Telus sues Rogers over wireless network claims

TORONTO (Reuters) - Telus Corp Canada's No. 2 phone company, has sued Rogers Communications Inc for allegedly misleading Canadians with advertising that claims Rogers' wireless network is the fastest and most reliable in the country.

In a document filed in the Supreme Court of British Columbia, Telus claims the Rogers ads are "both false and misleading" now that Telus has launched its own upgraded wireless network.

Telus states that on November 5, when it launched the new network, it demanded that Rogers stop making the "fastest" and "most reliable" claims.

"Rogers has refused or neglected to comply with this demand, in whole or in part," Telus alleges in the court document.

A spokeswoman for Rogers, which owns Canada's biggest wireless carrier, said the company stands behind its claims.

"Telus has not submitted any data on their network performance and we look forward to vigorously defending our position in court," she said.

Telus seeks an injunction that would prohibit Rogers from distributing ads that contain the claims, as well as court costs and damages.

Telus teamed up with BCE Inc , which operates Bell Canada, to upgrade its network. Until that upgrade, Rogers was the only carrier in Canada using GSM wireless technology, which effectively granted it a monopoly on Apple Inc's iPhone.

Since the upgrade, both BCE and Telus have been selling the iPhone.

(Reporting by Wojtek Dabrowski; editing by Rob Wilson)