It’s not a surprise that WIND Mobile and Blockbuster are joining forces to serve their own unique interests, but we’re told the partnership will be official very, very soon. All told, there will be 16 locations with 13 serving the Greater Toronto Area and 3 serving Calgary. No mention was made of any expansions outside of those two metropolitan areas after the network is up in running in other cities, but one can be forgiven for assuming that will be the case. Let’s just hope each 150 square foot “store within a store” is a lot prettier than those full-fledged WIND stores. For WIND, the partnership means greater visibility and reduced costs. For Blockbuster, well, it just means that maybe people will actually go into their stores.

UPDATE: A long-time friend of the site just sent us in a pic of one of the kiosks. So far the consensus at BGR HQ is no, the kiosks are not prettier than the retail outlets. Check it out the pic after the break.

One day after it was announced that WIND Mobile is allowed to launch its network without without delay, Canadians across the country are still giddy with excitement as they anticipate the impending launch of the nation’s fourth major wireless carrier. And while WIND has yet to publicly announce plan pricing (or a specific launch date, for that matter), HowardForums user Windsider has publishing what is claimed to be the official plans and their respective pricing. So without further ado, hit the jump to check out the plans; they’re impressive to say the least.

Thanks to everyone that sent this in!

VOICE PLANS

Chat:

• $15
• 100 Province-wide minutes
  
• Unlimited WIND to WIND calling (Canada-wide)
• Unlimited incoming  SMS / 50 sent

Always Talk:

• $35
• Unlimited province-wide calling
• Unlimited WIND to WIND calling
• Unlimited incoming SMS / 50 sent

Always Shout:

• $45
• Unlimited Canada-wide calling
• Unlimited SMS
• Voicemail

DATA PLANS

Infinite Mobile:

• $35
  
• Unlimited data for phones (includes tethering)

Social BlackBerry:

• $10
  
• Unlimited instant messaging, Facebook and MySpace

Infinite BlackBerry:

• $35
  
• Unlimited data for BlackBerry

Infinite Laptop:

• $45
  
• Unlimited data for USB data sticks

ADD-ONS

Voice:

• 10c Per Minute with the $15 plan

SMS:

• $0.10
  

MMS:

• $0.20

Voicemail:

• $5

Long Distance:

• $20
• Unlimited calls to North America

If WIND’s plans are even half as good as rumored to be, how many of our Canadian friends plan on dropping everything and scrambling to one of their swanky retail stores to sign up as soon as sales commence?

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While WIND Mobile might never launch thanks to parent company Globalive’s illegal ownership structure, that didn’t stop its CEO Ken Campbell and his entourage from celebrating the completed renovation of one of its retail stores. It’s a departure from the typical Bell, Rogers or TELUS location to say the least. BG thinks it looks like a “New York subway car in white lacquer” and Andrew said it’s nothing but an “Apple store with mahogany”, so naturally we’re curious to know what you think. So hit the jump, check out the pics and give us your thoughts!

P.S. Anyone noticing the huge table cut-out where the Microsoft Surface might one day be installed?

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While Canadian carrier hopeful WIND might not be launching any time soon thanks to its foreign ownership structure, outsiders are already drooling at the prospect of buying up all of WIND’s spectrum in the event that it doesn’t launch. WIND CEO Ken Campbell dismissed such things as “media speculation” during our interview with him and repeated ad nauseam that WIND is currently weighing its options, but now more of its would be competitors are speaking up on what might be. Said Rogers CEO Nadir Mohamed on Friday: “Spectrum is a very valuable asset. Rogers for sure would be interested in picking it up.” Snapping up all of WIND’s spectrum wouldn’t be cheap considering it was originally purchased from Industry Canada in 2008 at a cost of $442.1 million Canadian ($420.4 million USD), but the possibility that several of the Big Three would buy it in parcels if the launch never happens remains relatively high. After all, Bell has previously said it would be willing to purchase half of WIND’s spectrum at $0.50 on the dollar.

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Canadians have long craved for a new wireless carrier to bust onto the scene and break up what is often described as the anti-competitive practices of incumbents Bell, Rogers and TELUS (aka “The Big Three”). Following Industry Canada’s 2008 auction of Advanced Wireless Services, the majority of hope was placed in a swaggering upstart which recently announced it would operate under the WIND brand name. But this Thursday, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission informed WIND that it that it couldn’t go live with its HSPA network. The reasoning behind the CRTC’s decision was that if felt WIND’s parent company, Globalive Wireless, did not meet the criteria set forth in the Telecommunications Act which stipulates all carriers must be majority owned and controlled by Canadians. To meet these requirements, at least 80% of the board of directors and voting shares must be controlled by Canadians and the company cannot be “otherwise controlled by persons that are not Canadian.” What the CRTC found was that Oracsom, Globalive’s Egyptian financiers, controlled 65.1% of WINDs equity, the Canadian rights to the WIND brand, carried the majority of the company’s debt and that liquidity rights were “inconsistent with the relative voting interests of the shareholders.” The situation is complex, but all is not lost for WIND. With this in mind, we sat down with WIND’s CEO Ken Campbell and asked him what the future holds.

Mike: Prior to the ruling, you were quite optimistic that the CRTC would approve WINDs launch given that Industry Canada had previously ruled that your ownership structure complied with the Telecommunications Act. What do you think caused the CRTC to rule differently?

Ken: What we do know is that Industry Canada approved us back in March, on March 13th, and the frame of reference that they used was pretty much the same as the CRTC. The two groups came to different conclusions, obviously, and right now what we are doing is reviewing what’s come out and assessing what our options could be. It’s a pretty sad day for Canadian consumers. It’s unfortunate, Canada needs competition and needs a new national wireless operator and this is a setback.

Mike: There has been a lot of talk about having Industry Minister Tony Clement and the Cabinet overturn the CRTCs ruling, something they are legally permitted to do. Are you actively exploring this option, and if so, are you fearful of any backlash?

Ken: I am not sure what you are referring to, but no, for our part, we are just looking at what our options might be and reviewing what the CRTC has come out with. I am not aware of what Minister Clement might have commented on today.

[Ed. Prior to our interview, Industry Minister Tony Clement publically stated that he and Industry Canada will be investigating the CRTC’s decision. Said Clement: “We are examining the CRTC decision very closely, and certainly we are still very much in favour of more competition in the telecom space for Canadian consumers. That’s why we opened up these contracts to other new entrants.”

Mike: What are some of your options as you understand it? Certainly there is talk of WIND aligning itself with…

Ken: At this time all of those things are just media speculation. As I said, we are looking at all of our alternatives. We are going to assess all of them very seriously and will determine what sort of action we can take. We have to review the CRTC ruling – there is a lot to it – and we are going to look at what our options which include many.

BG: Not being Canadian and looking at the Canadian landscape in terms of wireless carriers, the premise of what you set out to do seems so great. There have been rumors, and much of them have been confirmed, that there was to be a simple 3-tier price plan, great handsets, a great retail experience, etc. How important do you think the whole retail experience is to the customer and providing a great service?

Ken: I think the customer experience is absolutely important. Here we’ve got a situation where we pay twice as much as they do in the US, our minutes of use are half of what they are in the US, and wireless penetration is at 65%. Clearly it is a market that is under-developed and where customers simply overpay. The other thing is that in Canada our customer saturation numbers are extremely low. We’ve got a very disenfranchised and very frustrated customer base that is really ripe and in need of competition. The other thing you should know is that this country is dominated by three carriers, but if you look regionally, it is typically two carriers that dominate regional markets. Canada is effectively an oligopoly and in many regions pretty much a duopoly. There is definitely an opportunity with consumers and the numbers speak for themselves.

BG: Going forward, you were really hopeful from everything that we read…

Ken: We’ve got 800 employees. We’ve got retail staff, we’ve hired call centers, we have a brand, we have a great experience, and definitely, as you mentioned, we have some good price plans and a very solid proposition that will resonate with consumers. We’re definitely teed up and ready to go.

BG: Have you announced the price plans at all?

Ken: No, we haven’t announced them. We did announce that we have a few, three, and I think that customers will find them simple and easy to understand and, frankly, a great value.

BG: So, like you said, everyone is hired and things are read to go. Can you continue those operations in the mean time until you get approval, or does all of that have to stop now?

Ken: Well, we are assessing what our options are. But the network has been being built in Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver, Toronto and Ottawa and our coverage was being deployed. What we are going to continue to focus in on is our operation and assessing what our options are with this unfortunate ruling.

Mike: Are you still allowed to continue the development of the network , or are you abandoning this work until you can get things sorted out?

Ken: We’re really assessing and evaluating our options right now.

Mike: So it sounds as if you are more focused on the legal matter at hand as opposed to continuing to develop the network.

Ken: Yes, it’s just prudent that we evaluate the situation and the ruling. Obviously to run our business we need the CRTC to approve it, so we will see what our options might be. Canada definitely deserves some competition here and so for our part we just have to focus in on the ruling and see what, if anything, can be done.

Mike: How confident are you that a compromise will be reached in the near future that would allow you to continue the development of your network and eventually launch?

Ken: It’s just not clear right now. It’s too early to say.

BG: Well, Ken, thank you so much for your time we really appreciate it.

Ken: Thanks very much for reaching out to us. I like your site.

Back in August, Globalive, a big winner in Canada’s AWS auction, announced that it was going to launch its network under the WIND brand and shake up the Canadian wireless industry. Now it looks as if this will not be happening — at least in the immediate future — as the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) ruled yesterday that WIND does not meet the Canadian ownership rules. The rules, which are set out in the Telecommunications Act, stipulate that wireless carriers must be majority owned and controlled to the sum of 80% by Canadians. Because Orascom, an Egyptian company, owns 65.1% of the equity in WIND as well as the rights to the WIND brand in Canada, the CRTC ordered that WIND not launch its network until the company is fully compliant with the Act. Strangely enough, during last years wireless spectrum auction, Industry Canada ruled that WIND did indeed meet Canadian ownership laws as set out in the Telecommunications Act, but strong opposition from the existing major carriers — Bell, Rogers and TELUS, companies whose ownership meets complies with the Act — at a hearing on October 1st likely helped the ruling. So what does the future hold for WIND and its $442mm CAD ($413.8mm USD) worth of 1700MHz UMTS/HSPA spectrum? Nothing unless it manages to re-organize its board and find new investors.Read

Globalive Wireless Management Corp., one of the big winners of last years Canadian AWS auction and overall trash talker towards Bell, Rogers and TELUS, has announced that it will offer its HSPA services in the Canadian marketplace as WIND. If the name sounds familiar, WIND is already a successful brand in Europe — particularly in Italy (where it was founded) and Greece — and its Canadian brand controllers are hoping to “not only leverage WIND’s challenger status, but also its operational intelligence and experience.” Canadians can expect to see WIND launch in key markets later this year with general availability (excluding Québec) in 2010. In the distant future, WIND will be making the transition from HSPA to LTE, although a time line for the move has not been made public.

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Okay, so get a load of this. Apparently (please note the emphasis) a former employee of Globalive aka Global Wireless, the next big Canadian wireless provider that is building a UMTS / HSPA network with service planned for all provinces and territories excluding Québec, recently got canned for “poor performance in marketing”. This of course led to him logging on to HoFo and leaking everything about the carrier’s plans except what the CEO ate for breakfast. There is tons of stuff to cover and the slides are pretty grainy at best, so we’ve taken the time to write it all out for our Canadian friends. Now hit the jump and prepare to mess yourself because if even half of this stuff is true, the Canadian wireless landscape is about to make a serious shift for the better starting in Q4. Just one question — why no BlackBerry love?

Thanks, “Ex-Global Wireless Employee”!

14 Handsets

• Sony Ericsson TM506
  • 7.2Mbps HSDPA clamshell. $29.99 on 24-month, $99.99 on 12-month and $199.99 monthly / pre-paid. Available in green, silver and red.
• Nokia 5330 XpressMusic
  • 384Kbps UMTS candybar. $59.99 on 24-month, $109.99 on 12-month and $207.79 monthly / pre-paid. Available in black and red.
• Nokia 5730 XpressMusic.
  • 3.6Mbps HSDPA candybar. $49.99 on 24-month, $99.99 on 12-month and $179.99 monthly / pre-paid. Available in black, pink, blue and red.
• Nokia 6070 Classic
  • 10Mbps HSDPA candybar with 5 megapixel camera. Pricing is unknown. Available in silver and black.
• Sidekick LX 2009
  • Radio information is unknown, though we’d wager 3.6Mbps HSDPA. Pricing is unknown and you can have it in any color you like so long as it’s black.
• Sony Ericsson Xperia X1
  • 7.2Mbps HSDPA Window Mobile 6.1-powered slider to be billed as the flagship device of globalWireless. $149.99 on 24-month, $249.99 on 12-month and $449.99 monthly / pre-paid. Look for it in black.
• Global (HTC) G1
  • Same thing as the HTC Dream and the T-Mobile G1 including the 7.2Mbps HSDPA radio. $129.9 on 24-month, $229.99 on 12-month and $429.99 monthly / pre-paid. Black only.
• Global (HTC) M1
  • Same thing as the HTC Magic aka T-Mobile G2. Pricing is unknown, though we do know it feature 7.2Mbps HSDPA and will be offered in white only.

Airtime Rates

• $29.99 – 350 minutes, unlimited e/w, unlimited incoming
• $39.99 – 650 minutes, unlimited e/w, unlimited incoming
• $59.99 – Unlimited minutes and incoming.

Voice Add-Ons

• $5 – Unlimited nights at 5PM
• $8 – Unlimited mornings until 9am
• $15 – Unlimited calls to the US

Included Services for Monthly Plans

• Unlimited SMS (Canada and USA), Voice Mail, Caller ID, Name Display, MissedCall, Call Waiting, Call Conferencing and Call Forwarding

Optional Services

• $4 – 500 international SMS
• $7 – Unlimited international SMS
• $5 – Video Mail

International Calling

• $5 – 100 minutes to Asia
• $10 – 250 minutes to Asia
• $5 – 100 minutes to Philippines
• $10 – 300 minutes to Philippines
• $5 – 200 minutes to Eastern Europe
• $10 – 350 minutes to Eastern Europe

US Roaming (T-Mobile)

• $0.19 per minute without plan
• $0.05 per SMS without plan
• $0.40 per MB of data without plan

US Roaming Plans (T-Mobile)

• $15 – 75 minutes
• $25 – 200 minutes
• $40 – 650 minutes
• $10 – 250 SMS
• $19.99 – 50MB of data
• $29.99 – 250MB of data
• $59.99 – 1.5GB of data

Data Access Rates

• $10 – Unlimited email (20MB in reality), IM and “communities” (social media sites?)
• $23 – 2.5GB data and unlimited email
• $40 – Unlimited, plain and simple

Data Add-Ons

• $8 – Unlimited browsing
• $5 – Enables tethering
• $10 – “100MB of global remote mobile storage”

SIM Cards

• $0 on 12 and 24-month plan
• $19.99 on 1-month contract
• $29.99 outright
• Will only work on a globalWireless handset

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