Pagers, a key communication device in the 1990s for many, has all but been replaced by smartphones and other mobile devices. But some 161,500 Canadians still used them in 2013. Most are health-care workers and first responders who rely on them in areas where cellular service is spotty or not available. Many of them will soon have to find alternatives as TELUS has informed its pager customers by letter that it will shut down its service on March 31, 2015.
TELUS cites the dwindling number of customers and growing expense of replacement parts as two key reasons for its decision. “It’s been in the works for a long time. We are turning down the service because very few people still use it,” Telus spokesman Chris Garretson told The Globe and Mail. “This is thirty-year-old technology – the infrastructure is aging and replacement parts are difficult to get.”
Bell and Rogers have “no current plans” to discontinue their paging services. While both may gain some new customers as a result of TELUS’ decision, it is likely that one or both will announce plans to shut down their pager services sooner than later.
Do you still use a pager? If yes, are you in the health-care field? Let us know below.
Source : CBC