October 8, 2010

Rogers Communications Inc. announced the launch of a long-term evolution (LTE) wireless network technical trial with Ericsson Canada in the Ottawa area. LTE is a fourth-generation (4G) wireless technology that promises fast HD video streaming, gaming, communications, transactions and other connected experiences through mobile internet. LTE allows more data to pass through a network at speeds of up to 150 Mbps.

“Our customers increasingly want anywhere, anytime access to
information, communications, entertainment and transactional experiences
on their device of choice,” said Nadir Mohamed, president and CEO,
Rogers Communications Inc. “This technical trial is significant because
it builds on our industry-leading networks and it sets the groundwork
for our customers to do even more in the future.”

Ericsson, in co-operation with Rogers, has been conducting LTE lab
testing at its Ottawa R&D facility, comparing speeds and performance
of LTE technology in multiple frequency bands. Rogers will expand on
this testing and move to a comprehensive technical trial of LTE on both
low- and high-band frequencies across the Ottawa area.

“Through this trial we will validate how LTE technology will perform in
real-world situations across a variety of spectrum frequencies in urban,
suburban and rural environments,” said Bob Berner, executive VP,
network and CTO, Rogers Communications Inc. “Furthermore, we will verify
LTE data throughput speeds, performance quality and interoperability of
LTE with our existing advanced HSPA+ network ensuring that future
commercial deployment enables the best customer experience.”

The technical trial will initially use recently auctioned AWS spectrum.
Rogers is also working with Industry Canada to secure a development
license to use 700 MHz spectrum for the trial.

“Having operated in Canada for nearly 60 years and, as one of the
country’s top R&D investors employing more than 2400
engineers/developers, Ericsson is leading LTE development at our Ottawa
lab, bringing the most advanced mobile broadband technologies to
Canadians and global markets,” said Mark Henderson, president and CEO,
Ericsson Canada Inc.

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