3 November 2014

PRESS RELEASE – Sherbrooke Innopole welcomes with open arms the deployment of the fibre optic network in the region by Bell Fibe. This will be an asset for small and medium-sized businesses in Sherbrooke and a competitive advantage to attract new companies.

“Thanks to fibre optics, Sherbrooke businesses will benefit from a faster, more stable network,” said Josée Fortin, Director General of Sherbrooke Innopole. “This can translate into concrete productivity gains, not only for the hundred or so companies in the key sector of information and communications technologies, but also for all companies in the manufacturing sector. More and more companies are adopting integrated digital solutions, with software that communicates data in real time between their various departments.”

The Fibe Internet service gives access to ultra-broadband connectivity, with download and upload speeds as high as 175 Mbps. The network also provides greater connection stability to ensure the uninterrupted flow of data.

More than 85% of the territories of Sherbrooke and Magog are currently served by fibre optics. Bell has invested $34 million in the project, and foresees completing it in early 2015.

With this roll-out almost complete, Sherbrooke is becoming one of the first cities in Québec to be completely served by fibre optics. “The infrastructure being implemented by Bell will give Sherbrooke an enormous data transmission capacity, which will demonstrate its full potential in the future. The digital world is changing at a breath-taking pace, and this network will enable us to support applications we cannot even fathom today,” said Gordon Harling, Director of Business Development—ICT and Micro-Nanotechnologies at Sherbrooke Innopole.

“This network confirms our status as a smart community by increasing the capacity of information transmission. It will contribute to the development of new applications and will enable Sherbrooke to pursue its growth in new technologies and fully enter the digital era,” said Yves Seney, Director of the City of Sherbrooke’s Department of Information Technologies. Mr. Seney also highlighted Sherbrooke’s recent nomination to the select group of Smart21 communities, a world-renowned award granted annually by the Intelligent Community Forum.