Northwestel cuts internet prices, raises bandwidth caps

Expect a cheaper bill if you live in Nunavut and Northwestel is your high-speed internet service provider.

Northwestel is slashing its prices, depending on what package you have.

For its “light” package, expect to save $13 on your bill, for a “classic” package you stand to save $15, and those who have an “ultra” package will save $20 a month.

Northwestel is also increasing the bandwidth cap for classic and ultra packages by five Gb — the equivalent of two or three high-definition movies.

“We heard people who said they want service improvements,” said Joel Witten associate director of marketing at Northwestel.

“We made changes to the total community bandwidth earlier this year. The per cent of aggregate bandwidth got bigger — now there’s more network capacity,” he said, adding that’s now being passed onto the consumer.

Witten said this is not in reaction to potential competition stepping into Nunavut.

This past December, the CRTC ruled that other companies may compete with Northwestel within its service area for home telephone service.

In May, Ice Wireless and Iristel, two northern telecommunication firms, indicated they are interested in challenging Northwestel for its stranglehold on communications in Nunavut.

“It’s not a reaction. We just want to continue to be the provider of choice. We just want to make sure that we deliver value. We are aware of the competition, but we have a lot of loyal customers,” said Witten.

It won’t affect Northwestel’s bottom line, either, according to Witten.

“Obviously it’s a change in model, but we’re not losing money,” he said. “As we continue to get more customers, we hope more customers choose classic packages than the light one.’