TORONTO and OTTAWA – Telus will invest $62 million in new infrastructure and facilities in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and $30.5 million in Ottawa, Hull and Gatineau this year, the company said Tuesday.
The investments, part of Telus’ pledge to spend $1 billion in Ontario through 2019, will increase wireless speeds and capacity, enhance high-speed Internet for businesses, and help to deliver better healthcare solutions.
Specifically, Telus said that it will build new wireless sites to add capacity and extend the reach of its wireless network throughout the province, while enhancing and extending LTE to more than 99% of Ontarians. …
Continue Reading
TORONTO – BCE’s proposed acquisition of MTS will not only contradict the previous government’s push for four wireless players in every market, it could open the door for further consolidation in the rest of the market.
Canaccord Genuity Corp. analyst Aravinda Galappatthige said approval of the $3.9 billion BCE/MTS deal would “set a significant precedent, as it would reduce Manitoba to a three-player wireless market from four.”
“As a result, we also believe that this would give Shaw a potential exit strategy in wireless should it decide to sell Wind”, he wrote in a client note Monday. “In addition, we…
Continue Reading
MONTREAL and WINNIPEG – BCE Inc. is buying Manitoba Telecom Services (MTS) in a transaction valued at $3.9 billion, the companies announced early Monday.
The combined company's Manitoba operations will be known as Bell MTS, recognizing the power of the MTS brand in the province. Winnipeg becomes Western Canada headquarters for Bell and, with the addition of MTS's 2,700 employees, Bell's Western team grows to 6,900 people.
Bell pledged to invest $1 billion in capital throughout Manitoba after the transaction closes to extend the availability of its Gigabit Fibe Internet, rollout Fibe TV and expand its LTE wireless network. MTS' data…
Continue Reading
TORONTO – Telus’ Koodo Mobile ranks highest in wireless customer satisfaction, followed closely by Videotron and SaskTel, says an annual study by J.D. Power & Associates released Thursday.
According to the J.D. Power 2016 Canadian Wireless Customer Care Study, customer service differentiation continues to be top of mind as wireless carriers face a maturing and potentially saturated market.
The study measures wireless customers’ perceptions of their carrier’s performance and is based on responses from more than 5,500 wireless customers collected in August – September 2015 (Wave 1) and March 2016 (Wave 2). Satisfaction is measured across four factors (listed in order of…
Continue Reading
TORONTO – Nearly half of Canadian businesses have no plans to implement Internet of Things technology, while the other half is ready to jump on board, says a new study commissioned by Telus.
The study, conducted by MARU/VCR&C, surveyed 506 IT decision makers from businesses across Canada in March 2016. It found that 52% of Canadian businesses are considering, planning, piloting or deploying an Internet of Things (IoT) solution, while 48% indicated that they have no plans to adopt the technology, with 64% of those respondents saying that there is no business need.
Nearly two-thirds of businesses who are in the…
Continue Reading
TORONTO – Connected smart home devices are well on their way to becoming as prevalent as smartphones and tablets in Canada, says a new study commissioned by Telus.
The study, conducted by MARU/VCR&C, found a significant gap between those that believe that smart home technology will benefit their lives (61%) and those who currently own a smart home device (34%). Some 63% of respondents said that that they will own at least one smart home device – such as a smart TV, thermostat, lighting, appliance, or entry and security system, by 2018, and half of those predicted that they will…
Continue Reading
PRINCE GEORGE and KITIMAT, B.C. – Telus has announced plans to invest $4.5 million in Prince George and $4 million in Kitmat to increase wireless and high-speed Internet capacity to meet the rapidly growing demand in those communities.
This significant investment is part of Telus’ commitment to invest $4.5 billion in British Columbia through 2019 to extend fibre optic infrastructure directly to thousands of homes and businesses in rural and urban communities, further strengthen wireless service, and support key services including healthcare and education with new technologies, the company said Tuesday.
By the end of 2019, Telus says that it will…
Continue Reading
TORONTO – Independent specialty movie service Hollywood Suite announced today the launch of the new web version of the Hollywood Suite GO app (HSGO).
The newly designed VOD service is an extension of the premium movie channels and is available at hsgo.ca for Hollywood Suite subscribers from Access Communications, Cogeco, Eastlink, Hay Communications, MTS, NorthwesTel, Rogers, Shaw, Shaw Direct, Source Cable, Telus Optik TV, and VMedia.
“We are excited to offer our subscribers another platform to watch their favourite movies from Hollywood Suite, allowing them to experience their cinematic choices, anytime, anywhere,” said David Kines,…
Continue Reading
GATINEAU – In an unprecedented move, CRTC chair Jean-Pierre Blais used a break in the Basic Service Objective hearing to make a significant point through a personal address to the hearing: we’ve decided already that broadband is essential to Canadians. (The full text of that address can be found here.)
“Overall, in a nutshell, witnesses that appeared so far have agreed to a self-evident truth: today, in Canada, broadband is vital,” he said. “So, unless you disagree with this conclusion, let us not spend more hearing time on this self-evident truth. We have other, more important…
Continue Reading
VANCOUVER – High-speed Internet coverage in rural British Columbia communities in the north, south and Interior of the province is about to get faster and more reliable.
Pamela Goldsmith-Jones, West Vancouver MP and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, said Friday from Vancouver that 10 BC Internet service providers are receiving approximately $16 million from the Federal Government to increase broadband Internet access for approximately 23,000 households in the province. In addition, the provincial government will also kick in about $3.4 million for six of the projects through its Connecting British Columbia program.
"Faster, more reliable broadband Internet is essential for people…
Continue Reading