subscribe enough customers to make systems viable except in Norman Wells; the company also in 1995 purchased the Mackenzie Media cable system in Yellowknife, the Performance Communications Corp. system in Watson Lake and the Pangnirtung Cable T.V. system. In 2005, Northwestel Cable purchased the Fort Nelson, British Columbia, system and upgraded it for digital and internet. In August 2006, the system in High Level, Alberta, was also purchased and is to be upgraded for digital cable and internet. In September 2007, Northwestel Cable took ownership of the WHTV Cablevision system in Whitehorse, and again, conducted upgrades. Northwestel introduced a form of cellular telephony in 1987 with the Aurora (Automated Roving Radio) system (400 MHz band) developed by Novatel and widely used in Alberta. It was available in limited areas, and although intended to replace most of the VHF manual mobile telephone service, the widespread deployment of cellular service (800 MHz band) across southern Canada rendered the Aurora system obsolete, despite Aurora's superior geographic reach. The Aurora system was manufacturer discontinued, and, not being Y2K compatible, was discontinued late in 1999. 800 MHz cellular technology was introduced in 1993, though with far less availability than Aurora in the Yukon and Northwest Territories. The cellular operations were, soon after, spun off as Northwestel Mobility Inc. (NMI Mobility). In 2003, NMI Mobility was sold to Bell Mobility, leaving Northwestel as strictly landline and VHF manual mobile provider. However, it appears to have been since re-acquired by Northwestel. Northwestel was in a joint venture with the Dakwakada Development Corporation (an arm of the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations) in Latitude Wireless, offering cellular service in parts of the Territories. Roaming was available between the Latitude and Bell Mobility networks. Latitude Wireless was merged with Bell Mobility in 2013. Unique service area Northwestel's service area is uniquely recognized by the Canadian regulator, the CRTC, as being entirely a high-cost serving area, characterized by: the most severe climate (six to nine months of weather adverse for outdoor construction and maintenance, temperatures that make metal brittle, icing of towers and microwave dishes, wind damage) extremely low population density (long distances between communities, most of which are very small) the smallest communities to use expensive fixed assets such as exchanges (exchange itself, electricity, backup power, building heat and light) all-weather road access to only 55 of 93 communities & localities (air transport costs, overnight accommodations, risk of stranding