Wind Mobile is launching service in Ottawa on Friday, the fourth city in the upstart wireless company's plan for near-national coverage.
The company's Ottawa launch is kicking off with two service kiosks in Blockbuster Video stores. Wind is looking at adding more locations in Blockbuster, Futureshop and Best Buy stores over the next several weeks, a spokesperson said.
She would not disclose coverage details but said the map for Ottawa would be made public on Friday.
Wind launched service in Toronto and Calgary in December and in Edmonton last month. The company's blog said a Vancouver launch is "getting closer every day."
The mobile carrier's startup has been a rocky one, starting with a rejection by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission. The regulator last year ruled that Wind could not start up because its main financial backer, Egypt's Orascom, had too much influence over the company, so it therefore did not qualify under Canadian ownership rules.
The federal government stepped in and overruled the CRTC, clearing the way for Wind to begin operations. The launch has been shaky, though, with customers complaining of poor network coverage in Toronto and Calgary. Wind also saw the departure recently of its chief customer officer, Chris Robbins, over marketing disagreements.
Wind chairman Anthony Lacavera has acknowledged the coverage issues and said that fixing them is the company's priority.
Uncertainty also surrounds Wind's retail partner Blockbuster, which is teetering on bankruptcy. Including the planned Ottawa kiosks, Wind has 24 outlets in Blockbuster stores. Lacavera said he hopes the video chain pulls through its problems, but Wind is prepared in any case.
"We're not concerned with the issue, we've got a lot of distribution methods in front of us and we're assessing them," he said. "We would have time to find alternate scenarios. We are able to pack up and move our kit if we need to."
Industry analysts have variously said that Wind launched prematurely, or that its teething pains are to be expected. The company is aiming to build a national wireless network — with the exception of Quebec where it does not own spectrum licenses — to compete with Bell, Rogers and Telus.
Other new wireless companies also recently announced launch plans. Public Mobile began selling service last week, with an official network launch in Ontario and Quebec scheduled for May. Mobilicity, formerly known as DAVE Wireless, also plans to start up in the spring.
Share Tools
Top News Headlines
- Dozens of children die in Syria massacre, activists say
- More than 90 people have been killed by regime forces in a district of central Syria, activists say, and as many as half the victims may have been children. more »
- Aylmer triple stabbing leads to first-degree murder charges
- The estranged partner of a young mother who was stabbed to death along with her parents at their home in Aylmer, Que., has been charged with first-degree murder Friday. more »
- Severe storm in Quebec leaves damage in its wake
- Trees were uprooted, roofs damaged and windows shattered as severe thunderstorms, and possibly a tornado, rattled through southwestern Quebec Friday night. more »
- The risks and responsibilities of taking on Mt. Everest
- The deaths of five climbers last weekend on Mt. Everest, with more summits underway this weekend, fuels the debate about the risks and responsibilities of high altitude climbing. more »
Latest Technology & Science News Headlines
- Unloading of docked SpaceX capsule to start Saturday
- The privately bankrolled SpaceX Dragon capsule made a historic arrival at the International Space Station on Friday, and astronauts will begin unloading some of the 544 kilograms of food, water, clothing and other supplies its carrying starting Saturday. more »
- South Africa, Australia to share world's largest telescope
- South Africa and Australia will jointly host the Square Kilometre Array, which promises to be the world's largest telescope, the international consortium in charge of the project said Friday. more »
- Bonavista, N.L., 'coyote' was really wolf, tests confirm
- Wolves have not been seen in Newfoundland since around 1930 and were believed to have been hunted to extinction on the island, but genetic tests have confirmed that an 82-pound animal shot on the Bonavista Peninsula in March was, in fact, a wolf. more »
- Once-rare argus butterfly thriving thanks to climate change
- Global warming is threatening the existence of many species, such as the giant polar bear, but in the case of Britain's brown argus butterfly, it took a species in trouble and made it thrive. more »
- Yahoo scraps digital magazine designed for iPad
- Yahoo has killed Livestand, a tablet magazine, just six months after its debut on the iPad. more »
Bob McDonald's Blog
Government to shut down unique fresh water research area May. 25, 2012 12:31 PM The Experimental Lakes Area research facility in Northern Ontario is being closed down after 44 years of providing invaluable data to scientists in Canada and internationally, a decision that has stunned researchers and environmental groups.
Quirks & Quarks
- May 26: Before the Lights Go Out May. 25, 2012 4:15 PM A new book, "Before the Lights Go Out: Conquering the Energy Crisis Before It Conquers Us", suggests that the unpredictable, unplanned, ad-hoc way our energy use developed in the past will shape our energy future.
Latest Features
- Aylmer triple stabbing leads to first-degree murder charges
- B.C. premier unhappy with disgraced Mountie's transfer
- Everest victim's husband says family not seeking government help
- The risks and responsibilities of taking on Mt. Everest
- Canada ending 'Buffalo shuffle' for visas, closing consulate
- Ottawa man in hospital after lightning strike
- Calmer winds ease fire threat in northeastern Ontario
- What a Greek euro exit could mean for Canada
- Police probe Halifax homicide after shooting
