Iristel opens second wire line phone service in Iqaluit

Iristel is just the second company to offer wire line telephone service in Nunavut, starting in Iqaluit. Long-distance communication will pass via satellite, as it does with competitor Northwestel. (PHOTO BY PETER VARGA)

Telephone service provider Iristel broke ground in Iqaluit this week, offering a second option for wire-line phone service in Nunavut.

The Toronto-based telecom company now offers service to residential and business customers on its VoIP network to all Canada’s 13 provinces and territories. Its arrival in Iqaluit means that residents of the Nunavut capital have an alternative to Northwestel for wire-line phone service.

As a VoIP, or voice over internet protocol connection, customers will need Internet service to connect a phone line with Iristel’s system.

But as with regular phone lines, customers have local phone numbers for local exchange, and can even transfer their existing number from a current provider to Iristel.

“Our goal is to de-mystify VoIP, so that people in Iqaluit could finally take advantage of the full suite of advanced features that southerners have been accustomed to over the last 15 years,” said Maged Bishara, vice-president of operations and national sales for Iristel.

The technology allows Iristel to offer telephone services at lower rates than regular phone services, including flat rates for unlimited long distance calls.

Unlike computer-to-computer connections, Iristel’s internet-based network is delivered through the company, in a mixture of VoIP and “public switch to telephone network,” or PSTN, “which is a traditional telephone network,” Bishara said.

“We’re a telephone company,” he said. “That means we have physical resources in Iqaluit, and we are able to physically provide local telephone lines, local telephone numbers, and port (transfer) people’s numbers back and forth in Iqaluit.”

Call quality would be the same as through a regular phone in Nunavut, where all long-distance communications are transmitted via satellite.

Iristel offers its service in Iqaluit through Qikiqtaaluk Information Technology Corp., and directly through a toll-free line.

As an internet-based provider, Iristel can provide services remotely, limiting the need to send technicians to deal with hardware.

The company offers a variety of systems for businesses, aiming to do so at a fraction of the cost charged by regular wire line providers, including multiline telephone systems, virtual faxing that converts paper faxes to digital, and video conferencing.

One drawback to Iristel in Nunavut is that Northwestel does not provide dry-loop Internet services, meaning customers always need a NorthwesTel telephone line with their Internet connection.

“That means it relegates an Iristel VoIP line to being a secondary phone line,” said Bishara. “Meanwhile, our goal is to be a primary provider.”

To get around the issue, Iristel will soon offer Internet service in Iqaluit as well, Bishara said, with plans to offer 3G wireless services that are on par with southern Canada.

“There’s a market in Iqaluit for sure,” Bishara said, adding that the company plans to expand to other communities in the territory. “We’re going to be expanding as quickly as we can, just like we did across the rest of Canada.”