MISSISSAUGA – “After months of suffering with substandard phone service, British Columbians can now fire their phone company in favour of a better choice,” said Vonage Canada on Wednesday – taking a shot at the incumbent, Telus, and its recent labour woes.
The U.S. VOIP company announced the availability of its flat-rate service to six new communities in British Columbia beyond Vancouver and Victoria, where Vonage is currently available. These new communities are: Penticton, Abbotsford, Kamloops, Kelowna, Richmond, and Vernon.
"Over the last couple of months residents of BC have seen a considerable reduction in the level of service…
Continue Reading
TORONTO – When Maclean’s magazine was able to buy the supposedly confidential phone records of Jennifer Stoddart, Canada’s Privacy Commissioner, and publish a cover story last week on what looks like a potentially scary security loophole, the big three wireless carriers – all of whom were mentioned in the article – sprang into action.
And, with each company counting on huge wireless growth in the Christmas season and throughout 2006 and 2007 (all companies saw record levels of subscriber growth in 2005) all moved quickly to try and repair the damage.
First out of the gate was Bell Canada….
Continue Reading
TORONTO – Think Broadband Solutions was officially launched this week by Tri-Vision Electronics.
The new, wholly-owned subsidiary “will focus on new telecom and wireless business opportunities and to complement Tri-Vision Electronics Inc.,” says the company.
Think will provide in-country equipment sales and supply, logistical support, niche product research, design and development, in-house and offshore manufacturing capabilities and equipment test, repair and refurbishment. Progress is well underway to represent major brand names in Canada, says the press release.
In fact, the company announced yesterday that it will offer Andrew Corporation subscriber access cable products including CATV coaxial cable and connectors for…
Continue Reading
TORONTO – CanWest Interactive has acquired certain assets of CanadianRetail.com, the largest online recruiting site for the retail sector in Canada, from Bjork Enterprises Limited.
The purchase included the domain name of CanadianRetail.com, customer contracts and intellectual property contained on the web site. Tre price of the transaction was not disclosed.
The acquisition is part of the strategy of CanWest Interactive’s working.com to provide both employers and job seekers with relevant local search results and depth in specific employment verticals. Similar deals this year included a partnership with Nurses4Ontario as well as the New Car Dealers Association of British Columbia….
Continue Reading
TORONTO – While Telus was announcing the roll-out of its newer, faster wireless EVDO network in five major Canadian cities, Bell Canada today announced the availability of its new EVDO network in Western Canada, Telus’ back yard.
The technology is the third generation (3G) of wireless networks and delivers data at unprecedented download rates of up to 2.4Mbps.
Bell Mobility users in Vancouver, British Columbia and both Calgary and Edmonton, Alberta (same cities Telus has its EVDO launched) “will now immediately enjoy the benefits of a 3G network, related products and services,” says the press release.
Bell’s EV-DO network…
Continue Reading
EMERYVILLE, Calif. – MobiTV, Inc. Monday announced the strategic hire of longtime music industry executive Nancy Levin as its executive producer of Music Television.
MobiTV is the enabling technology behind the mobile video service currently in the market from Telus Mobility, Bell Mobility and Rogers Wireless.
“Levin’s talents will be instrumental in building momentum in music content and music industry related media available through MobiTV’s global service,” says the MobiTV release.
Levin brings over 15 years of experience in senior management roles at several major record labels — including Warner Bros., Priority/EMI and MCI/Universal/Vivendi. Levin was most recently president…
Continue Reading
TORONTO – We’ve seen e-commerce, t-commerce and plain old commerce, but thanks to an intiative by the country’s big three wireless operators, we’re about to see m-commerce.
Bell Mobility, Rogers Wireless and Telus Mobility, today announced the launch of Wireless Payment Services. The jointly-owned venture “will act as a mobile commerce, or m-commerce, gateway, facilitating secure wireless payment transactions while standardizing the user experience across Canadian wireless providers, devices and payment mechanisms,” says today’s press release.
"With anytime, anywhere payments representing the next frontier of wireless service, Wireless Payment Services’ mandate is to develop standardized, secure and easy-to-use mobile…
Continue Reading
WINNIPEG – The media supply chain is irrevocably more complicated and potentially scary for Canadian broadcasters, according to two sessions on personal media on Monday at the Canadian Association of Broadcasters’ annual convention.
The morning session was called “Personal Media Models: Who will supply the media-savvy consumer” and the afternoon session was entitled: “New Models, New Rules: Managing the personalized media revolution.”
On demand technology of all sorts, delivered from all platforms, is irrevocably altering the way media companies do business and on demand, specifically wireless on demand, content was front and centre for panelists as they discussed how…
Continue Reading
I THINK WE’VE ALL HIT the point of severe fatigue when it comes to talking about telecom policy.
A number of senior telecom executives rehashed their recent regulatory presentations this week in Toronto during the third annual Canadian Telecommunications Forum, put on by Insight Communications.
The sessions featured all the usual suspects from Telus (EVP Janet Yale), MTS (SVP Chris Peirce), the CCTA (president Michael Hennessy) and others. But in their sessions on Monday, let’s just say the spark was missing that has been there at other times this year.
Bell’s main regulatory honchos, Lawson Hunter and Mirko Bibic actually…
Continue Reading
MONTREAL and THUNDER BAY – City-owned telco Thunder Bay Telephone and Bell Nordiq Income Fund have entered into a 45 day exclusivity agreement in order to look at a possible partnership.
Under the terms of the agreement, TBayTel has agreed not to solicit, initiate or encourage proposals from third parties or otherwise provide information to such parties. TBayTel has also agreed to allow Bell Nordiq to carry out a due diligence review of its business.
TBayTel sent out a request for proposals (RFP) looking for potential partners earlier this year. The telco wants to expand its service offering (including…
Continue Reading
