SaskTel has been given more time to reconfigure its network, which means rural internet customers won’t lose their high-speed service at the end of this year after all.
Industry Canada said Sept. 28 it had extended the cutoff to March 31, 2014, after hearing concerns about 8,000 rural Saskatchewan SaskTel customers that could be left without service.
The issue arose after the federal government decided to reallocate broadband spectrum. In 2006, it gave licensees a five-year transition period to reconfigure their networks.
SaskTel received an extension in March 2011 and asked for another extension earlier this month.
The crown corporation could have bought spectrum through an auction but said the price was too high and decided instead to direct its affected subscribers to other services such as Xplornet.
