We have written before about how some companies are able to profitably identify niche opportunities in telecom and offer service to their customers.
Telehop, the company behind the $1 per call 10-10-620 service and the discount dial-around by-the-minute service 10-10-100, has announced advertiser-supported, free directory assistance.
Initial advertising partners include Toronto Honda and Omni TV.
According to Telehop President Ruth Bartholomeusz,
The service works very much like normal directory assistance. Callers dial 10-10-620-0 or 10-10-100-0 and go through an automated system that will play an advertising message before they are asked for the location, type of listing and listing name.
Telehop (TSX-Venture: HOP) seems to be successful at identifying niche opportunities and offering value to customers, operating with no debt and growing steadily.
There is a Public Notice out from the CRTC, looking at whether to remove some of the final regulations that are still imposed on Bell, TELUS and the incumbents for long distance services.
Regulation on the major phone companies have been largely forborne since 1997, but there are a few little items that seem anachronistic in today’s competitive reality: maintaining a basic rate schedule for toll; prohibit route de-averaging on these rates; provide advance notice of changes in these rates; make these rates available for any customer requesting them; etc.
Does it matter? We can think of a few reasons that it does, including ways that residential consumers can subscribe to basic rates in order to save (that’s right, save) the so-called ‘network access’ fee.
And besides, if there is no longer a list price, how will we know what percentage the savings are for other price plans?
The new units of Bell Aliant are actually up and running and finished their first week of trading at $34.05.
On Friday, I had a chance to follow up on the concerns that I had mentioned in my posting earlier in the week. Based on my conversations with the company, I have a greater level of comfort in the structure of inter-company transactions.
There are interesting marketing opportunities that arise from a company focused on serving the second tier markets.
In addition, it should also help BCE clarify its own business focus, aided by the consolidated mobile wireless assets and the uncoupling of the regional operations.
It will be a very different model to examine. As we noted a few months ago, MTS rejected the idea of income trusts for telcos more than two years ago. We disagreed with that decision then.
Bell Aliant will prove one of these viewpoints correct. I’m prepared to place a bet.
My daughter has been studying overseas for the past year and will be returning to Canada in about a week. She has a cel phone in one of the world’s most competitive markets for mobile service, with 5 carriers driving penetration in excess of 100%.
When she phones home, it costs 10 cents (US) per minute, including the airtime. When we call her, we use 10-10-100 (Telehop) and pay 5 cents (Canadian) per minute. She pays nothing to receive the call.
I found it surprising to open my Canadian cel phone bill this week to learn that my Canadian and US long distance rates will be increasing to 30 cents per minute, effective September 1, unless I want to buy a long distance bundle of minutes. Excess minutes are at the extorionary rates in any case.
The going rate for North American wireline consumer long distance is 4-5 cents per minute. And cel companies find that 5-6 times that amount isn’t enough. On top of the airtime.
It is no wonder that the CRTC plans to look at the issue of wireless equal access next year.
Bell Globemedia announced yesterday that it had reached an agreement to acquire CHUM Ltd, owners of 33 radio stations, a dozen TV stations under the CITY and A-Channel brands as well as 21 specialty stations, such as Much Music, Space and Bravo.
As I commented on Jon Arnold’s blog, while this transaction certainly adds size to CTV’s holdings, it will be a real question for the CRTC to deal with issues associated with concentration of ownership.
The combined organization will have overlapping properties in many major markets and will control music television in Canada, combining Much Music with the new MTV Canada.
The Globe and Mail reports that a number of stations will be shed (Ottawa, Barrie, London, Victoria) but that will still leave overlap in a number of markets.
With a newly converged Commission organization chart and calls for regulatory symmetry (in dealing with broadcast and telecom issues), will the CRTC permit the level of flexibility being sought in approving this deal? Not likely before it completes its review of the current (1999) policy for broadcasting which states:
The Commission will continue its current policy which generally permits ownership of no more than one over-the-air television station in one language in a given market.
Hold onto your hat! But watch for more consolidation activity as the trading begins.
Whatever happens, look for the CRTC to have a very open mind when it comes to the hearings into additional TV stations in Calgary and Edmonton, for example. With so many existing stations looking like they may be in the hands of just two players, the sometimes-activist Commission just might want to add more transmitters in the growing economy out west.
He also asks about the 10% “tangible benefits” tax that the CRTC seeks when approving such transactions.
By the way, I wonder what the impact of this deal will be on various mobile programs that target the youth market: Much Music and Rogers. We have seen stranger bedfellows emerge from M&A; activity.
