TORONTO – Wind Mobile is introducing new unlimited plans after hitting the 700,000 active subscriber mark and recording “record Q1 sales”.
The new plans, effective April 7, include a $25 per month plan featuring unlimited Canada-wide talk and text; a $35 per month “smartphone starter plan” with unlimited data, talk and text plus a $150 handset subsidy; and a $60 per month plan, the first monthly plan to include unlimited data, talk, text in Canada and across the U.S. plus Voicemail+, World Saver and a $500 handset subsidy or service credits.
Chief Operating Officer Pietro Cordova said that the 700,000…
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TORONTO – Independent ISP and IPTV service provider VMedia launched its brand new VCloudTV PVR on Wednesday which it said (and we’re pretty certain it’s true) is Canada's first cloud-based TV distribution technology. For the first time, Canadians will be able to record and enjoy their favourite TV shows without expensive hardware in their homes.
VMedia, whose services are available throughout Ontario, marked the first anniversary of the launch of its TV service at an event Wednesday afternoon at Brassaii Restaurant in Toronto with the introduction of the new cloud-based DVR, what the company is billing as a “solution which…
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OTTAWA – A lack of clear direction from the federal government is the biggest problem facing CBC/Radio-Canada, according to Richard Stursberg, the former head of English language TV services at the public broadcaster.
In an appearance before the Standing Senate Committee on Transportation and Communications on Tuesday, April 1, he argued that because there is no clarity on what the CBC should be to Canadians it has been pulled in multiple directions with often contradictory objectives. There have been a number of schools of thought about what the CBC should put on its network, ranging from elite programming, or as…
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TORONTO – Retail advertising garnered the most complaints from Canadian consumers in 2013, followed by service and food advertising, says the Advertising Standards Canada (ASC).
In its annual Ad Complaints Report, the ASC said that it received 178 complaints about the retail advertising category, followed by 148 for service and 108 for food. Telecommunications ranked eighth out of the ten categories, with 28 complaints. More complaints were submitted about allegedly inaccurate or misleading advertising than about advertising consumers found offensive or inappropriate.
Due to its broad reach, advertising on television, with 528 complaints, garnered the highest number of complaints of any…
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OTTAWA – At a soiree designed to mark its 15th anniversary, the Quebecor Fund also introduced its new Export Assistance Program (EXAP) and the first round of recipients.
"The Export Assistance Program will help to promote film, TV and audiovisual industries in Quebec and Canada," said Franklin Delaney, chairman of the board of directors for the Quebecor Fund, in a statement. "Our goal is to help raise the status of these industries at the national and international levels."
The EXAP will be provided alongside the Fund's two other main programs: the Main Television Production Assistance Program and the Event and Film Production Assistance Program. To…
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LAST WEEK WE SHOWED you results from a recent survey of Canadian consumers which confirmed Canadians want to be able to pick their television channels one at a time – and may even be ready to pay for the privilege.
But more lots more choice may not truly be desirable for TV programmers, distributors or viewers. Canadians often say they really want “more choice” from their subscription TV providers, but it’s more likely they just want to be charged less and treated better.
Believe it or not, uber-choice is often not all it’s cracked up to be…
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MONTREAL – Videotron has named Pierre Bonin to the position of vice-president, information technology (CIO).
Bonin, pictured, has been involved in the IT and telecom industry for nearly 30 years with Bell Canada, Microcell (Fido) and other companies. With his strong entrepreneurial instincts, he has also steered investments and exercised strategic leadership at SMEs in the data processing centre industry.
In his new role, Bonin will head a 500-person IT team dedicated to developing, implementing and providing support for information technology. His mandate will be to work with all corporate departments to maximize the use of the technology needed to achieve Videotron's business objectives,…
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TORONTO – Shaw Media’s Andrew Eddy is off to Harvard in June as this year’s recipient of the CTAM Canada Fellowship Award, also known as CTAM U.
Eddy (pictured) is vice president content distribution with Shaw Media where he has been actively involved in building Shaw’s portfolio of lifestyle, factual and dramatic specialty channels as well as steering TV Everywhere initiatives. Prior to joining Shaw, he held a number of senior roles with Corus Entertainment, including VP content distribution and strategy and VP and general manager for Movie Central/HBO Canada.
An active participant in the wider industry, he has previously served…
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OTTAWA-GATINEAU – Hearing or speech impaired persons in Metro Vancouver and surrounding areas may now communicate with emergency services using Text with 9-1-1 (T9-1-1).
On Tuesday, E-Comm, the emergency communication centre that provides 9-1-1 service to the region, became the first Canadian public safety answering point to introduce T9-1-1 service for the deaf, deafened, hard of hearing or speech impaired (DHHSI) community.
DHHSI members in E-Comm's service area must first register with their wireless service provider in order to access the service. When a DHHSI person requires 9-1-1 services, they dial 9-1-1 on their cell phone. There is no need…
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TORONTO – This week marks both the arrival of spring, and a jump in the price of most voice and data plans offered by the country’s wireless incumbents and their respective flanker brands.
Bell matched Rogers Wireless and Telus Mobility this week by increasing the price of the majority of its plans by $5 per month. Virgin, Fido and Koodo, owned by Bell, Rogers and Telus, respectively, all increased prices by about $5 per month earlier this month.
The price hike will help to offset the introduction of unlimited voice and text plans by all three incumbents last year, plans that include…
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