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Mobile Syrup

Rogers to separate wireless, wireline traffic to prevent outages like July 8th

Rogers plans to separate its wireless and wireline networks through adjustments to its core network, MobileSyrup has learned. It could take up to 18 months to build the separation, with the migration likely happening in two years.

Rogers’ Chief Technology Officer (CTO), Jorge Fernandes, announced the plan at an all-hands meeting Friday. This solution appears to be Rogers’ answer to the question of how to prevent a massive outage like the one that took down the company’s wireless and wireline networks on July 8th.

Rogers currently runs what’s called an all-IP network. That means it puts all traffic (wireless, wireline, telephone, etc.) through the same core network, which is why both services failed during the July 8th outage. Based on evidence gathered by researchers and information previously shared with MobileSyrup, it appears Rogers’ Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) routers malfunctioned after a maintenance update on July 8th. Those routers are responsible for handling all the traffic and transferring it between Rogers’ network and the wider internet. For more on this, read MobileSyrup’s deep dive into the outage here.

All-IP networks can be described as being like an FM radio where instead of having multiple stations to tune into, there’s one tuning that contains every station. MobileSyrup understands that Rogers’ plan is to add what’s essentially a ‘second tuning’ to its FM radio and migrate some ‘stations’ to the second tuning. Put another way, the company will maintain two core pipelines to the internet and will likely separate wireless traffic (such as 5G and LTE) and wireline traffic (like fibre), putting one in each pipeline.

It’s unclear if the separate pipelines would act as fallbacks for each other, enabling wireless and wireline traffic to stay up if one of the pipes goes down. Presumably, Rogers will go this route, but at the very least, the change should prevent an outage from taking down wireless and wireline at the same time. It also isn’t clear how much it will cost the company to make this separation, although MobileSyrup understands it will be expensive.

MobileSyrup understands the changes will apply deep in the core of Rogers’ network and should not be felt by customers. From the perspective of Rogers subscribers, nothing will change.

Rogers did not respond to MobileSyrup’s request for comment in time for publication.

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Telus’ mobile network offers consistent quality, according to Tutela report

Telus’ mobile network “dominated” in quality tests, scoring highest in Tutela’s latest ‘Canada State of Mobile Experience‘ report.

In an email to MobileSyrup, Tutela highlighted points from the report, noting that Telus had the highest ‘Excellent Consistent Quality on a 5G Network’ at 91.6 percent. Telus also scored the best for ‘Excellent Consistent Quality’ of its overall network at 82.9 percent, followed closely by Bell at 82.4 percent and Rogers at 77.7 percent.

Tutela details in its report that its annual benchmark evaluated 879,152 speed and latency tests “conducted on the smartphones of real-world users of national mobile operators within Common Coverage Areas, between September 2021 and February 2022.

5G Consistent Quality | Image credit: Tutela

The report also breaks down what, exactly, an 82.9 percent consistent quality score means. In short, Tutela says that 82.9 percent of Telus’ mobile connections were good enough to handle demanding tasks and apps like 1080p video streaming, high definition group video calling, and real-time mobile gaming.

Overall Consistent Quality | image credit: Tutela

Tutela also shared “Core Consistent Quality” scores measured the percentage of connections that “users’ average experience met the minimum recommended performance thresholds for lower performance applications.” That included standard definition (SD) quality video, voice calls, and web browsing.

Again, Telus scored best here at 91.9 percent, followed by Bell at 90.4 percent, with Rogers taking third at 87.3 percent.

Finally, Tutela shared a breakdown of key performance indicators (KPIs) for each network overall and for 5G specifically.

Tutela describes itself as an “independent crowdsourced data company” that gathers information on mobile infrastructure and tests wireless experiences.

You can view the full report here.

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Mobile Syrup

Samsung, Telus announce deployment of new mission critical network tech

Samsung and Telus announced the successful deployment of “Canada’s first next-generation Mission Critical Push-to-X (MCPTX) services.”

According to a press release from Samsung, the MCPTX deployment on Telus’ network will help equip Canada’s first responders with ” the information and data they need to more accurately assess emergency situations.” It should also help improve responsiveness and operational efficiency.

Samsung shared several examples of how MCPTX will enhance communication in public safety scenarios. For first responders, Samsung says MCPTX tech will help share knowledge and expertise from first responders in different locations or across different agencies. That can include things like communicating in real-time to quickly resolve a public emergency or quickly sharing information like video or maps to first responders.

Another example relates to cellular usage — MCPTX enables priority access for first responders, helpful during catastrophic events where cell usage tends to spike significantly.

Samsung also shared the idea of a connected ambulance that could allow paramedics to share critical information and connect with emergency room doctors to start treatment remotely.

Finally, Samsung suggested that MCPTX could interface with traffic control by disseminating emergency vehicle route maps to intersections, allowing for “green lights” all along the route.

Telus says its MCPTX service will be available with priority access to commercial users on Telus’ network. Moreover, the carrier is actively trialling the service with select customers and will offer wider commercial availability later in 2022.

Those interested can learn more about Samsung’s network solutions here and about Telus’ efforts to support first responders here.

Source: Samsung

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Mobile Syrup

Rogers expands 5G to Dartmouth and Bedford, Nova Scotia

Toronto-based national telecom company Rogers announced it expanded 5G coverage to more areas in Nova Scotia.

In an email release, the carrier said it expanded 5G in Dartmouth and Bedford, Nova Scotia. The expansion brings Rogers’ 5G to a total of 16 communities across the Atlantic region, including Halifax, Moncton, Saint John and Fredericton, all part of a broader series of investments in Canada’s east coast.

Along with the 5G improvement, Rogers “enhanced” wireless networks across 32 communities in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador and Prince Edward Island over the last 20 months.

Rogers also boasted about its investment in wireline network upgrades, which the company says helped improve connections across 71 communities in Atlantic Canada.

“We’re proud to enhance connectivity in cities, towns, and rural communities across Atlantic Canada, especially during the pandemic when world-class connections have played a critical role in people’s lives,” said Matt MacLellan, president of the Atlantic region at Rogers.

Rogers says its ongoing investments have enabled enhanced connectivity to over 1,000 Canadian communities and will expedite plans to bring enhanced connectivity to an additional 750 communities by the end of 2021.