Bell Aliant sorry for high-speed internet glitches

Bell Aliant officials apologized to a P.E.I. legislative committee Thursday for the confusion created during the rollout of high-speed internet across the Island.

Company vice-president Bruce Howatt acknowledged that not everything had gone smoothly.

"High speed is available all across the province, and I have to apologize on behalf of the organization for some of the confusion because some [of our customers]have contacted us and have been told high speed wasn't available when it was," Howatt said. "So, I have to apologize."

Todd Clarke, director of business development for Bell Aliant, said his company spent $ 8.3 million to build the infrastructure to provide high-speed internet service throughout the province.

It is now available to 24,000 rural homes, he said,but there is a waiting list of about 1,000 households.

Conservative MLA Mike Currie said Bell Aliant was given an untendered contact in 2008 by the Liberals to provide government phone service for five years in return for building the high-speed internet infrastructure.

"It has been common practice across our region and our country to extend contracts of this type," Currie said.

After the meeting of the all-party committee on fisheries, transportation and rural development, Howatt wouldn't reveal how much the government phone service contract was worth.

"I'm not going to disclose what the value of the contract was. That's competitive information," he said.

During the meeting, Howatttold Currie that a development agreement is in place with the province that includes further telephone service, as well as a $1-million innovation fund for businesses.

Currie said that when he asked for the contract to be tabled in the House, he was told by Development Minister Allan Campbell that there was no such document.

The project is part of thegovernment's ongoing commitment to rural development. Access to Bell Aliants broadband serviceis designed tohelp stimulate rural business activity and improve the quality of life for people living in rural communities.

Although Bell Aliant competeswith three other companies on the Island, Howatt saidBell Aliant is not out to take their customers away .

"If customers had service from one of our competitors, we are certainly not encouraging those customers to come to our service," Howatt said. "Our whole goal is to create economic development and not to put any business out of business."