1) Smart meter manufacturers are moving towards 5G smart metering, like Landis+Gyr, no doubt to be able to gather more data and to use the IoT to share it, but also to be able to make more money by replacing the current smeter. These smeters will be using the 5G frequencies. along with the 4G, as well as the 5G grid being built by other utilities. This looks to be part of the “smart” city project — hoping to connect everything in a home, business or city.
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Adaptable, Future-Ready Solutions for Utility IoT Networks
“Landis+Gyr’s LTE-M cellular solution features the latest generation of radio technology as defined by 3GPP, the standards body that manages the evolution of global cellular standards. Landis+Gyr’s LTE-M cellular meters fall within the 3GPP” (3rd generation partnership project ) “Narrowband Cellular standard, Release 13, under the 5G standard, so that the meters coexist with 5G networks, supporting the 4G to 5G migration plan while providing new and innovative capabilities. The meters optimize exible and sustainable options for IoT communications, utilizing low power wide area (LPWA) radio technology for more efficient power usage and coverage, key factors in providing cost-e effective cellular communications for smart metering.”
Utilities Companies Adopt Cost-Effective 5G and 4G IoT Connectivity For Smart Meters (August 20, 2020)
“To connect their smart meters, utility companies are moving from what they’ve traditionally used, mesh technology, toward 3GPP standardized 4G and 5G cellular….
Mesh requires utility companies to deploy their own networks and bear all the burden of maintaining and upgrading those networks at an ever-increasing cost that drives the total cost of ownership up and up. Today, LTE-M is available at nearly 99% coverage in the USA from leading operators AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon. There is no longer any need for utility companies to build and maintain their own mesh networks.“
2) I have been trying to find more information about Telus’s demand that we “allow” them to replace our copper lines for landline phones with digital ones. Telus is sending letters telling people that they will lose service as of a specific date if they do not make the switch. “Migration to PureFibre” ( as they call it) is mandatory.
https://www.telus.com/en/internet/fibre/fibre-upgrade
Since Shaw has never offered copper lines, we have no choice it seems but to have a phone that will last only a short time during an outage. I’ve been told if the battery dies (after 2-4 hours) then I should use my cell phone. I don’t have a cell phone, and even cell phones need to be recharged. Also, cell towers may not have backup capacity. Then what?? No 911, no ambulance, no fire dept.
I complained to CRTC about this and was told that CRTC does not have jurisdiction over phone equipment or infrastructure. This is confusing. What, then, does CRTC do? I found an agency that says it handles complaints re. telephone companies. It is Commission for Complaints for Telecom and Television Services.
I have lodged a formal complaint via the online complaint form and I hope others who share my concern will do the same. How is it possible that a customer can be left without emergency service during a storm?
3) Unbelievable that telecoms should be able to claim to be safe, based on “science-backed standards that put health and safety first” as they irradiate their customers and non-customers alike, exposing them to carcinogens without telling them.
Welcome in! T-Mobile is First in Wireless to Greet Customers and Employees at Stores and Buildings with WELL Health-Safety Seal
“The Un-carrier puts people first, meeting rigorous standards established by International WELL Building Institute and 600+ public health experts to earn WELL Health-Safety Rating at thousands of locations
T-Mobile US, Inc. (NASDAQ: TMUS) is the first wireless provider to earn the WELL Health-Safety seal, which is based on a new global rating for ensuring spaces and places adhere to science-backed standards that put health and safety first. T-Mobile achieved the rating for the measures it has undertaken at more than 3,200 retail stores, 22 customer experience centers and its Bellevue and Kansas City headquarters — locations that cover a total of nearly 16 million square feet! Starting now, customers and employees can look for the WELL Health-Safety seal at the entrance of most T-Mobile locations….
T-Mobile U.S. Inc. (NASDAQ: TMUS) is America’s supercharged Un-carrier, delivering an advanced 4G LTE and transformative nationwide 5G network that will offer reliable connectivity for all. T-Mobile’s customers benefit from its unmatched combination of value and quality, unwavering obsession with offering them the best possible service experience and undisputable drive for disruption that creates competition and innovation in wireless and beyond.”
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210701005653/en/
Sharon Noble, Director, Coalition to Stop Smart Meters
“The Internet is so big, so powerful and pointless that for some people it is a complete substitute for life.” Andrew Brown