Bell Canada announced this week that it is 'poised' to begin deploying the 3500MHz band spectrum it won last summer to expand and upgrade 5G services in urban and rural markets across the country. Bell says that the addition of 3500MHz frequencies to its 5G network will give customers a faster experience with peak theoretical download speeds of 'up to 3Gbps in select areas' under the '5G+' banner. Bell added that 5G customers with compatible devices will 'soon' have access to 5G+ capabilities, starting with Toronto, and it will work towards offering 5G+ coverage to approximately 40% of the Canadian population by the end of 2022. Bell's existing 5G network currently covers over 75% of the population.

Bell's rival Rogers Communications claimed a Canadian first with the start of live 3500MHz 5G deployments this week.

Thanks to TeleGeography for this industry update.