Northwestel extends pandemic data relief until end of May

Northwestel says it will continue waiving data overage fees for some northern communities, and adding extra data in others, until at least the end of May.

The extension requires approval from federal regulator the CRTC, which is expected to be a formality. The measures for May will be exactly the same as those in March and April, the company said.

That means Yellowknife, Fort Smith, and Norman Wells residents will have their overage fees waived for May.

Residents in NWT communities on satellite data – Colville Lake, Gamètì, Łutselkʼe, Paulatuk, Sachs Harbour, Sambaa K’e, Ulukhaktok, and Wekweètì – will have their package’s data limit increased by 50 percent for May.

Those in all other NWT communities will receive an extra 100 GB for the month.

“We have set different relief for these different technologies to ensure our networks remain within their capacity,” Northwestel said in a statement.

“You do not need to take any action to receive this temporary benefit, which will be applied automatically to every customer’s account.”

Many residents of the NWT are working from home during the Covid-19 pandemic, pushing their ordinary home data packages well beyond their limit.

Northwestel is understood to be on the verge of introducing unlimited home data plans for the territory, but such an option does not presently exist.