For many years the company also operated the ferry that provided the only road access from southern Canada to the Northwest Territories prior to the opening of the Deh Cho Bridge.

In March 2004, SSi launched the first commercial Canadian implementation of 2.5 GHz NLOS (non line of sight) wireless broadband Internet service in Yellowknife.

NBDC issued a comprehensive request for proposal (RFP) to vendors and put the financing together for building a network to serve the needs of the people of Nunavut.

CSPs provide Qiniq clients the ability to deal with someone local, typically a long-time Northern resident who understands the culture and language of their community.

As with the Qiniq network, the CSPs provided AirWare clients the ability to deal with someone local, typically a long-time northern resident who understands the culture and language of their community.

However, federal funding for the Airware project ceased in 2010, and over the next few years SSI had no choice but to gradually wind down service in those communities.

Having previously leased southern teleport facilities, SSi now had its own location connecting the north to the world's Internet backbone.

SSi has been demanding better service for consumers in a series of regulatory proceedings before the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC).

In 2011, SSI filed a complaint with the CRTC on Northwestel's pricing for backbone connectivity, the essential fibre communications link between northern Canada and the rest of the world.

SSI also presented detailed concerns at CRTC hearings regarding Northwestel's monopoly operations, whereby shareholders were benefiting from the existing regulatory framework much more than consumers.

As a result, the CRTC had ordered Northwestel to lower its wholesale rates and upgrade its ageing network to provide better services to the public.