Tag: carriers

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Mobile Syrup

Telus wins annual BrandSpark award for Canadian consumer’s most trusted ‘Cellular Service’

Leading market research firm BrandSpark has announced its consumer-voted 9th annual BrandSpark Most Trusted Awards (BMTAs) across several categories, including ‘Finance & Insurance,’ ‘Health & Fitness,’ ‘Retail & Restaurants,’ and, of course, ‘Telecom & Home.’

On the carrier side of the consumer-focused study, Telus took home gold for ‘Cellular Service,’ followed by Bell, Rogers and Koodo (Telus’ flanker brand) tied for silver. Bell also took home gold for home phone service, followed by Telus with silver and Rogers/Vidéotron tied for bronze.

On the other hand, Bell took home the gold award for ‘High Speed Internet,’ with Rogers, Shaw and Vidéotron tied for silver. Closing out the notable telecom-related categories is Bell/Shaw tied for gold with ‘TV Service,’ followed by Rogers/Vidéotron with Bronze (no company was awarded silver).

Regarding ‘Apps and Websites,’ Flipp took home gold and Reebee took silver for the ‘Best Flyer App,’ SiriusXM won gold for ‘Internet Radio Network’ and Wix won gold for best ‘Website Builder.’

For a full list of award winners, follow this link.

Regarding methodology for the awards, BrandSpark surveyed 7,857 Canadians across 64 categories.

Brandspark’s consumer voting methodology will be the basis for the research firm’s 2022 Best New Products: Tech Edition created through a partnership with MobileSyrup. The Tech Edition of Brandspark’s awards features several new categories, including smartphones, video games, fitness devices, headphones, smart home devices, electric vehicles and more.

Along with awarding top products in each category based on user feedback, the Best New Products: Tech Edition aims to reveal insight into how consumers approach emerging technology, trends and product innovation. Brandspark says that it aims for the inaugural Best New Product awards to include a sample size of over 15,000 Canadians.

If you’re interested in signing up to participate in Brandspark’s 2022 Tech Edition consumer study, follow this link.

Source: Newswire

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Mobile Syrup

Zoomer Wireless is offering 9GB for $45 and more

Zoomer Wireless, a B.C.-based telecom that provides wireless services targeted at older adults, is offering a new promotion.

These new offers include the following:

  • 9GB/$45
  • 6GB/$36
  • 14GB/$76.50 for two lines

The carrier’s plans include unlimited Canada-wide calling minutes, unlimited incoming text, call display, call waiting, conference calling, name display and mini voicemail.

This is for Bring Your Own Device users and comes with a CARP membership, an advocacy group for older Canadians that promotes equitable access to health care, financial security and more.

All plans also come with a ZoomerMag subscription.

You can check out the deals, here.

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Mobile Syrup

Rogers’ boardroom blitz: a timeline of telecom turmoil

October has been a busy month for Rogers, as family drama and power struggles within the telecom company’s board of directors continue to make for some strange headlines.

Here’s a timeline to help you keep track of what’s happened so far this month on Succession: Canadian Telecom Edition.

September 29th: Rogers issues a press release announcing that chief financial officer Tony Staffieri is leaving the company. No reason is given for Staffieri’s departure.

October 8th: Alexandra Posadzki at The Globe and Mail publishes an exclusive scoop that Staffieri was, in fact, booted from Rogers, after he and company chairperson Edward Rogers — son of the late Ted Rogers, who founded the company — tried to oust CEO Joe Natale.

The plan failed — more on that in a minute — and Staffieri, who was supposed to slide into the CEO seat in this scheme, took the fall and lost his job.

Allegedly, Staffieri and Natale hadn’t gotten along for a while, and a power struggle to see who could remove the other from their position first began sometime in early 2021.

Moreover, while Edward threw his hat in with Staffieri, fellow board (and family) members Loretta A. Rogers, Martha L. Rogers, and deputy board chair Melinda M. Rogers-Hixon continued to back Natale.

October 18th-20th: Insider sources suggest that Edward Rogers is trying to reshuffle the board of directors, seemingly in retaliation for not supporting his plot to install Staffieri as CEO.

October 21st: The Globe and Mail publishes a second, extremely funny scoop. Apparently, Natale got wind — pun very much intended — that there was a scheme to unseat him because Staffieri accidently buttdialed him while in the middle of said scheming with Edward Rogers.

(A moment of silence to appreciate the irony of a telecom company boardroom drama where an accidental phone call is a major plot device.)

A few hours later, the Rogers board votes to remove Edward Rogers as its chair. While no longer chairperson, Edward remains on the board as a director.

Remember Edward’s rumoured plan to fire half the board and replace them with people who don’t disagree with him? Well it turns out that was true, as that same night Edward releases a statement announcing his intentions to remove John Clappison, David Peterson, Bonnie Brooks, Ellis Jacob, and John A. MacDonald (the new chair) from the board.

October 22nd: The morning after butt-dial gate, Rogers — the company, not the man — issues a formal response to Edward’s statement. The response, which positively drips with contempt, acknowledges Edward’s intention “to remove the majority of the independent directors of Rogers Communications Inc. and replace them with nominees of the Rogers Control Trust through a written resolution without convening a meeting of shareholders,” but emphasizes that the Company™ “is not aware of this mechanism ever having been utilized in respect of a public company in Canada.”

So why does this all matter, beyond being kind of entertaining to follow?

It matters because Rogers is currently trying to get its contentious March 2021 purchase of Shaw Communications okayed by the Canadian government.

The deal, valued at $26 billion, is still pending approval from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), the Competition Bureau, and the Department of Innovation, Science and Economic Development.

While Shaw has reasserted its commitment to the merger in the wake of all Rogers’ boardroom blitz, perceived instability in the company’s higher echelons could be another strike counted against Rogers.

This would be in addition to the many, many, many, many, many concerns about how the takeover could further reduce competition in Canada’s telecom market and result in higher prices / less choice for consumers.

Source: Rogers, (2); The Globe and Mail, (2), (3), (4), (5)

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Mobile Syrup

Freedom Mobile raises connection fee to $45

Freedom Mobile is increasing the fee it charges when customers activate a new phone line.

Starting today, October 18th, the carrier’s Connection Fee — a one-time charge applied to each new line activation — jumps from $35 to $45.

That adds up to a $10 — and nearly 29 percent — jump in price.

According to a report from iPhone in Canada, Freedom Mobile claims the fee hike will fund service and network improvements.

Freedom Mobile first began charging customers connection fees (also known as activation fees) in December 2019.

Initially, the carrier charged $20 on the first bill for new postpaid activations, and $10 for prepaid activations — less than half of what’s being charged now, just two years later.

Connection/Activation fees are going up across the board.

In 2020, from September to November, Bell, Fido, Koodo, Rogers, Telus, Virgin ($40→$45), and Freedom ($20→$30) all increased their fees.

Most recently, in July 2021, another wave of hikes kicked off, as Telus, Koodo, Rogers, and Fido all further jacked up their connection fees to $50 (FYI: Fido is owned by Rogers, and Telus owns Koodo).

Source: iPhone in Canada

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Mobile Syrup

Federal government drops surprise restrictions on 5G service near airports

Canadians living near airports may have a hard time getting 5G service thanks to a surprise announcement from the federal government.

The feds announced new restrictions on 5G service near most major airports over concerns of possible interference between the radio waves — called spectrum — used in 5G communications and certain aviation navigation tools. According to the Toronto Star, radio altimeters on aircraft operate on the 4,200 to 4,400 megahertz (MHz) frequency band, which is near the recently-auctioned 3,500MHz spectrum considered crucial to mid-band (or Sub-6) 5G.

Using Toronto’s Pearson Airport as an example, the restrictions banning 5G base stations cover a large area around the runways themselves. Moreover, restrictions covering two long stretches from Etobicoke to Brampton and from Downsview to Mississauga will limit power use, which can affect network performance. A map from the Star shows the restricted areas.

Restriction 5G areas around Pearson (Source: Toronto Star)

The Department of Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) said on August 6th that it would hold a brief consultation before applying the restrictions around airports where planes are permitted to use automated landing.

The Star also detailed comments from carriers that are, unsurprisingly, upset about the restrictions. Telus was among the most vocal and claimed the restrictions reduced the $2 billion value of 3,500MHz spectrum it acquired at the recent auction by about $100 million. Telus also claims the government’s restrictions are more drastic than precautions taken in other countries.

For example, U.S. regulators determined a guard band of 220MHz would be “sufficient” to protect aviation industry needs. Further, Telus claims Australia and Japan implemented guard zones of 200MHz and 100MHz respectively. The Canadian government, however, proposed a buffer zone between 550MHz and 700MHz.

In an email statement to the Star, ISED says it issued a bulletin in March, well before the spectrum auction, committing to study the issue. The bulletin also warned that the government may develop rules for 5G operation in the new spectrum band.

Although the carriers may gripe about the limitations, Canadians living in regions covered by the new restrictions will also lose out, especially if they’ve already upgraded to a new 5G-capable device in anticipation of the 3,500MHz rollout.

Source: Toronto Star

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Mobile Syrup

Rogers expands its Pro On-the-Go service to London, ON

Rogers has expanded its Pro On-the-Go service to London, Ontario to allow for safe contactless support and flexible delivery options.

The Pro On-the-Go service offers individualized one-on-one guidance at clients’ homes, as well as phone delivery and setup assistance on the same day as order. Additionally, the Rogers Pro will also bring along a range of accessories that you can buy, partly replicating the Rogers retail experience at home.

Rogers has an exclusive partnership with mobile retailer Enjoy to provide this service.

Pro On-the-Go launched in October 2019, and has expanded to Greater Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, the Greater Toronto Area, other parts of southwestern Ontario, and Ottawa since.

Image credit: Rogers

Source: Rogers

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Mobile Syrup

Koodo customer gets 10GB for $40 with 1000-minute international long-distance in Richmond, B.C.

A Koodo customer in Richmond, British Columbia was able to get a pretty sweet deal in-store.

The customer secured a $10 discount for 24 months off the $50 for 10GB Koodo plan, with unlimited Canada-wide calling, unlimited international messaging, bring your own device with a free 1000-minute international long-distance add-on.

This amounts to roughly $265 in savings over two years.

The customer posted the deal on RedFlagDeals and states that it’s for new customers only. Additionally, the $50 one-time connection fee was waived and rebated in the first two months.

Finally, the customer says that some stores they called only offered $10 off for 12 months and others insisted are charging an extra one-time store activation fee of up to $45.

Source: RedFlagDeals

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Mobile Syrup

Telus Kits for Kids program donates 14,000 backpacks with school supplies across Canada

Telus’ annual Kits for Kids program is back again this year.

This year, the carrier is donating 14,000 backpacks that each include a pencil case, coloured pencils, pencils, pens, erasers, a flexible ruler, exercise books, loose-leaf papers and a Telus Wise insert with tips and resources on how to keep kids safe online.

Since 2006, Telus has provided 180,000 free backpacks to kids across the country, as well as nearly one million care items in local communities and 30,000 refurbished computers to local schools.

“As families across the country begin a new school year, many find themselves struggling with the financial challenges this season presents, which are compounded by the ongoing pandemic,” said Darren Entwistle, the president and CEO of Telus, in a press statement.

In addition to the donations, Telus says more than 5,000 retired and current employees participate as community ambassadors in 23 clubs across B.C, Alberta, Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada.

Source: Telus

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Mobile Syrup

Several Canadian carriers now offer pre-registration to pre-order iPhone 13 Pro

Following yesterday’s massive Apple event, several Canadian carriers have updated their websites with pre-registration forms and iPhone 13 pages.

Unfortunately, the pricing isn’t live yet (keep an eye on MobileSyrup for the latest on that), but you can read about the iPhone 13 and pre-register to pre-order when orders go live on September 17th. We’ve detailed the carriers and flanker brands that have pre-registration forms below and included links to the forms:

Interestingly, Bell did not have a pre-registration page, but on the carrier’s homepage was a picture of the iPhone 13 Pro and text reading “Order on September 17.” Other carriers and flanker brands don’t mention the iPhone 13, although I’m sure that will change as we near the September 17th pre-order date.

Those who pre-register are signing up to get updates from that carrier about iPhone pre-orders when they go live probably later this week.

If you’re not interested in getting an iPhone 13 or 13 Pro from a carrier, or if you’re looking to buy one of Apple’s other fancy new gadgets (like the revamped iPad mini), you can check out our full Canadian pricing breakdown here.