Project Update
August 20, 2008In the news...
Halifax - OmniGlobe Networks to serve HRM
The Province is pleased to welcome OmniGlobe Networks to the Broadband for Rural Nova Scotia initiative. OmniGlobe joins EastLink and Seaside Communications to ensure that broadband is available province-wide by the end of 2009. Through OmniGlobe, approximately 1,300 unserved civic addresses scattered throughout rural HRM will have access to broadband. At that point, Nova Scotia will be one of the most connected jurisdictions in North America.
Based in Montreal, OmniGlobe specializes in remote and complex Internet connections. It is a Canadian global telecommunications company that has wireless Internet projects in a number of countries and offices in the United Kingdom, Ontario and Quebec. Currently it is expanding into British Columbia and Nova Scotia.
Engineering and site acquisition work will begin immediately. HRM residents who would like more information on the availability of OmniGlobe Broadband should visit the company's website. There, you can subscribe to a mailing list to receive information as it becomes available. If you wish, you can contact the company by e-mail at info@omniglobebroadband.com or by telephone at 1-888-365-6664.
Queens County - EastLink lights up Caledonia
Congratulations to EastLink, who announced in early June that 1,000 residents in the Caledonia area now have access to broadband. New subscribers in this area are EastLink's first under the Broadband for Rural Nova Scotia initiative.
To check the availability of service in EastLink zones, the company has developed an interactive map. The pink area represents where service is now available. By using the directional arrows (or + and - signs), you can find out where EastLink service is currently available. If you live in Zone 5 or 6, keep checking back to see when service is available in your area.
Province-wide progress
If this is your first update or you'd like a refresher on how fixed wireless high speed works, please visit our April 3, 2008 update, which explains each step of the project.
Currently, EastLink and Seaside Communications are focused on leasing the right tower and pole sites, as well as completing required public consultation and permit applications. Although new to the initiative, OmniGlobe has almost completed its Radio Frequency engineering, and will be finalizing their tower sites very soon.
This means that the service providers are leasing up to 400 sites across the province, where towers and poles will be erected to deliver high speed to rural homes and businesses.
Once a site has been leased, and residents living close by have been consulted about the proposed tower or pole, the municipality can issue a building permit. Construction crews will get to work when the permit is issued.
The level of collaboration and co-operation in Nova Scotia's municipalities is second to none. Everyone is working together to ensure the success of the broadband initiative. Staff of the Broadband for Rural Nova Scotia initiative, along with EastLink and Seaside have been meeting with municipal representatives, Chief Administrative Officers and their staff, and regional development authorities to create a greater understanding of the challenges of this initiative.
Over the coming months, many chambers of commerce and library boards in rural Nova Scotia are scheduled to hear presentations on the broadband initiative.
What's next?
After leasing a site, it's time to build! In addition, the service providers are using existing towers to reduce costs and reduce the number of towers on the landscape. We'll cover the details of the construction phase in our next update. Keep checking your provider's website to stay on top of what is happening in your zone. To get to their website, please click on the appropriate logo on our Zone Map.
New Broadband for Rural Nova Scotia website ...
for business, for families and students, for communities
We've redesigned our website so it provides more information on the benefits of high speed and how the project is progressing. We hope to link to websites from communities all over Nova Scotia. If your community has a website that is not listed here, let us know at broadband@gov.ns.ca
Global interest in Nova Scotia's broadband initiative
Nova Scotia's approach to providing 100 per cent broadband access is gaining recognition around the world. Nancy Flam, leader of the provincial initiative spoke at the Connecting Rural Communities Africa Forum in London in June. Nancy was invited to present to the Forum, by the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organization.
The Commonwealth Telecommunications Organization is an international development partnership between governments, business and community organizations. Its goal is to help developing countries to use telecommunications and technology to achieve social and economic development.
Nancy's presentation highlighted Nova Scotia's innovative funding and project management partnerships. This resulted in media coverage from as far away as Africa, as well as numerous inquiries from Commonwealth communications ministers, heads of telecommunication regulatory authorities and senior officials from many countries, who are seeking to apply Nova Scotia's learning to their own projects.