TORONTO – Following in the steps of Telus and Shaw, Rogers opened the doors on its new retail store concept Thursday in Toronto, a concept that it says puts the emphasis on service and community.
Customers will now receive more tailored one-on-one service, more of the latest technology and products, and more ways to stay connected and entertained than ever before, in a friendly and interactive retail environment, according to the press release.
"This store opening is part of a larger retail transformation to enhance how we service and sell to our customers”, said retail VP Sian Doyle, in the release. …
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TORONTO – Telus’ Koodo Mobile and SaskTel ranked highest in customer satisfaction with wireless providers in their respective regions for a second year in a row, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2012 Canadian Wireless Customer Satisfaction Study.
The study, based on responses from 14,000 mobile phone users between October 2011 and March 2012, examines the perceptions of wireless customers with their service, mobile phone (for both traditional mobile phones and smart phone devices) and retail experience. Satisfaction is measured across network quality, cost of service, account management, offerings and promotions, customer service, handset, and sales process. Carriers are…
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OTTAWA – Canada’s biggest telecom companies have joined forces in calling for a national set of standards to regulate wireless contracts.
In a shared position statement submitted to the CRTC on Thursday, the regulatory heads of Bell, Rogers, Telus as well as the Public Interest Advocacy Center (PIAC), on behalf of the Consumers’ Association of Canada and Canada without Poverty, said that there is “a clear need” for the Commission to “lead an initiative involving all stakeholders with the ultimate objective of bringing cohesion and uniformity to this area for the benefit of consumers and the industry alike”.
Noting that five…
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OTTAWA – Industry Canada is proposing to switch from a single licence auction format to one where bidders would place a single bid on a package of licences. The department released its proposed 700 MHz licensing framework on Wednesday afternoon.
This new format, called a combinatorial clock auction (CCA), would enable a bidder to bid on a specific set of licences, or a package. This is different from the previously used simultaneous multiple round ascending (SMRA) auction where each bidder had to place bids on all the individual licences it wanted.
There are a number of benefits…
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OTTAWA – Small local telephone companies operating in rural regions of Ontario and Quebec have enjoyed special protection from competition for long enough and now is the time to open up their markets to cable competitors, its competitors and potential competitors have told the Governor-in-Council.
The Ontario Telecommunications Association (OTA) and the Association des Compagnies de Téléphone du Québec Inc. (ACTQ) fear that if their markets are fully opened to competition, they will suffer severe financial impacts that could put them out of business (as they have noted on Cartt.ca). They are urging the Governor-in-Council to…
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TORONTO – Travel+Escape HD is available in approximately 1.1 million homes across Canada after launching on Rogers, Cogeco, Telus and EastLink on Tuesday.
Owned by GlassBox Television, the travel and adventure themed channel is available on free preview for the next three months. Viewers will be able to watch programs such as Lonely Planet’s Roads Less Travelled as well as Anthony Bourdain’s The Layover, Fishing Adventurer and Cottage Life, in addition to new commissioned series Destination Fear and Scam City.
“Travel+Escape HD fulfills our commitment to giving our viewers the ultimate entertainment experience,” said programming EVP Vanessa Case, in the announcement. “Being able to watch our quality travel and…
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GATINEAU – The Canadian Cable Systems Alliance (CCSA) and Rogers Communications have told the CRTC that they are prepared to accept an extension of the Local Programming Improvement Fund (LPIF) as long as the program is only available to independent broadcasters.
In addition to excluding the vertically integrated companies and CBC/Radio-Canada, (which has campaigned hard to keep it) the CCSA said that LPIF monies should only be made available for new, incremental local programming. Despite this slight change of heart, the small BDUs would prefer a complete and immediate elimination of the fund.
According to Access Communications,…
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OTTAWA – This Sunday’s Earth Day 2012 is the perfect opportunity for Canadians to give their old cell phones the send-off they deserve, and ensure they don’t end up in landfills, via Canada’s free cell phone recycling program.
Run by the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA) in conjunction with cell phone carriers and handset manufacturers, ‘Recycle My Cell’ makes it easy for Canadians to find out how and where to safely and responsibly dispose of their used cell phones, smart phones, pagers, wireless air cards, batteries, chargers, headsets and other accessories. Additionally, a donation to participating charities is made for…
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TORONTO – Canada's three new wireless-only carriers are having little impact on the country’s big telecom incumbents, according to a new report from Moody's Investors Service.
The report, ‘Canadian Telecommunications and Cable Industries: Consolidation Could Be in Store as New Wireless Companies Appear to Struggle’, says Wind Mobile, Mobilicity and Public Mobile, which are not rated by Moody’s, do not have the economies of scale, the access to funding, or the latest products to undercut or challenge the incumbents' market share. Rogers (Baa1 stable), Bell Canada (Baa1 stable) and Telus (Baa1 stable) together make up nearly 92% of Canada’s market…
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OTTAWA – True to its word, the CRTC was quick to release its determinations from last month’s expedited hearing into dispute resolution between the Canadian Independent Distributors Group (CIDG) and Bell Media.
As Cartt.ca has reported, independent distributors Cogeco Cable, Telus, EastLink, MTS and the Canadian Cable Systems Alliance, collectively the CIDG, object to packaging, penetration, and other terms offered to them by Bell Media for its 30-some specialty channels. Bell says that its wholesale costing model, a penetration based rate card that has already been signed by a number of other distributors, rewards stable packaging with stable long-term rates for…
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