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9| The IFP -H alton H ills | T hursday,A pril 26,2018 theifp.ca © 20 18 Pa nd or a Je w el ry ,L LC • A ll rig ht s re se rv ed THE PANDORA STORE AT SQUARE ONE | ERIN MILLS TOWN CENTRE MAPLEVIEW CENTRE | BRAMALEA CITY CENTRE *May 3 - 6, 2018 while supplies last at participating retailers and online. Free Bangle (retail value $85) with $150 PANDORAPANDORAP purchase before taxes to qualify. Limit of 3 per person. Bangle (597137) is not available for individual purchase. No substitutions. Not valid on prior purchases. Excludes PANDORAPANDORAP ShineTM and gift card purchases. Gift with purchase must be returned with qualifying purchase or value of the gift with purchase ($85) will be deducted from the return. Product not for resale. Other restrictions may apply. OUR GIFT TO YOU THIS MOTHER'S DAY FREE BANGLE* With your $150 PANDORA purchase. RE TA I L VALUE $85 L IM I T ED ED I T ION A Campbellville couple wanted to know why their Xplornet inter- net is painstakingly slow, despite purchasing one of the fastest pack- ages. Christine Prudham, vice-presi- dent of general counsel for the company explained to them that Milton is one of the most difficult areas in Canada for internet pro- viders to service - because Bell and Rogers have licensed a wide swath of telecommunications frequen- cies in the Golden Horseshoe. She and other service provid- ers like Standard Broadband were available to answer questions ofavailable to answer questions ofa the public at a community meet- ing hosted by the Destination Campbellville Community Asso- ciation at the Mohawk Racetrack. "I need spectrum," said Prud- ham, explaining that she has pleaded with the Canadian Radio- Television Communications (CRTC) for over a decade to make a concession with Xplornet. The larger telecommunica- tions companies purchased licens- ing for the 3,500-wavelength fre- quency in order to preserve their ability to service cellphone users in the area for years ahead. How- ever, neither company has made motions to bring high-speed inter- net servicing to more rural parts of that territory. "It's just brutal," said Prudham, adding that Xplornet focuses on bringing internet services to rural regions across the country, and as a result of the licensing agreement in the GTA, they bring faster inter- net to places like northern Alberta than inside the GTA. As a result, the company ser- vices rural areas in the periphery of the Golden Horseshoe with al- ternative internet solutions, which Prudham explained are less ideal for the population densi- ty and landscape. Xplornet isn't the only compa- ny struggling with bringing high- speed internet to the region. A report from the Halton Re- gion last year found that the ma- jority of people living in the north- ern parts of Halton have subpar internet access. The study was a partnership with BDO consulting LLP and the University of Guelph, where re- searchers surveyed 8,000 resi- dences in the area about their in- ternet access. Of the 1,500 respon- dents, all reported having internet speeds lower than the CRTC's minimum threshold for basic in- ternet. In 2016, the CRTC declared in- ternet a basic telecommunica- tions service and announced that by 2021, 90 per cent of homes and businesses across the country should have internet with a down- loading speed of at least 50 mega- bits per second. "Given the lack of direct ac- countability to delivery services in the rural area of Halton, there is significant risk that the 2021 target for the delivery of basic internetfor the delivery of basic internetf will not be achieved," said the re- gion's broadband update released this month. Tom Williams, of StandardTom Williams, of StandardT Broadband told the crowd at the meeting that his company is wait- ing for the snow to melt to begin installing a new network of fibre- optic cables to service the area. "Unfortunately, it has taken us a little longer than we hoped," he said, explaining that they will be expanding services and burying cables all through the summer, until October or November. "We will be sending out more regular updates." NEWS Xplornet: North Halton one of the hardest areas in Canada to bring high-speed internet Region unsure of 2021 high-speed internet targets for rural Milton, Halton Hills ALEXANDRA HECK aheck@metroland.com Victoria Plourde and James Reyes from Connextions, a service installer for Xplornet came out to the community meeting at Mohawk Park to talk about efforts to expand high-speed internet servicing in North Halton. Alexandra Heck/Metroland