Update December 2009

New QINIQ Network Goes Live December 11th!
Residents in communities across all of Nunavut will soon benefit from significant improvements to their QINIQ Internet services, thanks to collaboration between the Government of Canada, Nunavut Broadband Development Corporation (NBDC), and the operator of the QINIQ network, SSi Micro Ltd.

For almost three months, SSi ‘s technicians have been travelling to the communities, upgrading base stations, installing new hardware, tuning satellite dishes and conducting routine maintenance.  On December 11th the upgrades will be completed and the new network will go live!  The new more efficient QINIQ system means:

• More bandwidth to support more customers
• Improvements in speed, especially during busy hours
• The ability for users to move more data
• Fewer outages

As well, SSi has increased the speed and usage on basic accounts by 50% at no additional charge.  For more information, see http://www.qiniq.com/christmas-story.

The Government of Canada and SSi each invested $750,000 to introduce the latest technology.  This amount is in addition to the $9.33 million invested by the Government of Canada towards the purchase of more satellite bandwidth in the territory. This investment will be matched by SSi and customer revenue for a total of over $18.5 million to be used by June of 2012. These specific investments are part of the larger Infrastructure II project and make it possible for the QINIQ network to provide affordable Internet access to an increased number of subscribers totaling up to 6800 by the end of fiscal year 2012-2013.  Beyond that period, additional bandwidth support will be required.

Update November 2009

QINIQ Network Upgrade
A vital component of the Infrastructure II project, separate from the new services of Time Shift, Local Connect, Meet Online and Classroom Connect, is QINIQ 2000+. This involves the investment of $9,330,000 by Infrastructure Canada for the purchase of much needed additional satellite capacity for the QINIQ network, currently used by thousands of subscribers.  It also includes upgrading of the core QINIQ infrastructure for 25 communities in Nunavut.

The QINIQ operator SSI Micro has secured the additional satellite capacity.  SSI technicians started site upgrades in September and will continue to make their rounds until all communities have been visited.  They will be completing a number of tasks in each community, including routine maintenance and tuning on existing equipment and dishes, and installing new equipment to support the expanded network and upcoming new services.  In seven communities where local capacity is currently saturated, additional base stations are being installed to connect customer modems to the local satellite dish.  All of this work is planned to be completed by December 2009, at which time the upgraded QINIQ network will go live and users will experience an improved quality of service.

Regular updates on site visits and progress can be found at the QINIQ Facebook page www.facebook.com/qiniq.

New Services Phased In
Once the upgraded QINIQ network is live, the new services of Time Shift, Local Connect and Meet Online will be launched by the second quarter of 2010.  Meanwhile, beta versions are being tested and in the case of Classroom Connect a pilot project involving schools in five or six communities starts in December.

Bandwidth Allocation
The new services Time Shift, Meet Online and Classroom Connect will each have their own dedicated bandwidth.  When Meet Online and Classroom Connect are not being used, typically in off-peak hours, their bandwidth will automatically be assigned to Time Shift as required.  The following diagram uses the metaphor of reserved seats on an airliner to illustrate this point.

AIRLINE DIAGRAM 1

Satellite capacity for each of these new services will increase incrementally over a three year period as the Infrastructure II budget is rolled out and funds are disbursed. This is illustrated in the following diagram.

AIRLINE DIAGRAM 2

Update July 2009

Infrastructure Phase II - RFP Evaluation Results
On February 23rd, in compliance with a 5-year, $43 million Contribution Agreement between NBDC and Infrastructure Canada, an official Request for Proposals for new applications was released. These proposed services, planned to launch in 2010, are:

• Time Shift. This will allow users to transfer very large files at a time most convenient for both the sender and the network. It will require servers in each community for storage and local access to previously delivered material;
  Challenge - Large Files Cannot Be Transferred
  
  Solution:
  
  
  
• Local Connect.This will provide a facility (servers and routers) within the largest Nunavut communities to allow different networks (i.e. NWTel, Qiniq, GN) to interconnect locally thus reducing satellite traffic;
  Challenge - Local Networks Not Connected
  
  Solution:
  
  
• Meet Online. This will enable a range of audio and video conferencing and document sharing services to connect users for one-on-one conversations, one-to-many sessions and many-to-many conferences;
  Challenge - Video Conferences Don’t Work In Nunavut
  
  Solution:
  
  
  
• Classroom Connect. This service is produced in collaboration with the Government of Nunavut and includes dedicated satellite capacity for improving the connection for classrooms in schools in Nunavut.   

By June 15th the NBDC Evaluation Committee had reviewed the proposals, interviewed the top bidders and made its recommendations to the NBDC Board. On June 25th the NBDC Board passed a resolution approving the recommendations, summarized in the following statement:

“The Nunavut Broadband Infrastructure II New Applications RFP closed on April 27, 2009. The RFP invited proposals for satellite network services from network operators that could demonstrate services currently provided in every Nunavut community. For three of the four new applications, Local Connect, Time Shift and Classrooms, a compliant proposal was received from only one bidder. The NBDC Board has authorized contract negotiations with the single bidder SSI Micro Ltd. leading to a contract award. For the new application Meet Online, only one bidder submitted a proposal but that proposal was not complete in all respects. The NBDC Board has authorized negotiations with the single bidder for Meet Online and a subsequent announcement will be made when appropriate.“

To download a PDF copy of Update July 2009, click here.

Update April 2009

INFRASTRUCTURE PHASE II - We are listening to you! 

Request for Proposals
On February 23rd an official RFP for new Vendor services was released. Proposals were submitted April 27th. The new services will be launched starting in October. Together with the Vendors, NBDC will promote the use of bandwidth more efficiently encouraging Nunavut users to adopt the use of new services.

To download a PDF copy of Update April 2009, click here.

ILLUSTRATIONS

Infrastructure Phase II Solutions - The following illustrations show the broadband challenges facing Nunavummiut and some of the solutions facilitated by NBDC’s Infrastructure Phase II project.

Challenge 1 – Satellite Dependent Communities

Challenge 2 – Fibre Speeds Promote More Internet Use Globally

Challenge 3 – Local Networks Not Connected
Solution 3 – Local Connect

Challenge 4 – Large Files Cannot Be Transferred
Solution 4 – Time Shift

Challenge 5 – Video Conferences Don’t Work In Nunavut
Solution 5 – Meet Online

Previous Updates

Previous updates are also located in the Download Documents section.

As a not-for-profit corporation set up to serve Nunavut residents, NBDC is eligible to access investment from the Government of Canada for the Nunavut public’s benefit under a program managed by Infrastructure Canada.