TELUS investing $700 million throughout all of Alberta this year

TELUS connecting hundreds of homes and businesses directly to fibre optic cable, extending the world's fastest and most advanced wireless technology to more communities, expanding rural broadband Internet connections

EDMONTON and CALGARY, May 27, 2013 /CNW/ - TELUS is investing $700 million in new infrastructure and facilities across Alberta this year, part of a three-year, $2 billion commitment made a year ago and building upon the $26 billion TELUS has already invested in operations and technology throughout the province since 2000.

"Our sustained investment in technology and infrastructure since 2000 has already made Alberta one of the most connected places anywhere in the world. This year TELUS continues that legacy, once again connecting even more Albertans to our advanced communications infrastructure and all of the benefits it creates," said Darren Entwistle, TELUS President and CEO. "Our top priority is to put our customers first in all that we do. In this regard, we know how vital our infrastructure is for Albertans, that it is the backbone used by small businesses to market their services and accept payments, the integrated network through which home and mobile entertainment and communication flow, and critical to advances in how doctors care for their patients. Our commitment to you is that our focus on ensuring Alberta is a global leader in respect of telecommunications infrastructure will continue not just this year, but for the years and decades to come."

TELUS' investment in communities extends past providing customers with world-class technology. As members of every community where we live and work, TELUS, its team members and retirees give where they live, supporting grassroots and community organizations across Alberta.

"At TELUS, we give where we live, recognizing that our investment in local organizations through donations and volunteering is as important as our investment in technology and infrastructure," continued Mr. Entwistle. "Since 2000, our TELUS family of more than 14,000 employees and retirees in Alberta alongside our company has donated over $93 million and, more importantly, volunteered 1.4 million hours to community and charitable organizations such as the Stollery Children's Hospital Foundation, the Fairytales Presentation Society, Children's Ability Fund and the Inn from the Cold."

This year, TELUS' infrastructure investment will advance our services for the benefit of Albertans, by:

• Connecting hundreds of new homes and businesses directly to fibre optic cable to radically increase internet speeds and capacity and power Optik TV. Called GPON, or Gigabit Passive Optical network, the technology offers customers Internet speeds up to 50 megabits per second and will enable incredibly fast Internet speeds in the future.
  
  
• Expanding the reach of TELUS' healthcare solutions. TELUS now provides electronic medical records to 9,000 Canadian physicians across the country, supporting more than 25 million patient interactions each year. TELUS is in the midst of providing $1.3 million over three years to carry out research with the University of Alberta on the application of emerging technologies to improve patient care within the community.
  
  
• Installing dozens of new wireless sites enhancing coverage in urban areas to increase wireless data capacity, and dozens more extending coverage to rural communities and highway corridors. So far this year, TELUS has rolled out 4G LTE to more than 85 per cent of Albertans including highway #2 between Calgary and Edmonton, the Cold Lake region and the Lake Louise/Banff area.
  
  
• Further extending Optik TV service to reach nearly 90 per cent of Alberta households by the end of 2013. TELUS currently has 712,000 TV customers.

The capital investment disclosed in this release is consistent with TELUS' overall capital expenditure guidance for 2013.

What is LTE?
The world's fastest wireless technology, called 4G LTE, offers Internet speeds two to three times faster than past technology, offering TELUS customers connections as fast as their home Internet on their smartphones, tablets and Internet keys. In the last year, TELUS rolled out LTE to 85 per cent of Albertans, and will connect even more by the end of 2013.

What is Optik TV?
Optik TV offers more than 620 channels, including more than 160 in HD.

TELUS customers also enjoy:

• Optik on the go, giving you access to more than 2,000 on demand shows and movies on your smartphone, tablet and laptop, at home and on the move
• Optik Smart Remote, enabling you to use your iPhone or iPad to manage PVR recordings as well as browse your channel guide and change channels with a tap.
• Remote Record, allowing you to schedule and manage your PVR recordings when you're away from home with a smartphone, tablet or computer
• Facebook and Twitter on Optik
• Galaxie music and radio stations
• Watching renowned TED Talks presentations directly on your TV
• The Weather Network app
• Tumblebooks, allowing you to enjoy interactive storytelling with your children
• Multi-view, where you can watch up to four shows at the same time
• Manage my channels, where you can instantly change your TV programming package right from your TV, adding or removing channels and theme packs
• On-screen call display

What is We Give Where We Live?
At TELUS, we give where we live. Whether through our locally focused Community Boards, charitable partnerships or employee and customer engagement programs, we are committed to building stronger and healthier communities.

Just this past weekend 13,000 TELUS team members, retirees and family members participated in the eighth annual TELUS Day of Giving, volunteering their time at more than 500 local activities nationwide. They helped out at children's hospitals, fed homeless citizens, sorted thousands of pounds of food bank donations, pulled invasive plants out of cherished parks, and helped clean up and maintain the buildings and grounds of dozens of charities.

There are 11 TELUS Community Boards in Canada that provide funding to grassroots organizations in major centres where TELUS operates. Since their inception, the TELUS Calgary Community Board and the TELUS Edmonton Community Board have contributed over $8.6 million to local grassroots charitable organizations in support of 556 local charitable projects.

About TELUS
TELUS (TSX: T, NYSE: TU) is a leading national telecommunications company in Canada, with $11 billion of annual revenue and 13.2 million customer connections, including 7.7 million wireless subscribers, 3.4 million wireline network access lines, 1.4 million Internet subscribers and 712,000 TELUS TV customers. Led since 2000 by President and CEO, Darren Entwistle, TELUS provides a wide range of communications products and services, including wireless, data, Internet protocol (IP), voice, television, entertainment and video.

In support of our philosophy to give where we live, TELUS, our team members and retirees have contributed more than $300 million to charitable and not-for-profit organizations and volunteered 4.8 million hours of service to local communities since 2000. Fourteen TELUS Community Boards lead TELUS' local philanthropic initiatives. TELUS was honoured to be named the most outstanding philanthropic corporation globally for 2010 by the Association of Fundraising Professionals, becoming the first Canadian company to receive this prestigious international recognition.

For more information about TELUS, please visit telus.com.

Forward looking statement:
This news release contains statements about expected future events of TELUS that are forward-looking. By their nature, forward-looking statements require the Company to make assumptions and predictions and are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties. There is significant risk that the forward-looking statements will not prove to be accurate. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a number of factors could cause actual future events to differ materially from that expressed in the forward-looking statements. Except as required by law, TELUS disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements.

SOURCE: TELUS Corporation

Chris Gerritsen
TELUS Media Relations
[phone]
[email protected]