Montréal, January 8, 2013 – Canadian telecommunications leader Videotron stood out again in 2012 by delivering the best possible customer service in all of its lines of business: cable TV, Internet access, and residential and mobile telephone service.
2012 was a year of big projects for the Company, said Robert Dépatie, President and CEO of Videotron. We continued deepening our close relationship with our customers. That connection is what spurs our 6,000 talented employees to excel, day after day, in order to offer customers the best experience. Anticipating our customers' needs is a core objective on which we will remain focused in 2013.
Not surprisingly, Videotron was ranked the most respected telecommunications provider in Québec for the seventh consecutive year by Les Affaires magazine, based on a Léger Marketing survey. The high regard in which Videotron is held by Quebecers translated into new milestones for the Company in 2012: Videotron now has more than a million customers for its multi-product bundles.
Videotron continued expanding its service and product offerings. Early in the year, it extended its hybrid fibre/coax network to the North Shore, bringing state-of-the-art services to thousands of new customers.
In keeping with its focus on anticipating customer needs, Videotron worked to simplify the online experience by completely revamping its videotron.com website for residential customers. The new site's advanced design and optimized ergonomics were rewarded by a Boomerang award in November 2012.
The best in television
In another landmark event, the launch of Videotron's illico TV new generation service was very well received in 2012. The new high-definition television experience is distinguished by its user-friendliness and ease of use. With illico TV new generation, hundreds of thousands of households across Québec can now access an unparalleled selection of content and entertainment offerings with one click.
illico gave customers front-row seats to all the action at the popular television programs Occupation Double and Star Académie. A series of new high-definition channels were added to the channel line-up. Videotron customers became the first to be able to watch FX Canada, which carries some of the most popular and critically acclaimed U.S. series of the past and present. They also enjoyed exclusive access to the new content produced by the bold and imaginative minds at MAtv, formerly VOX. Comedy buffs were served their fill of laughs by the wacky programs on Lib tv, Canada's first mobile channel, which celebrated its second birthday in a typically original manner.
Videotron also led the pack by logging 100,000 orders for the movie The Hunger Games on all its platforms combined, a first since the launch of illico on Demand in 2003. Videotron pursued its mission of delivering the best possible entertainment experience by offering the largest selection of on-demand content in Canada. The result was 100 million on-demand orders on illico TV, illico web and illico mobile. As part of its drive to always give customers more, Videotron launched its illico.tv iPad app in late 2012, enhancing its entertainment offerings by giving customers access to their favourite content on the popular tablet.
Internet: faster than ever
Videotron's Internet access service set new speed records in 2012, solidifying the Company's number 1 position in the field. It now supports download speeds of up to 200 Mbps and upload speeds of up to 30 Mbps. With an exceptional 97%1 customer satisfaction rate, Videotron continued to differentiate itself by offering customers the most reliable service and an enhanced line of Internet access plans that keep pace with the latest technology. For example, the speed of its Basic Internet service was boosted from 3 to 5 Mbps and High-Speed Internet from 8 to 10 Mbps.
Mobile: the world at your fingertips
During 2012, Videotron released a series of new mobile handsets and tablets for its customers, including the Samsung Galaxy S III, Samsung Galaxy Note II, HTC Radar 4G, Samsung Galaxy Q, Galaxy Nexus, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, Nokia Lumia 710, Sony Xperia T, LG Optimus 4X HD, Motorola RAZRTM V and HTC OneTM S.
In addition to rolling out its mobile services to the Beauce region during the year, Videotron innovated by offering its customers Internet service anywhere, anytime over Mobile Wi-Fi. The device, which operates on Videotron's 4G network, quickly became an indispensable tool for families and business people. Videotron's Mobile Usage app, another eagerly awaited innovation, was a boon to customers who want to keep an eye on their Internet data usage in real time using their Android smartphone or tablet.
Customers continued enjoying free long-distance calling to other Videotron customers, a community of nearly 3 million people. Advantageous new plans, which make international roaming much more affordable and significantly lower the cost of long-distance calls in North America, were introduced to make life easier for customers.
One small business out of two
In another indication of the network's strength, one small and medium-sized business out of two now relies on Videotron Business Solutions2 for its telecommunications needs, a total of 100,000 business customers. In addition to residential customers, businesses in Montréal's West Island and North Shore suburbs can now benefit from the lightning speed of Ultimate Speed Internet 120 and Ultimate Speed Internet 200 for their daily activities.
Videotron (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 mobile 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 September 30, 2012, Videotron was serving 1,852,900 cable television customers, including 1,457,800 subscribers to its digital service. Videotron is also the Québec leader in high-speed Internet access, with 1,369,600 subscribers to its cable service as of September 30, 2012. As of the same date, Videotron had 378,300 subscriber connections to its mobile telephone service and was providing cable telephone service to 1,249,700 Québec households and organizations. For the seventh 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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1 Léger Marketing survey, September 2012.
2 Léger Marketing survey, October 2012.
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