Montréal, November 2, 2006 – Videotron has announced the roll-out of its cable telephone service in Gatineau. As of today, the service is available to more than 87,000 households in the Gatineau, Hull and Chelsea districts, and part of Cantley. Area residents who subscribe to the new service will enjoy substantial discounts on their phone bill, especially if they are already Videotron customers. They will also be able to obtain residential telephone service, wireless telephone service, cable television and Internet from a single provider, and enjoy the advantages of one-stop shopping at Videotron: one call to customer service, one technician, one bill for all their services. The transition to Videotron telephone service is seamless: subscribers can keep their telephone number and continue using the same telephone equipment.
We are very pleased to offer our residential telephone service to growing numbers of consumers across Québec, said Manon Brouillette, Senior Vice President, Marketing, Content and Product Development, Consumer Division. When we launched our wireless phone service in the Gatineau region in September, many people expressed an interest in taking all four Videotron products but our landline service was not yet available in the region. They will now be able to enjoy the benefits of this advantageous alternative to conventional telephone service. As we extend our reach to more households across Québec, we are stimulating competition. Videotron is proud to give Quebecers a real choice when it comes to telephone service providers.
Growing popularity
The popularity of Videotron telephone service is growing fast: as of June 30, more than 283,000 Québec households had opted for the service. The numbers make Videotron the leader among telecom companies that provide telephone service via IP (Internet Protocol) technology.
Videotron's cable telephone service does not require an Internet connection, as do most IP-based telephone services, and does not route calls over the public information highway. It uses IP as a data transfer protocol to transmit voice over a private network managed entirely by Videotron. The result translates into an enhanced protection against theft and fraud.
Attractive pricing
Videotron offers an exceptional telephone deal starting at just $16.95 per month for basic service.
The customer satisfaction rate with our telephone service is 94 %,* a reflection of the fact that large numbers of consumers were eagerly awaiting a reliable alternative to conventional telephone service, noted Manon Brouillette. However, it must be borne in mind that our move into residential telephone service has opened only a small breach in a market still heavily dominated by one player."
Free long-distance calls between Videotron subscribers
Long-distance calls between subscribers to Videotron's telephone service are free – an exclusive service supported by the infinite power of cable. A subscriber to Videotron telephone service in Gatineau can therefore call a Videotron subscriber in Montréal (or anywhere else) toll free.
Subscribers to Videotron telephone service can keep their existing telephone number. Videotron cable telephone service is a reliable, main-line service that supports all the features and options to which consumers are accustomed, such as call display, voice mail, call waiting, assistance (0, 411, 911, and 611), long distance and calling cards.
Voice Mail to e-mail service is provided free of charge to customers who take both the five-feature package and Videotron cable Internet service. They therefore get six features for the price of five ($10 per month).
To check whether cable telephone service is available at their address, consumers can go to www.videotron.com and then click on Telephony and Availability.
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 and residential telephone service. Videotron is a leader in new technologies with its illico interactive television system and its broadband network, which supports high-speed cable Internet access, analog and digital cable television, and other services. As of June 30, 2006, Videotron was serving 1,521,000 cable television customers in Québec; including 545,000 illico subscribers. Videotron is also the Québec leader in high-speed Internet access, with 726,000 subscribers to its cable modem and dial-up services. In addition, Videotron provides residential and business telephone services to more than 283,000 customers in Québec and has been offering wireless telephone service since August 2006.
