Shaw Cablesystems is completing system upgrades to provide expanded services, lower basic rates, Internet access and pay-per-view tv this summer and fall. A major system upgrade in the Hinton, Alta. community has been announced and the expansion of network bandwidth will increase the quantity of programming entering local televisions.

Up to 20 new channels, including four u.s. superstations, interactive pay-per-view and an expanded lineup of premium television will be available by the end of August. The high-speed Internet service, SHAW@Home, will launch this fall and the company will also lower the basic cable rates from $30.12 per month to $21.95 per month and remove charges for extra outlets, effective Sept. 1.

SHAW@Home features an easy-to-use magazine-style browser that houses up-to-the-minute information using full-motion video and streaming digital audio. It incorporates Netscape Navigator 4.5 and Internet Explorer 4.01, as well as Quicktime 3.0 videoplayer, realplayer 5.0 and many of the latest multimedia plug-ins.

Designed with fiber-optic technology, offering customers a fast path to multimedia content on the Internet, the service also includes a parallel Internet network – best explained as an Internet within the Internet – which brings content closer to the customer.