Photo by Whitehorse Star
Curtis Shaw
Northwestel raises Internet data ceilings
Northwestel Inc. is boosting Internet data for most customers starting July 1, with no rate increases.
Northwestel Inc. is boosting Internet data for most customers starting July 1, with no rate increases.
“We know our customers want more usage permanently, and we know business customers are asking for more usage as business activity increases,” Curtis Shaw, Northwestel’s president, said in a statement this morning.
“These changes to Northwestel Internet plans will make more permanent usage available in every community while respecting the capacity constraints of local network technologies.”
Northwestel’s temporary COVID-19 measures, which removed data caps, will expire June 30.
Northwestel customers who will see data increases are those with Cable and Fibre, Satellite Internet and Terrestrial DSL plans.
The boosted data plans will apply to residential and business Internet customers.
Both regulated and non-regulated plans will see a monthly data increase.
Plans will see boosts from five to 250 GB per month, Northwestel said.
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Comments (13)
Up 12 Down 0
Hank on Jun 29, 2020 at 1:21 am
Where I live we have unlimited data usage packages. I leave my media streaming all night as I sleep and have been doing so for over 15 years. I can't imagine having a data usage cap, it seems so 90's.
Up 18 Down 1
Groucho d'North on Jun 27, 2020 at 8:41 am
I wish NWTel would issue an Annual Report so we subscribers could better understand and appriciate how the monoploy is performing.
Up 14 Down 3
Yukoner79 on Jun 26, 2020 at 3:35 pm
Got my email. An extra 10gb. Gee thanks - that bought me an extra day before my overages kick into high gear.
Up 21 Down 2
Tater on Jun 25, 2020 at 5:02 pm
Well, I seem to remember that the Government/Taxpayer is giving NWTel about $20M a year to subsidize the service we receive. And keep an eye out to see NWTel making a rate application.
Up 23 Down 1
DA on Jun 25, 2020 at 2:19 pm
Lots of people may be griping, but I for one am grateful for my 10 GB/month increase.
Does NWT have a long way to go in improving service? Of course. I don't deny that. I do recognize that we live in a relatively remote part of the world, however. Unlimited packages with top speeds isn't as simple as it would be in say, Vancouver.
This data increase is a welcome change and a step in the right direction. Absolutely.
Up 19 Down 4
Ian on Jun 25, 2020 at 1:33 pm
While I am very happy about seeing the monopoly of Northwestel stepping up and offering the crumbs of cookies in terms of bringing data caps higher, will there be any plans to address the pretty standard 85-100 Mbps ( if a connection is even available) to outlying areas. I was tasked to work from home, and cannot do that due to my computer not being able to download a darn thing. Yesterday for example, a 137GB download kept showing as 1-5 hours...HOURS to complete a download. It was faster to drive into town and load it. IF Northwestel wants to get a pat on the back for doing something that isn't absolutely useless, bring your monopolized service and reliability for internet provision to a MUCH higher standard without all the overplayed excuses of geography, isolation and our buried cable somehow got above ground and broke again....
Up 4 Down 1
Juel on Jun 24, 2020 at 8:42 pm
Can you buy bigger packages also now? Or just the increase of 750 gb is the highest amount?
Up 13 Down 4
Alexander Kohler on Jun 24, 2020 at 3:49 pm
While that's great for customers that have a reliable connection, it does nothing for those of us that seem to live right on the "edge" of the reliable service range and have constant issues with their DSL internet. With timeouts & speeds being nowhere near of what is advertised even reaching the old data cap would have been a challenge. As our connection is right now, it can barely handle one person mindlessly scrolling through Instagram without half the pictures not loading. At this point satellite internet is looking good. I've hearing of "Network Modernization Plans" for years without anything to show for it, 15/.7 DSL in this day and age is a joke especially if it doesn't work properly.
If StarLink manages to make it through the Big 3's pushback and gets approval to operate in Canada, and even if it's a 1/4 of what Elon is promising which is 100 up / 40 down @ 20ms it would still be very appealing.
Up 27 Down 2
Jc on Jun 24, 2020 at 3:32 pm
Ian Robertson. The answer to that is simple. Northwestel has the monopoly. And until that's gone, they can and will charge what they want.
Up 28 Down 5
Atom on Jun 24, 2020 at 1:01 pm
Northwestel is a very disappointing company we are stuck with as our major provider...so I went with Xplornet...great service, one monthly rate for biggest package.....and no overage fees!
Nwtel should be embarrassed.
Up 12 Down 5
YukonMax on Jun 24, 2020 at 10:21 am
"more permanent usage available in every community while respecting the capacity constraints of local network technologies.”
The communities are already constrained by the archaic infrastructures.
We have to step outside to reach 3 bars on our cell phones.
However, forever, far from the eyes...
Up 34 Down 4
Jc on Jun 23, 2020 at 8:09 pm
What customers also need is faster internet and lower costs. That was promised us somewhere back in the late 20 century. Still waiting.
Up 22 Down 3
Ian Robertson on Jun 23, 2020 at 5:38 pm
Great deal for residential customers but no change for commercial customers? Why, we already heavily subsidize residential use and received no overage charge relief over the past 3 months yet Covid 19 significantly increased our basic needs. Fifty and ninety gigabyte minimum plans small business users get here in the north are a minimum of 100% less than what is offered down south for generally less money. Why are commercial customers being ripped off once again by Northwestel?