TORONTO-Rogers Wireless will pay Swedish telecom supplier Ericsson up to C$465 million (US$302 million) as part of a three-year extension to an existing contract.
Under the exclusive agreement, Ericsson Canada will supply Toronto-based Rogers with wireless network equipment and radio access gear for upgrading and maintaining mobile-phone networks, including Rogers’ older TDMA-based network and its newer GSM/General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) data and voice network.
Ericsson has sold equipment to Rogers since the carrier entered the wireless business in the mid-1980s. The deal with Rogers is among the largest Ericsson Canada has ever signed.
Adding another frequency to the Rogers Wireless GSM network will improve reception inside buildings in urban areas, said Rogers spokesperson Heather Armstrong. It will also improve network coverage in fringe areas, such as the edge of urban areas.
Currently, Rogers’ GSM phone customers use radio spectrum only in the 1900 MHz range, though half of the handsets used are designed to operate at 850 MHz, which is where older TDMA phones operates.
Armstrong said the plan is to bridge those two spectrum ranges. “It’s maximizing the use of our existing spectrum to provide the best possible performance for customers,” she said.
