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Northwestel offers unlimited internet in three Yukon communities

Monday, 1 November 2021 15:10

By Dylan MacNeil

​​​​​​​People in Dawson City, Watson Lake and Upper Liard can now get unlimited highspeed internet thanks to a brand-new fibre line.

Northwestel says that the new line has been the company’s largest construction project in the communities. Before today, internet was carried over old phone lines which in some cases, were decades old.  

 

Over 1,000 homes in the communities can now access internet speeds up to 250 Mbps, that’s 16 times more than the old max speed of 15Mbps.

 

The 250 Mbps unlimited plan will run you $249.95 a month or for $160.95, you can get as much data as you want at 50Mbps. There is also an option for a 125 Mbps plan.

 

It’s no secret that internet tends cost more in northern Canada. A 2019 study by e-commerce website Picodi, found that the average cost for a 100Mbps plan in the country was $62.36.

 

Andrew Anderson, director of communications for Northwestel says infrastructure in the north influences the price to surf the web.

 

“Prices here, because of the distances that our fibre has to cover, are a little higher than what we see in southern Canada, but today’s announcement is a big step towards making internet more affordable,” says Anderson.

 

According to a press release, this is the first fibre upgrade as part of Northwestel’s "Every Community" project, a plan to bring high-speed unlimited internet to 10,000 homes in the Yukon and Northwest Territories in 3 years.

 

The release goes on to say, “there are now 5 northern communities served primarily by fibre with the NWT communities of Hay River and Inuvik upgrading in 2021 through Northwestel’s own investments.”

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