TORONTO – VIA Rail Canada has launched a new interactive digital platform to provide passengers on VIA Rail trains free access to Canadian programming.
Starting in Spring 2013, the On-Board Entertainment initiative will be available to passengers with laptops, tablets and mobile phones travelling on VIA Rail trains within the Québec City to Windsor corridor.
Through a partnership with CBC/Radio-Canada, the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) and The Historica-Dominion Institute, it will provide free access to Canadian programming, including CBC/Radio-Canada TV shows programs, documentaries and animation from the NFB, and “Heritage Minutes” vignettes and Memory Project veteran interviews produced by The Historica-Dominion Institute.
VIA Rail says its On-Board Entertainment portal is the only system of its kind on a train in North America. It will present movies and other programming from the NFB and CBC/Radio-Canada collections, in addition to regular daily newscasts from CBC/Radio-Canada. Over time, this interactive digital platform will host other Canadian content from participating organizations.
The On-board Entertainment initiative required a total investment of $543,000 by VIA Rail. This program is part of VIA Rail's modernization plan launched in 2007, and was made possible by the nearly $1 billion in capital funding announced by the Government of Canada since 2007 to rebuild aging equipment, refurbish stations, upgrade infrastructure, improve accessibility and support critical information technology projects. This investment includes $407 million under the Economic Action Plan and $60 million in Budget 2012.
