QUEBEC CITY – Iristel said Monday that it will soon offer facilities-based wireless competition in Eastern Quebec and Northern Ontario after acquiring I-Mobileca Inc. and its licensed spectrum. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Based in Trois Rivières, I-Mobileca holds spectrum licenses covering the Kirkland Lake region in Ontario and in the Lower Saint-Lawrence, the Gaspésie, the North Shore, and certain areas of the Beauce in Eastern Quebec. The company currently focuses on wireless data for machine-to-machine (M2M) applications.
Iristel, parent company of Ice Wireless, said that the area covered by the new spectrum has a population of about 535,000, and that it will offer 3G and 4G LTE wireless service in these regions under its own brand as early as next month.
“This is really exciting for us to provide excellent cellular services at better prices for both residents and industries in this huge region from Quebec City eastward,” said Iristel president and CEO Samer Bishay, in the news release. “The big three wireless oligopolists have done their best to keep our competitive and innovative wireless operations contained in the North, but no more. This is just the beginning.”
Iristel added that it has taken majority control of I-Mobileca and that company founder Dr. Hing-Sang Hum will retain a “significant equity position” and remain chairman. Bishay will assume the title of president and CEO of I-Mobileca Inc.
“This is more than simply offering the latest smart phones,” added Bishay. “With Dr. Hum’s medical expertise, we envision many other applications such as enhanced telemedicine services to people in remote areas of northeastern Quebec and advanced IoT (Internet of Things) applications.”
