Bell and Telus’ move to HSPA avoids wreckage of CDMA, but challenges lie ahead

Hailed as a game changer, the launch of Bell Mobility and Telus Mobility’s high-speed packet access (HSPA) network will give the two companies a significant tool in their arsenal in the competitive marketplace, but they will also face challenges as they strive to migrate subscribers to the new superfast mobile wireless network. Bell and Telus have lit a fire under mobile competition in Canada. First, they deployed HSPA along side their CDMA network. Next, they have launched with coverage they say is unparalleled by Rogers Communications Inc., the country’s only other HSPA network operator. The Bell-Telus network covers 93% of the Canadian population. This newest HSPA network also levels the playing field when it comes to devices. Rogers will no longer have the sole advantage in getting access to the best devices and at cheaper rates than Bell and Telus could for CDMA handsets. The HSPA network also gives the two carriers the ability to compete with Rogers for iPhone customers, something not to be underestimated. “It certainly is a game changer for Bell and Telus who were running the risk of being totally eclipsed not just by Rogers but by all of the AWS entrants as well,” the SeaBoard Group’s Iain Grant tells Report on Wireless. While Bell and Telus could boast as having the country’s most extensive high-speed mobile wireless network with CDMA, it was the slowest, he added. “This isn’t exactly a rallying cry. So I think it took a certain amount of guts for them to suck it up and say look let’s deploy HSPA, let’s do it properly and deploy it everywhere,” Grant says. “This certainly gives Bell and Telus a much brighter future than they would have if they had clung to the wreckage of CDMA.” While the HSPA network gives Bell and Telus significant leverage as they battle for their share of mobile subscribers against venerable rival Rogers and upstarts such as DAVE Wireless and the regional cable companies’ wireless offerings, challenges lie ahead for the two wireless operators. How do the carriers tackle the migration of customers within their own base? And which subscribers do they target for switching? Grant expects the two operators will look to placate subscribers most likely to switch providers once their contracts came to an end and those paying the most attention to wireless network speeds. “You take the customers who you know are the ones who have been bitching, whining and bellyaching and move them to HSPA,” he says. “Their challenge is to migrate the high yield customer on the new network while keeping the old customers in the old CDMA world and to manage that process as effectively and efficiently as possible.” Perry Hoffman is an Ottawa-based freelance writer. He can be reached at perry@messagingmechanics.com.

Bell and Telus’ move to HSPA avoids wreckage of CDMA, but challenges lie ahead

News | November 17, 2009

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