Toronto Hydro Telecom opened the first phase in its city-wide network: The utility owns poles, purchased in an earlier deal from the city, which may make it simpler and cheaper to deploy. They already own equipment and know how to put gear on poles, something which has been an issue and sometimes a large expense in other networks. And they own hundreds of miles of fiber, too.
The first segment of the network covers part of the business district, and will grow by December to six square kilometers. Service is free for the first six months, and then switches to Cdn$5 per hour, Cdn$10 per day, and Cdn$29 per month.