Montréal, October 28, 2010 – After the big launch of its advanced mobile communication service in the Québec City and Montréal areas in September 2010, Videotron announces the official launch of its mobile services in the Mauricie, Sherbrooke and Salaberry-de-Valleyfield areas. Videotron's 3G+ service will give consumers and business people in the three areas access to the latest technology at last and deliver the best value for the money.
Following up on the resounding success of the initial launch of our advanced mobile service, we are pleased to announce that we are expanding it to new markets, said Robert Dépatie, President & CEO of Videotron. This move brings Videotron into the Trois-Rivières market for the first time.
KEY BENEFITS
- Access to the new Infinite Zones in Mauricie and Sherbrooke, firsts in the Quebec telecom market
- Unlimited free local and long-distance calling between millions of Videotron customers across Québec
illico mobile, featuring the largest selection of Quebec content and exceptional video quality
- Four handsets offered in Quebec for the first time, including the groundbreaking Google Nexus One
- High-speed mobile Internet at speeds of up to 21 mbps
- Videotron's unique 30-day money-back guarantee
OFFERINGS
Infinity at the best price!
Videotron is offering simple, economical mobile communication services with a full range of residential and Business plans. For example, the Infinite Québec Plan includes unlimited local and long-distance calling anywhere in Quebec regardless of the other party's telephone carrier, starting at $49.95 per month. For only $6.00 per month more, customers can add unlimited messages anywhere in Quebec.
More and bigger zones
The Infinite zone plans, another innovative component of Videotron's new mobile service, offer unlimited calls within the zone. Videotron has more and bigger urban zones than any other service provider, by far.
For example, the Mauricie zone, which includes the towns of Pointe-du-Lac, Grand-Mère, Shawinigan, Ste-Monique, Champlain and Trois-Rivières, covers approximately 1200 km2 and the Sherbrooke zone, which extends from Eastman to East Angus and from St-Denis-de-Brampton to Hatley, covers more than 800 km2. The Montréal and Québec City zones, where service launched on September 9, 2010, cover 3,200 km2 and 5,700 km2 respectively.
Free local and long-distance calls between residential, Business and mobile customers
All plans include free unlimited local and long-distance calling between residential and Business customers with mobile or cable telephone services from Videotron.
Videotron's 3G+ service reflects the goal we have pursued throughout this project: delivering the best possible customer experience and one-stop shopping to simplify consumers' lives, said Robert Dépatie. Not only is our offering highly advantageous in this respect but it is particularly attractive for our existing customers, who can get exceptional rates. We remain true to our policy of offering substantial discounts to customers who choose our service bundles.
The fastest high-speed mobile Internet access
Videotron's mobile Internet key supports data transfer speeds of up to 21 mbps over Videotron's 3G+ network, the fastest network around according to tests conducted at the time of the launch in September 2010. The network will eventually rev up to lightning-fast mobile speeds of up to 42 mbps, thanks to Dual-Carrier HSPA+ technology.
Attractive options
Videotron is also offering the industry's most advantageous call management and messaging options, an important consideration for mobile phone users, who typically add options to their plans. For example, customers will be able to send up to 500 messages (counting SMS, MMS and emails using Videotron's mobile email app) for just $5.00, 2,500 messages for $10.00 and unlimited messages for $15.00. Customers can also add up to three options – voicemail, call display and voice messages by email – for $4 per month for the first, $2 for the second, or all three for $7.
We asked our customers about their needs when it comes to mobile service, said Robert Dépatie. We listened to them and we got the message. So we are offering them new, easy-to-understand plans that deliver more and suit every need.
DEVICES
Something for everyone: 12 handsets, including 4 Quebec firsts
Videotron has also lined up a selection of best-in-class 3G handsets for every taste. All will support access to illico mobile and remote programming of Videotron Digital TV subscribers' personal video recorders*. Customers will be able to choose among the most advanced mobile handsets on the market, including the Google Nexus One (HTC), loaded with the Android 2.2 Froyo operating system; the Nuvifone A5, the first Garmin phone in Canada with free traffic info and alerts included for three years; the Motorola XT720; and the entry-level Huawei U3200, another first.
Videotron is also the only industry player to offer a 30-day satisfaction or money back guarantee.
CONTENT
Largest selection of French-language and Quebec content
Customers will enjoy one of the richest selections of mobile content in Canada, particularly for French-language and Quebec content. After launching illico web in June 2010, Videotron is now also offering illico mobile, giving customers access to nearly 2,000 hours of free and paid television programs and series, 28 television channels, 14 of them live, and 45 Galaxie music channels.
Our new mobile service will quickly become a major platform for the dissemination and promotion of Quebec culture, said Pierre Karl Péladeau, President & CEO of Quebecor Media. Videotron's mobile store carries nearly 30,000 items (music, ringtones, wallpapers, games, etc.).
VIDEOTRON MOBILE COVERAGE
Videotron's new mobile network is up and running across Quebec. Customers in the Mauricie, Sherbrooke, Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Montréal, Québec City, Saint-Hyacinthe, Beloeil and L'Assomption areas can now sign up for service plans. Thanks to agreements with partners, network coverage extends to all parts of Quebec and service is available in the rest of Canada and many other countries as well.
Service will be rolled out to Mont-Tremblant and Victoriaville by year's end, making it available to the bulk of Quebec's population.
We want to offer our service to as many Quebecers as possible and we expect to be able to serve almost the entirety of our potential customer base by 2011, said Robert Dépatie. I urge people to find out about our service plans before renewing their agreement with their current carrier. They won't regret it!
Massive project
Robert Dépatie noted that designing and building out a new mobile communication network of this scale within such a tight time-frame was no mean feat. Today's announcement caps a $1 billion investment that has created over 1,000 jobs. I thank our people for all the effort they have devoted to this project. The result, the creation of a new 3G+ infrastructure in two years, attests to the expertise we have developed in multiplatform integration and the depth of our 40 years of experience in communications technology.
For more information, please visit www.videotron.com*where available
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, and Internet access, cable telephone and wireless telephone services. Videotron is a leader in new technologies with its interactive Digital TV service and its broadband network, which supports high-speed cable Internet access, analog and digital cable television, and other services. As of June 30, 2010, Videotron was serving 1,781,500 cable television customers, including 1,142,000 subscribers to its digital service. Videotron is also the Québec leader in high-speed Internet access, with 1,201,700 subscribers to its cable modem service as of June 30, 2010. As of the same date, Videotron had activated 87,000 handsets on its wireless telephone service and was providing cable telephone service to 1,065,300 Québec households and organizations. For the fifth consecutive year, Videotron was named Québec's most respected telecommunications company by Les Affaires magazine, based on a Léger Marketing survey.
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