Penticton is set for a big upgrade to internet connectivity, at least for Telus customers.
This week, Telus announced that Penticton would be included in its fibre network in 2017, and their user base would have access to their top of the line service, boasting speeds of 150mbs on both download and upload sides of the equation — as opposed to the typically much slower upload speeds.
It is really good news for the technology sector — that level of broadband access is very desirable for tech companies, both those already here and especially those the city would like to attract in the future.
High tech industries, including the remote or virtual worker community is a prize many cities have their eye on. They generally have a low footprint, especially compared with their economic impact — Accelerate Okanagan says that’s about $1.3 billion up and down the valley.
Adding that high speed access or Shaw’s network of access points to Penticton’s already incredible lifestyle opportunities should make the city a very desirable location for tech companies.
The buzz that should and needs to be out there about Penticton to attract these businesses just doesn’t seem to happening.
A search on Google for Penticton and virtual work turns up with the city’s website first, then a Western News story on the subject, then the pentictonworks.ca site and assorted other news stories before devolving into sites shilling for questionable jobs.
There needs to be a bigger push to get the word out inside the community. Don’t forget that the people of Penticton can play a big role in that, chatting to friends, family and relations across Canada and beyond.
Word of mouth means a lot; an excited person talking about their personal experience can be more effective sometimes.
Putting faces behind the success stories already in Penticton out to our community and the rest of the world will go a long way to attracting more people in this sector to our area.
