Montréal, June 16, 2010 – To keep pace with changing customer needs and provide a superior Internet content access experience, Videotron is launching illico web, a new Internet television service. illico web is much more than just a video website: it will offer Videotron customers an exceptional variety of content that until now has been available only on Videotron Digital TV, at no additional cost.
A unique web service
Videotron customers can now access 32 television channels and hundreds of hours of programming, in French and English directly, on illico web. Television programs, series, movies, digital radio, shows, concerts and karaoke are available 24 hours a day on a user-friendly, intuitive platform. Regular additions will be made to the service in order to expand it into a mirror of the illico Digital TV package.
Speaking at the launch announcement, Robert Dépatie, President and CEO of Videotron, said: A new adventure in advanced technology is beginning for our customers. The large number of channels and the wide-ranging content already available sets illico web apart from existing Internet television services in Québec. I am confident that illico web will soon be the standard in this area.
Other features of the service that customers will appreciate include support for remote programming of the customer's personal video recorder (PVR) and online access to the full TV schedule. With 24 French-language channels, illico web carries more French services than any other online platform.
Technology serving consumers
illico web, an exclusive service for Videotron customers who subscribe to both Videotron Digital TV and lnternet access service, is one of the most innovative components of the technologically advanced media environment Videotron is providing for customers.
Digital technology lets content travel from one platform to another, making the walls between media increasingly porous, said Robert Dépatie. The big advantage for consumers is that they can see, hear, read and watch what they want, when they want. We at Videotron get it: our business model hinges on our commitment to meet our customers' expectations on this front.
Springboard for local content
According to Robert Dépatie, the illico web service and the underpinning business model will serve both content creators and the Canadian broadcasting distribution system well.
Videotron has consistently stated its commitment to helping Canada's broadcasting distribution system survive and thrive, said Robert Dépatie. We continue to believe in this system. We believe in Quebec television and those who produce it, and we intend to continue supporting the development of the industry and all the people who work in it, fully respecting intellectual property rights to the content. We believe that adding this platform to Canada's television landscape will deliver excellent value to our illico subscribers and meet their growing need for flexibility in television viewing.
Videotron customers can access the new service at illicoweb.tv.
Videotron Ltd. (www.videotron.com), a wholly owned subsidiary of Quebecor Media Inc., is an integrated communications company engaged in cable television, interactive multimedia development, Internet access services, cable telephony and wireless telephone service. Videotron is a leader in new technologies with its digital interactive television system and its broadband network, which supports high-speed cable Internet access, analog and digital cable television, and other services. As of March 31, 2010, Videotron was serving 1,785,500 cable television customers in Quebec, including 1,119,900 subscribers to its digital service. Videotron is the Quebec leader in high-speed Internet access, with 1,191,600 subscribers to its cable modem service as of March 31, 2010. As of the same date, Videotron had activated 85,300 handsets on its wireless telephone service and was providing cable telephone service to 1,043,000 Quebec households and organizations. For the fifth consecutive year, Videotron was named Quebec's most respected telecommunications company by Les Affaires magazine, based on a Léger Marketing survey.
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