Bell Mobility delivers mobile Enhanced 911 capabilities

Implementation of E911 Phase Two rolled out faster in Canada than any other country

MONTREAL , Feb. 1 /CNW Telbec/ - As announced by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) earlier today, emergency responders across Canada will now receive much more precise location information to help them find people calling 911 emergency services from mobile phones.

This new Enhanced 911 (E911) Phase Two capability is the result of a year-long effort that involved the close cooperation of Canada's wireless carriers, local telephone companies and 911 call centres across the country.

"As the first wireless provider to begin independent E911 trials in Canada , Bell is delighted that the intense effort by Canada's wireless industry to ensure national E911 service has been a success," said Stephen Howe , Chief Technology Officer for Bell Mobility. "Location information is crucial for police, fire and ambulance services responding to people in distress - all the more so when wireless callers may not even know their own precise location. Improved E911 offers emergency responders a significantly greater ability to arrive at the right spot at the right time."

The wireless industry worked with more than 120 Public Safety Answering Points (911 call centres) and local phone companies to install technology needed to find the location of mobile handsets calling 911, route the calls to the most appropriate call centres, and display location information to 911 operators. Testing of the system involved placing and answering calls to validate its effectiveness across approximately 7,000 wireless cell site locations in Canada .

"This latest phase of wireless E911 puts Canada at the head of the wireless class globally," added Mr. Howe . "Few countries in the world offer Enhanced 911 service and no other country in the world has rolled out a national E911 service as quickly as Canada , including the United States ."

E911 Phase Two uses GPS (Global Positioning System satellite location) and triangulation of surrounding cell sites or towers to estimate a wireless handset's longitude and latitude coordinates. Location information may be more or less precise depending on such factors as clear line of sight between a handset and satellite or the distance between the cell sites used for triangulation.

While E911 Phase Two dramatically improves their ability to locate callers, 911 call centres continue to recommend that mobile phone users be prepared to immediately provide 911 call takers with their location as best they can and remain on the line to provide additional information if requested.

Wireless E911 is available to Bell Mobility and Solo Mobile clients with compatible handsets wherever wireline 911 service exists in Canada . To check your Bell or Solo phone's compatibility with E911, please visit www.bell.ca/E911.

About Bell

Bell is Canada's largest communications company, providing consumers and business with solutions to all their communications needs, including Bell Mobility wireless, high-speed Bell Internet, Bell TV direct-to-home satellite television, Bell Home phone local and long distance, and IP-broadband and information and communications technology (ICT) services. Bell is proud to be a Premier National Partner and the Exclusive Telecommunications Partner to the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

Bell is wholly owned by BCE Inc. (TSX, NYSE: BCE). For information on Bell's products and services, please visit www.bell.ca. For corporate information on BCE, please visit www.bce.ca.

For further information: Jacqueline Michelis, Bell Media Relations, [phone], [email protected]