Videotron tops half-million mark for telephony

July 12, 2007
VideotronVideotron sent me a press release this morning announcing that it has now surpassed the half million mark for its cable based voice telephony service.

According to a 2007 survey conducted last March by Léger Marketing, our client satisfaction rating for this product increased to 96%. This high customer satisfaction is related to the fact that a large number of consumers were looking for a reliable alternative to traditional telephone service

Videotron isn’t alone in demonstrating reliability for cable-based voice service. According to Network World, JD Powers’ 2007 Residential Regional Telephone Customer Satisfaction Study is showing:

Cable companies lead the customer satisfaction rankings for telephone service in six U.S. regions for the first time.

The report suggests that cable companies are proving to be “tough competition” for the telcos. In a trend that has also been experienced in Canada, the study found that 86% of cable-based voice subscribers also subscribe to data services from the same provider — an increase from 2006.

Videotron is now adding enhancements to its voice service.

Videotron’s cable telephone subscribers will soon be able to take advantage of the softphone telephone service, allowing them to better manage their calls and all their communications, including video phone service in the near future.

It continues to apply pressure to traditional telco business models. I’ll be suggesting the need for a bold step forward for telcos in a posting over the next few days.

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iPhone as a “babe” magnet

July 12, 2007

The StreetTheStreet.com has a video clip on why people are rushing to stores to buy the iPhone. According to their correspondent, Cliff Mason, it is a babe magnet. Cliff bought his at the 24-hour Apple Store in mid-town Manhattan, with no line up, at 9:00pm on the first day.

All the women on line, all the women around the register formed a circle around me, which does not happen very often…

it is a great reason to buy it. Forget about all this like it’s a 2.5G phone not a 3G phone, you’re not gonna be able to access the internet. Who cares about that stuff? It looks really cool…

Hmmmm. Is this what it all comes down to?

Who cares? Where can I get one?

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How competitive is Canadian wireless?

July 11, 2007

In Saturday’s National Post, Peter Nowak reported that RIM wants to see Canadian carriers offer more competitive data plans. Don Morrison is quoted in that article as saying:

We haven’t seen a carrier yet take up the banner of really going after the mass market. We think it’s to their benefit.

In yesterday’s National Post, Peter cites Michael Geist‘s blog which asserts that high fees for data services are what is holding back Canada’s introduction of the iPhone.

The barrier to the iPhone in Canada is not Apple. Rather, it is the lack of wireless competition that, as now RIM and Google both note, leads to pricing that places Canadians at a significant disadvantage compared with other developed countries.

I think that assertion is a little far reaching. If our data prices are holding back the Canadian launch of iPhone, why isn’t the iPhone available anywhere else in the world either?

The reply comments by the Competition Bureau in the AWS auction consultation address the state of competition from a legal perspective – particularly, competition law.

These sentences, extracted from the submission, may be an appropriate summary of the views of the Competition Bureau:

it is the removal of foreign ownership restrictions, not auction intervention, that may be the more powerful instrument of competition.

Given the present restrictions, however, intervention may still be appropriate if domestic entrants can provide effective competition, given the incentives of incumbents [to prevent entry by bidding their economic value for the spectrum plus a premium representing their potential loss of profit]

The paper represents a discussion, from the viewpoint of competition law, of the first round of submissions from all of the parties.

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Ericsson shows off high speed wireless

July 10, 2007

EricssonI am attending a demonstration today hosted by Ericsson Canada, showing off a series of technologies, applications, and innovations designed to be the foundation of future high speed wireless access.

Ericsson is bringing up the same team demonstrated these capabilities at the 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona earlier this year.

According to their invitation, to give an idea of the scope of this demo, Ericsson had to apply to Industry Canada for permission to use additional spectrum.

Besides the obvious advantages of increased access speed (equaling, and often surpassing, present high speed wired capabilities), the technologies is purported to enable more seamless interaction between devices like TVs, PCs and mobile phones; the creation of realistic virtual communities (with IM, talk, and video); and, improved communications for professions that need fast, accurate information across a myriad of devices.

I wonder if Bell and TELUS are the real targets for this Canadian demonstration.

I’ll report more after seeing it all up close and personal.

Update [July 10, 10:55 am]
Mark Henderson, CEO of Ericsson Canada, announced that his Montreal research centre is adding 200 new positions. Much of Ericsson’s IMS platform development is conducted here in Canada. Nice to see Canadian expansion when so many companies are shipping jobs off-shore.

The IMS IPTV demo, across mobile and fixed screens, caught my eye as a precursor to next generation video. It is a way for telcos to change the rules of the game from broadcast TV, or for integrated cable / mobile operators like Rogers to stay on top.

Let’s watch to see how much traction this gets.

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Looking out for number one

January 25, 2017

Reply comments for the AWS consultation were submitted to Industry Canada at the end of June and it has taken me some time to get to read them. Part of the problem was accessing the website – through no fault of Industry Canada – my Inukshuk-based internet is having some trouble reaching ic.gc.ca addresses.

I gave up and used my Blackberry as a modem to download about a dozen of the filings. I’ll be providing some reviews over the coming days and weeks.

The possibility of a TELUS/Bell merger caused Sasktel to rethink its position and ensure that its independent needs were looked after.

SaskTel did not promote the use of “set aside” provisions in the first round of consultations. However, if a set aside is enacted, SaskTel as an experienced telephone company should not be unduly hampered in its options to grow, expand and to provide new services outside of its current serving areas just because of traditional convenience in regulatory treatments.

As I wrote last month, hopefully, Bell Aliant’s independent trustees have also been looking at their wireless options in order to protect unit-holders from various future scenarios for industry dynamics.

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