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Bell Canada is now out the gate with its anticipated 3G GSM HSPA-based broadband wireless network, just in time for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games for which it is Premier National Partner and the Exclusive Telecommunications Partner. Whether Bell will score the most points with Canadians against competitors Rogers, which has such a network in place, and Telus, which launches its version Thursday remains to be seen.

 

Offering mobile speeds as high as 21 Mbps, Bell’s new network covers 1.2 million square kilometres (750,000 square miles), reaching approximately 20,000 Canadian cities and towns and 93 percent of the country’s population. The new network also supports international roaming across the U.S. thanks to an agreement with leading HSPA operator AT&T (News - Alert), which makes it very handy for the many Canadians who cross the border and in more than 200 countries worldwide.

 

Bell now offers a wide range of new HSPA smartphones and other devices to run on it. These include the BlackBerry Bold 9000 and 9700, iPhone 3GS, LG Xenon, Nokia 2730 and 6350, Novatel U998, Samsung (News - Alert) OMNIA II that is the Official Mobile Device of the Vancouver 2010Olympic Winter Games and a Bell Mobility exclusive, and the Samsung Impact.

 

To take advantage of this bandwidth and video capabilities built into many of the HSPA-enabled handsets Bell has also announced Video Calling. This is a new service that lets clients make and take phone-to-phone video calls with other Bell Mobility clients or even receive video calls on their mobile phones through an exclusive application built on Facebook (News - Alert)(R) Platform. Now available on the LG Xenon and Samsung OMNIA II smartphones, unlimited Video Calling can be added to any Bell Mobility plan for $5 a month and is included in many plans at no extra cost.

 

Calls made using the online Facebook application can originate from any computer with a web cam around the world without incurring long distance or usage charges. Users can customize their Facebook accounts to select which friends can see the Bell Video Call application on their profile. Once installed, friends with access to the video calling application will be able to visit the client’s profile page and click on the Bell Video Call tab to start a video call.

   

“Our all-IP network infrastructure employs enough new high-speed fiber to wrap halfway around the globe, ensuring that Bell consumer and business clients have the best experience possible in Canadian wireless,” says Stephen Howe, chief technology officer for Bell Mobility. “By employing the very latest HSPA technology available, our brand-new network delivers enhanced call clarity, better in-building coverage and fewer dropped calls, while maximizing the capabilities of the latest HSPA mobile devices.”

   

 “Bell is delivering high-speed wireless service to more Canadians in more places than anyone else with the largest and fastest network available anywhere in North America,” adds Wade Oosterman, president of Bell Mobility and chief brand officer for Bell. “Bell’s new network is the most advanced in the world, built for speed and reliability from the ground up. And we’ve delivered this world-leading broadband access to thousands of small towns and rural locations just as fast as we have to urban centers across Canada.”