds. FibreOP 2.0 will also offer consumers a number of enhanced TV functions, including Best Whole Home PVR, where one PVR can be used for multiple rooms in one house. Allowing users to watch a television show or movie in one room and finish in another, the new TV product also includes Best Whole Home HD, the Ultimate Video-on-Demand, and the Next Generation Interactive Guide, with picture-in-picture browsing and advanced search capability.
Initially, FibreOP 2.0 will be available to Bell Aliant customers that reside in existing FibreOP markets, including Saint John, Fredericton, Moncton, and Sydney, while new FTTH markets such as Bathurst, Charlottetown and Halifax will launch with all FibreOP services, including FibreOP 2.0. Other customers that reside in areas where Bell Aliant has not launched FibreOP yet, including Truro, Summerside, and St. John's, will be able to access the FibreOP 2.0 when they launch FTTH in those markets.
Introducing the FibreOP 2.0 service reflects Bell Aliant's long-term plan to offset continuing declines in traditional landline phone service with fiber-based broadband and enhanced IPTV services. While landline loss is an inevitable reality for wireline-centric service providers like Bell Aliant, these ongoing enhancements will give it some weapon to attract new and keep customers from churning to local cable operators Eastlink, Quebec's Videotron and Rogers.
For more:
- see the release
Related articles:
Bell Aliant Q4 operating revenues decline, but maintains aggressive FTTH build out plans
Bell Aliant to bring FTTH network to Halifax Nova Scotia
Canadian telco Bell Aliant looks to IPTV, FTTH for growth through 2015