Terry Halifax
Northern News Services

NNSL (Dec 13/99) - Remote communities may soon see an increase in services, thanks largely to contributions from southern phone companies.

NorthwesTel is working on a service plan to submit to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) that will detail needs and costs to increase basic service to outlying communities, said Anne Grainger, director of public affairs for NorthwesTel.

"The CRTC handed down a decision in October on the high-cost servicing area, directing us and all other telephone companies in Canada to file what they're calling service plans," Grainger said.

NorthwesTel's service area covers nearly four million square kilometres in some of the most remote parts of British Columbia, Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut, Grainger said.

"Some communities within our operating area are, quite literally, in the middle of nowhere," she said. "To be able to extend our service in these areas is totally cost prohibitive to us," she said. "So we will include that in our plan and they have indicated that if necessary, there would be supplementary funding available to us."

Southern telephone companies will all chip in to provide the extra funding, Grainger said.

"We have to put forward a plan to the CRTC that will include how we can extend service to customers who are currently considered under-served, they have very basic levels of phone service," she said. "They won't have fax or Internet or those types of things."

The CRTC defines basic service as:

- single-line touch- tone service with local access to Internet

- enhanced calling features with access to emergency services, voice message relay service and privacy protection features

- access to operator and directory assistance services

- access to the long- distance network

- a recent local telephone directory

NorthwesTel must file the service improvement plan by Jan. 17, 2000 and are seeking public input.