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The iPhone comes with a cost for Rogers

CATHERINE MCLEAN

Globe and Mail Update

Latest comment posted at 11:11 PM EDT 05/11/07

Carrier would have to revise wireless pricing plan if it aims to bring Apple's coveted multimedia device to Canada ...Read the full article

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  1. D JL from Canada writes: hahaha...

    Who would have figured. Lack of competition in Canada hurts....

    Maybe Rogers, Telus, Bell will meet the competition. Maybe the CRTC should allow foreign competition for cell phones.

    Maybe Canadian Cellphone providers will meet other country rates.

    Not going to happen for a very long while..
  2. Loc Dao from Vancouver, Canada writes: It is completely bewildering and frustrating as a Rogers and Fido(Rogers owned) customer that Rogers not only maintains a monopoly on GSM technology but refuses to look at the big picture. Sure its revenue may dip with a plan similar to ATT or O2 but in the long run they will get more customers. More customers at lower profits equals higher profits. I think one or two companies have tried that before. Seriously, ATT just proved that in the last quarter. Bring the iPhone to Canada ASAP. It's too bad Rogers' greed can't let their leadership see beyond the tip of their gold plated golf clubs.
  3. Joe Liberali from Canada writes: Revenue dip? They're charging a fortune for what is essentially free. How many new customers will the get from this deal? Not enough to make up for the slight restructuring in their theivish ways?
  4. Wir sind das Volk from Toronto, Canada writes: What? Question the $27.50 per KB data plans in Canada? Unthinkable! Why doesn't the goven't allow US carriers to operate here? It would be fun watch Rogers, Bell and Telus go bankrupt in a matter of hours....
  5. Arthur S from Canada writes: And in other news, on Nov 1, 2007 Rogers Communications, Inc. reports a 75% jump in profit for the 3rd quarter, wireless revenues alone rose 18% to $1.4 billion. Sorry, I'm not so gullible to believe that Rogers can't afford to provide us Canadians with affordable iPhone plans. :o(
  6. Sitting in da Auberge from Canada writes: Rogers need only look at what's happened to Bell's local telephone brand for an example of how their greed will come back to bite them. Every college student I know has a story about Bell demanding some ridiculous deposit to get local phone service at school.

    Now, many years later, I couldn't switch soon enough to eliminate Bell from my portfolio of products. Rest assured, WiMax will, in 5 yrs or 10, offer exactly the same opportunity to escape a cell phone provider. It can't come soon enough for me.

    Justice comes to those who gouge.
  7. D Mores from GTA, Canada writes: Looks like most of the posters are Rogers customers. Quit companing: I'm with Bell, and you've got to experience the crap that us Bell subscribers have to endure.

    Once my contract with Bell is up, I'm switching to Rogers. ...if I can even get through to them. Bell's customer service line for mobile phones has been down for the last few weeks!

    That's why Rogers is doing so well. Not to say that Rogers is good compared to the other US & global carriers. Many reports document that Canadians pay among the highest cellular fees in the world.

    We're getting hosed.
  8. stewart stevenson from Toronto, Canada writes: They're actually advertising the s621 phone on this page. I bought this 6 months ago and i'm mad as hell. The device itseLf is fantastic, but it is boGged down with Rogers default settings making the phone basically crap. There is great wifi when I can find a signal, and I've refused to pay for a data plan that is basically extortion.

    I hope Apple flexes their might and forces Rogers to drastically re-think their data package pricing. If they're smart, they'll embrace giving wireless and unlimited data to their customers in a flat price and generate revenue off mobile advertising. If they can tweak the technology and be in control of feeding ads on devices via their network, they'll make a fortune and help to boost the wireless usage standards into the next decade.

    stew :)
  9. Iain's Opinion from Canada writes: One thing you can be sure of, they will wring as much out of you as they possibly can.
  10. C. H. Oakley from Canada writes: I can't wait until foreign carriers are allowed to compete in Canada. The day Rogers and Bell Canada go under, I will dance.
  11. one thinker from Canada writes: I think the i-phone has to be as much a success as the ipod is today before Rogers, Bell and Telus bring it to Canada. I don't see the i-phone being such a succes right now so i have very little hope that it will be in canada anytime soon. The other way i-phone can make its way to Canada is that for the government to open the cable-phone-cell market to international business, but i think there is more chance that the i-phone gets popular before that happens.
  12. Paul G from Toronto, Canada writes: To D Mores from GTA, Canada:
    I just did the opposite, I dropped EVERYTHING I had with Rogers over the last year and migrated to Bell and I've never been happier with my cell phone, internet and satellite TV.
    Rogers sucks.
  13. Nancy Wilson from N.Ontario, Canada writes: Rogers" Sucks" ,big time.
    Don't EVER try to access their customer service,IT doesn't exist!!
    Like most Cdn. cell phone service,again we're being "ripped off"
    What's with that "access fee"?
    How can you possibly subscibe to any cell phone service,that does not provide" access "for their customers?? Shouldn't "access" be an expected and relevent service provided ?Without "access",no service can possibly be rendered.
    We're being totally ripped off,by providers.
    Canadians need to DEMAND better service and prices.
    The first fee that needs to be gone is the "access fee".
    It's a pile of B.S.,that we shouldn't be paying for.
    These companies are raking in "billions" from our lack of demand for better .and fairer service fees.
  14. Alan Pater from Vancouver, Canada writes: When did Fido kill the $20-month unlimited data plan for the Hiptop?
  15. Angry West Coast Canuck from Canada writes: All the carriers in Canada really suck. I'm with Rogers now, but I've been with Telus and Bell depending on which city I lived in, and they've all been over-priced and under-performing.

    When Canada decides to get some consumer friendly laws like they have in the E.U. (such as requiring phones to be unlocked on demand, and caps on roaming charges) I'll dance a happy dance. Until then, we're getting screwed, and the only option is to not have a cellphone. An option I am very seriously considering at this point.

    Oh, and Fido stopped being competitive the day Rogers gobbled them up. Surprised? I'm not.
  16. True North from Canada writes: Ted Rogers cut prices in half to sell the hottest new gadget? hahaha
  17. jordan kramer from North York, Canada writes: Where is:

    vodafone

    AT&T

    Orange?

    Let them in so Canadian carriers will be forced to compete! Change the foreign ownership rules now!
  18. Digital Taco from Canada writes: stop ur whining. If your company was willing to pay you 3x your salary, would you take it, or would you say 'I don't think I'm worth that much boss, the same job in Europe, you'd be paying me a fraction of that'

    If you are willing to pay it, Rogers will charge it. It's as simple as that. I don't see the need for everyone in Canada to own an iPhone. It should be a luxury item. Why don't you guys boycott Lexus until its prices come down so a beggar can afford it?
  19. shane parsons from napanee, Canada writes: Canada has one of the lowest wireless data adoption rates in the western world. So, people are not willing to pay for it.

    Most likely there will not be a revenue dip, but a net increase. For reasons that defy explanation, all of the Candian carriers has chosen the approach of not really pushing wireless data and pricing it out of reach 99% of users. A quick search for the words:
    "wireless data 3rd world"
    Will tell the rest of the story.
  20. Mister Fartleberry from Toronto, Canada writes: I wouldn't expect them to appreciate the "cool" factor either. A buck's a buck, whether it comes from Heaven or the Emperor's toilettes. One thing's for sure, done look for any "churn" happening. You buy one you're stuck with them forever.
  21. Bill Foonman from United States writes: Rogers will do what it always has and find a way to gouge its customers and maintain its role as one of Canada's most institutionally arrogant monopolies.
  22. IEM Canadian from Canada writes: I have one and it works fine on Rogers. Sans data plan. Reception better than other phones I had.

    Completely agree that Canada must have foreign communication companies here, particularly for wireless. Other markets like data com. and telecom. would benefit as well.

    As much as I dislike France and its socialist ways, I do like their unlocked cell phone policy which forbids any carrier of locking a handset to their network.

    Also North America should get rid of the outdated CDMA technoloigy and deploy GSM everywhere like the rest of the world. In the Philippines and most Asian countries it is cheaper to put up cell towers than run cable. Everyone has a cell phone, not all have a home phone.
  23. Matthew Harper from Toronto, Canada writes: Speaking as a Rogers shareholder, I can't fathom the reason for such exhorbiant pricing. Especially with a spectrum auction coming up, where the company wants to appear to be operating competitively. It is complete folly.
  24. Kevin Henning from Canada writes: Unfortunately, Rogers has not yet made the leap to consider data as a "consumer" service... as far as I know they still consider it a business service and that is why they charge the rates that they do.

    As I understand it, Finland (the home of Nokia) also says that you can't lock cell phones to a network. That comes at a cost... the phones are more expensive there. As if you were buying the phone not on a plan. The issue in North America is that most phones are sold locked, even if you purchase without a plan. Thus the argument that they are subsidizing the price does not apply.

    Surprisingly, I saw an ad for the iPhone last night on CTV... It wasn't a bleed through of an American ad, the Apple web site at the end of the commercial was apple.ca.
  25. Regis C from Toronto, Canada writes: "D Mores from GTA, Canada writes: Once my contract with Bell is up, I'm switching to Rogers".

    You will be exchanging six for half a dozen D Mores. Rogers, Bell and Tellus are equal in their offering of high prices and crappy service. But don't blame them; these companies behave like this because they are protected from foreign competition. And that is the fault of your government. Write your MP to lift the legal barriers for foreign telecom companies to operate here and only you will get good service at good prices.
  26. Dick Lenning from Edmonton, Canada writes: Instead of bringing in foreign competition or more legislation, how about this scenario: encourage a new third party (e.g. MTS/Videotron) to buy/"win" the spectrum auction and have Apple authorise them as the first authorised distributors of iPhone. Assuming Apple exerts the same pressure on this new entity as it did on AT&T, maybe that kind of competitive pressure will force Rogers and Bell to act more reasonably.
  27. Ian Kirkland from Canada writes: Kevin Henning wrote:"Surprisingly, I saw an ad for the iPhone last night on CTV... It wasn't a bleed through of an American ad, the Apple web site at the end of the commercial was apple.ca."

    I think that was an ad for iPod Touch not iPhone. I'm sure I saw the same ad.

    Don't get your hopes up. It's going to be a long time now, and Apple, I think, is prepared to wait. Lots of other providers are will to do what it takes to have the iPhone in their countries. Not the Canadian thieves though.
  28. StopThe YellowScourge from Beijing, Canada writes:

    Commoditization of Canadian cellular - finally. Hello fixed-rate WiFi. Goodbye obscene Canadian cellular carrier profits. Time to short all Canadian cellular carriers' stock ; )
  29. Samir Akhavan from Canada writes: Rogers, car salesmen, dentists: people's least favourite..............
  30. Scott S from Kingston, ON, Canada writes: Rogers will resist lowering their data prices for as long as possible because they fear that cheap wireless data will cannibalize revenues from their home Internet business. As 3G capable network cards become more prevalent and laptop sales out-pace the sales of desktop computers, customers will choose to pay one monthly fee and have access to the Internet at high speeds without being tethered to their desk. Currently professional and "pro-sumer" users are willing to pay inflated prices because of business needs or the cool factor of having the Internet everywhere. For mass adoption of wireless data service to become a reality in this country prices must fall. This puts Rogers in a tough position. They would love to have their cake and eat it too, but Rogers can't lower the price of wireless data without losing home Internet business.
  31. Bobby Brown from Montreal, Canada writes: Let's all go down on our knees and pray to our new God: Apple. Let's give thanks for all those little gadgets that made our lives so worth living. Let's hope for even brighter future, with many many many more iThings. We'll be more then happy to pay through our noses.
  32. Tino Duong from Canada writes: Surprise, Surprise ... Canadians are paying more than everyone else.
  33. Michael Feighney from Toronto, Canada writes: From what I've been told, Roger's isn't interested in bringing in the iPhone any time soon as Apple will only allow downloads from its iTunes website. Roger's wants to use their Yahoo Music website as a source for your downloaded tunes so they can get your cash instead of letting Apple have that revenue stream. So don't hold your breath, we're not going to see an iPhone here any time soon. Also, don't forget the Comwave has a been calling their VoIP product iPhone for a couple of years, that's gonna be an a problem. So if you really want an iPhone, you're going to have to go to the States, buy one and get it unlocked. Or you could get yourself the new iPod touch ~ 8Gb @ $329(Cdn) or $299(US) ~ 16Gb @ $449(Cdn) or $399(US) iPhone ~ 8Gb @ $399(US)
  34. andy c from Canada writes: to be fair not many of the N.A (USA included) cell carriers have adopted many phones with wifi built in. they are available for purchase unlocked without contracts so the price of them are just as high as a iphone. nokia and htc make some nice handsets with wifi but because of the lack of contract be prepared to pay.
  35. True Canadian from Hamilton, Canada writes: You can buy the unlocked Iphones in places like the Pacific Mall for $550!

    Also, I would like to add Rogers sucks and their data plan is highway robbery! I was paying 42 dollars for 1 meg!!!(canceled it after couple of months)

    Also, check your bills every couple of months, there is a good chance your plan "automatically" changes to an expensive plan!
  36. Randal Oulton from Canada writes: >> Rogers many decide to follow AT&T's example

    Is the article writer implying that they many* or *many not decide?
  37. Laura Taman from Toronto, Canada writes: This will take a year or more to pan out, but the new Google phone will put more pressure on Rogers and Apple to get something going in Canada. It may also finally get Bell to adopt GSM. By 2009, the iPhone and Google phone software will be so thoroughly hacked that people will be able to use any phone on Rogers or, better, access an American carrier at local rates.
  38. K McIntyre from Oshawa, Canada writes: Scott S from Kingston wrote: "Rogers will resist lowering their data prices for as long as possible because they fear that cheap wireless data will cannibalize revenues from their home Internet business."

    I won't link to the Financial Post from this site, but google "Rim blasts Telcos for high cost of wireless" to read an interesting article on this. RIM, along with other handset manufacturers, are saying the carriers can make more money by introducing low-cost 'lite' data plans.

    The carriers are resisting for exactly the reason you say, even though carriers in Europe have been successful with such plans.
  39. frequent traveler YVR from Vancouver, Canada writes: I have been watching the iPhone with great interest and am getting close to buying one.

    The key ... have a credit card with a US address, and get a phone down there. ATT has just announced a series of flat rate international plans, starting at $25. (US, so cheap $$).

    Canadian mobile service is outrageously bad and this is yet another opportnity to follow the market and buy in $US.
  40. Spencer C from Canada writes: I find it interesting too that none of the Canadian wireless companies signed on to Google's Android open wireless platform yesterday. Gee I wonder why that is? I wonder why Canadian carriers would be averse to open standards? Hmmmm.... The cellular situation in Canada is appalling for a country that used to lead the world in telecommunications innovation, now we lag behind 3rd world countries in cell phone adoption and wireless rates. The Big # here in Canada have no desire to embrace open source standards, fair data pricing or cell phone unlocking like many of our G7 counterparts. Instead we had to drag them kicking and screaming to adopt number portability years after it was commonplace in most of the Industrial World. The Government needs to step in, either open up the market to foreign competition or allow for a subsidized spectrum auction to allow for a new national carrier to emerge. Oh and blame the Liberals for allowing the Rogers to gain a monopoly on GSM coverage in Canada by allowing them to buy Fido, what a boneheaded move.
  41. K McIntyre from Oshawa, Canada writes: @Laura Taman: "By 2009, the iPhone and Google phone software will be so thoroughly hacked that people will be able to use any phone on Rogers or, better, access an American carrier at local rates."

    You can already use an unlocked iPhone on Rogers.

    Google's 'Android' phone stack will run on a variety of phones made by other companies, and probably will sell unlocked so you can use them on any network you want.

    You can't access American carriers at local rates; they don't have any cell towers in Canada.

    Bell won't adopt GSM because it would be prohibitively expensive. It would be like scrapping their entire infrastructure and starting over.
  42. B Lam from Canada writes: Stop complaining folks. The best way to fight the cell phone carriers is to use their prepaid services at a bare minimum. Use SMS instead of voice will reduce the usage fee.
  43. Hornsworth Portswiler from otnorot, Canada writes: Rogers-Fido is worth discussing. Fido used to offer $50/month unlimited data. Slow, but unlimited makes a big difference in how you use your device. They canceled it after they joined with Rogers. They have just announced a new wireless plan, which I am very surprised the major media hasn't picked up on, which is based on a cell phone with features anyone really interested would sneer at (it was "new" over a year ago in the US market). It does have "flat rate" data, but if you are using wireless data constantly you're going to be paying hundreds of $ per month. So their attitude is very clearly on display, and Rogers-Fido ends up creating even less real competition and more confusion. Most other countries have two actually separate carriers that are based on GSM, the world standard with the most choice in devices.

    Canada is going to be trailing edge in this important area for a long time, if you want to see the future of wireless communication go (or move) elsewhere. I sincerely doubt Google's Android will have any impact at all here.

    Besides greed and wanting a captive market, the carriers are probably confused over what impact new wireless technologies will have. If they offered inexpensive flat rate wireless now that might prevent people from searching for better solutions, and a lot of their existing infrastructure is designed to be upgradeable, but sooner or later they're going to have to do another network overhaul, so they want to wait as long as possible. Yet other regions manage to deal wit this.

    It'd be nice if the Globe could do a really informative piece on the issues involved here. Maybe you could get Steve Punter to comment. ;)
  44. Go Oilers Go! from Canada writes: There is a cure for the price gouging that goes on in Canada regarding telecommunication rates. It's called competition.

    While I won't be buying an iPhone; if bringing it into our market helps lower our ridiculous rates I'm all for it.
  45. Kev Needham from Canada writes: Scott S wrote: "Rogers will resist lowering their data prices for as long as possible because they fear that cheap wireless data will cannibalize revenues from their home Internet business."

    I think Rogers is more worried about its cash cow in the data space - it's corporate Blackberry contracts. If you offer an all-you-can eat data package to consumers, you can bet the corporate customers will be quick to ask where theirs is. That'd be my fear.

    I wish our comm providers could understand the concept of lower price and higher volume, but that type of math seems hard. I'd also like to understand why we still get raped for long distance and roaming, but it's pretty obvious the answer is "because they can". I don't see that stopping any time soon, iPhone or no.
  46. Tony . from Waterloo, Canada writes:
    Open the Canadian telecommunications market NOW!

    Our protectionist telecommunications policies are so busy trying to protect a few thousand jobs at Rogers, Telus and Bell that they are costing Canada tends of thousands of jobs as EVERY OTHER company in the country is forced to spend more of their money on telecommunications then they should and therefore have LESS money to spend on hiring new staff.

    It's just plain stupid. Now if ONLY we could get a conservative government in power that actually had the faintest glimpse of competency then we might get this fixed. Sadly a competent conservative government looks like a bit of a pipe-dream at the moment.
  47. StopThe YellowScourge from PC HACKING ATTEMPT, Canada writes:

    PC HACKING ATTEMPT AFTER POSTING TO THE GLOBE AND MAIL

    FYI: Right after I made my last post this morning, my firewall alerted me to the fact that LiveUpdate (a program used by Norton Antivirus) had been modified and was now automatically attempting to contact an IP address that is registered to the Globe and Mail. This should give people on this thread cause for concern since LiveUpdate should only attempt to automatically connect to an IP address registered to Symamtec (owners of Norton Antivirus) as part of its usual updating of virus definitions.

    Carefull people - Big Brother is not only watching, he's hacking into your PC, and modifiying your programs.
  48. RD Lone from Vancouver, Canada writes: Expecting costs to be similar to everywhere else in the world is impractical for two reasons. Firstly, cell phone penetration is much lower here than elsewhere, and secondly, Canada is a huge place so you have to build way more towers to support a small population. This isn't Europe or Japan where the physical landmass is small and you can just pop up a couple towers. This is supported by profit margins for Rogers/Telus etc vs the big American companies. You would expect a massive difference, but it is not that big at all.

    Rogers will probably tell Apple to go home unless they take a soft line. They are the only GSM provider in Canada so Apple has no choice at this point but to go with them; Rogers or nobody. Is it worth cannibalizing their entire pricing structure to pick up a couple of iphone customers? Probably not. I would say Apple needs Rogers more than Rogers needs Apple. Consider that AT&T's share price has gone nowhere since they picked up the iphone, the bottom line impact is small since Apple gouges everybody. PS. Apple's profit margin is way higher than Rogers, so share the hate? I didn't think so.
  49. Adam Miller from Canada writes: Another interesting point that I haven't seen mentioned. Carriers in Europe aren't just agreeing to Apple's contract demands, but they're also rolling out EDGE data coverage in their networks. This is a standard that wasn't used in Europe as they went straight into 3G. So even more than AT&T, they're really going the extra mile to get these contracts.
  50. h w from Waterloo, Canada writes: You won't be finding Apple's iPhone on Bell or Telus' networks any time soon: they are CDMA and Apple is GSM. Rogers and Fido (one and the same) have "the universal standard " for GSM all monopoly-locked up in Canada. I really do wish an American or European company would step in and cut them off at the knees. These idiots are stifling progress with their 60$/meg/mo data plans and favouring Blackberry's proprietary product/service.
  51. Geriatric Personage from NB, Canada writes: As a matter of interest I have just watched a British report on the iphone and the feeling was that it was lacking technically and far inferior to other available products. As many have observed, if you live near the border (as I do) just get a US address (a friend?) and go to a US provider, another reason to cross border shop
  52. Jacques Shellac from Montreal, Canada writes: Incredible how much deregulation has helped consumers, eh? Nothing like a bit of competition to lower rates, and make these things cheaper for the common man ... or woman. Funny how the conservatives are mum on the effects of deregulation when it doesn't work in their favour. It's obvious that every corporation will always work to charge as much as it can to make as much money as it can. Anyone who suggests otherwise owns stock in said company and benefits from the increased rates.

    I'm not suggesting that competition is a bad thing, it isn't. What is bad is giving these companies free reign to do as they please.

    Data rates in Canada are criminal.
  53. J S from Toronto, Canada writes: Perhaps the damn thing should work on ANY network and let the person purchasing the gadget decide who they'd like thier carrier to be. This way Rogers can offer the service for more than double the competition - then they'll see if they're pricing is bloated, maybe...
  54. john k from toronto, Canada writes: Rogers data rates are obscene.

    I Browsed the web for 15 minutes while in a store to compare prices, downloaded 1.5mb of images that loaded from a regular web page, rogers bill - $61 in data charges.

    These rates will have to change eventually to offer unlimited data plans, unfortunately we are in Canada so we may catch up with the rest of the planet sometime in 2010.
  55. Smedley Backwash from Victoria, Canada writes: It's really sad to think that Canada was on the cutting edge of cell technology in the 80's and early 90's; we had the highest per capita of cell users in the world too.
    Fast forward to today... pathetic, overpriced phones and monthly service plans. Anyone I talk to is terrified to use their WAP browser due to the punitive service fees. Do you know you can get a Blackberry Pearl phone for $149 on a 3 year plan, with unlimited email and internet add on for only an extra $19/month? $60/month for the Canadian equivalent? F that!!! The exchange rate can't be blamed either.
    I hope the marketing Exec's from the Canadian cell phone co's are reading these comments to realize how discontent their customers REALLY are with the lack of competitive pricing and phone choices.
  56. Marshal Cheung from Canada writes: Hey this is the way of doing business in Canada. Apple can at least talk to Fido now if Canada government disapproved the merger - which they should! Hey, it helps Rogers and helps Canada governmen too. Higher price, higher tax. Canada way.
  57. K Ordos from Canada writes: Rogers really needs to die. Here's what you do. Order an iPhone from the US via the Apple store. Get the cheapest Roger's plan with the free crummy Nokia phone. Take the SIM card out of the Nokia, slap it in the iPhone then run the software modding tools which "unlock" the phone. Don't bother paying for a data plan, just use free wireless hotspots which are all over the place in big cities, business centers and airports. Rogers only gets their $29 a month from you for basic service, and you can still enjoy all the web benefits of the iPhone. In Europe you could never get away with selling a phone locked to a single provider. If you pay $400 for a cell phone, YOU should be able to choose your provider and not be locked into a plan.
  58. D. Clearwater from Lethbridge, AB, Canada writes: Makes me glad that I have yet to jump on the cell phone bandwagon... and after hearing all the crap people have to put up with when it comes to cell phones, carriers, etc., I think I will stick with devoting the time and money I save to other technology/entertainment choices. But I was a little surprised at the number of iPhones sold in the US... I would have thought it would be much higher by now.
  59. Kenneth Malec from Canada writes: When you have the opportunity to cancel your cell contract, do so. A few months without the system access fee for the carriers seems to be all they will understand.
  60. Hot Karl from Waterloo, Canada writes: It frustrates me to no end that Rogers has a monopoly on GSM, which means that if you need a phone that works in Canada, US, and Europe, you have no choice but to go with Rogers. And they make you pay for it. The government needs to bust open the wireless market, and let foreign carriers in. Rogers (also Telus and Bell) is pillaging the wallets of consumers and businesses in their cushy protected environment. Mobile phones are much cheaper in Europe and the US.
  61. Eric Bierman from Ottawa, Canada writes: My cellphone is with Bell Mobility right now, and has been for years, but if Rogers got the iPhone with an AT&T-like plan, I would switch immediately to Rogers. There may be many others like me, Mr Rogers.
  62. C P from Toronto, Canada writes: I have found Rogers to be a rip off and their customer service to be terrible as well. Too bad they will be getting the I Phone.
  63. d crouch from Millergrad, Canada writes: "Apple involved in intense negotiations with Rogers " How silly - the reporter has an inflated sense of rogers and the Canadian cell market. Apple has moved on months ago to bigger markets like Italy, Spain, Asia, the rest of Europe, etc. Apple is way to busy putting deals together in other countries with providers who understand and accept Apple's relationship with its customers to answer their iphones from rogers.
    By the time Apple gets around to Canada again there will other provider(s) to deal with.
  64. A J from Canada writes: You people don't know bad customer service. Try vonage: recklessly aggravating experience.

    Tried to get away from Bell for 20 years and stuck with them (land line only) after that experience.

    A J
  65. Michael Clark from Calgary, Canada writes: ROGERS will rip you off - you pay for long distance, you pay for vm, you pay for features that should be cost free.

    The ATT plan - requires you to have a $20 data plan plus whatever voice plan you already have. Rogers will not match.

    AT&T still stiffs you with the IPHONE - no discounts on your account and your number becomes an I-Number and is non transferable.

    I know all this - b/c i handled inquiries about the iphone for AT&T - thank you outsourcing
  66. i. ignatius from Mount Pleasant, Canada writes: is it possible to purchase a phone via a US carrier (ie: AT&T, Verizon, etc.) as a canadian, by giving them a US address (ie: a friend or relative in the USA), and then get a package that offers calling in Canada and USA at decent rates? that would probably still work out better, price wise, compared to Rogers, etc., esp. if the unlimited data plans apply.

    or do US carriers check into where you use your phone and detect a canuck using a yankee phone??
  67. K Kennedy from Toronto, Canada writes: The simple fact is that Canada is a small potatoes market when it comes to cell phone use. With only about half the population of France and the UK and a third of Germany's, it's no wonder Apple is biding it's time with Canada and what it represents to their bottom line.

    As far as Rogers, Telus and Bell are concerned, yes, 'tis sad that these big three rule the roost but until more competition is allowed in here as suggested the current situation will prevail. Blame the government and the CRTC in this case.
  68. K Ordos from Canada writes: Ignatius, yes you can purchase a phone in the US, say from an Apple Store. What you do is DO NOT activate it with the AT&T SIM card. You bring it back to Canada, look up the method on how to "Jailbreak" and Unlock the phone, then put in your Rogers SIM card and it works just like a normal cell phone on the Rogers network. There is no way for an American telecoms provider to determine if you're using a US phone in Canada. A phone is a phone. I used an unlocked Motorola I bought in Germany on Rogers with no problem at all. The trick is using an unlocked phone, that way you can take it anywhere you travel and just buy a sim card for the local cell provider. You're not locked into just using it with Rogers.
  69. K Kennedy from Toronto, Canada writes: K Ordos...You cannot buy the iPhone for the $399 price in the U.S. without activation on the AT&T network. Furthermore, you cannot use any feature of the iPhone, including iPod, without this activation. While you can perhaps do this with some German cell phone, I don't think you can unlock the phone without first activating on AT&T.

    What's the big deal anyways. If you really want the same features buy the iPod touch which has Wi-Fi and use it for that purpose and stick to your Blackberry for office-related stuff and emails. The idea of a cell phone and an iPod together in one unit is no big deal as Blackberry will dominate for the foreseeable future for business usage and security. Until carriers up here give in to Wi-Fi and drop data rates why not use the feature for free and cut back on your data rates with your existing carriers which add up significantly.
  70. Nathan Cool from Toronto, Canada writes: I run the Nokia N95 (mentioned in the article) on Rogers with Wifi. Works well and I don't have to use Rogers' rip-off data network. I've had it for a few months now.

    It has:
    5 MP camera
    GPS with free maps
    Exceptional screen that plays divx video
    MP3 of course
    G Wifi

    Eat it iPhone. You can keep your junk and iTunes too!
  71. Michael Karassowitsch from Nelson, BC, Canada writes: Rogers must be the most expensive wireless phone/data company in the world! So many of the big companies in Canada are not responding well at all to the market.
    If there were a choice for GSM, how long do you think Rogers' pricing would stay as complicated and as high? Not long. I'll bet their brand loyalty is next to zero.
    Less power to them!!
    MK
  72. gwgm . from Canada writes: After my friends would no longer speak to me on the horrible buzzing Treo 600 Rogers stiffed me with (but wouldn't exchange), I bought an HP 6955 from a former Rogers client, via Kijiji... and popped my Rogers chip in the HP. Best money I ever spent. And I smile at the MBs & GBs of free internet traffic (web surfing, e-mail, etc.) I get via my own WiFi wireless networks and ones left open by kind souls everywhere. Heck, I even do an end-run on Ted's phone minutes by using Mobile Skype to talk with fellow Skypers. And I listen to streaming radio shows on my phone! How many Rogers customers do that?! Windows Mobile... TomTom GPS... miniSD card/Windows Media Player for music, movies and TV shows... Camera, Voice Command hands free dialing... Bluetooth, Outlook sync... good browser, etc... this phone has it all. Needless to say Ted doesn't advertise this phone much because it allows people to do an end-run on his usurious wireless data plans. Nice to see someone write the above article.... finally. IMO, Apple won't give Ted the iPhone when the end result will be a wall of rage against one of the most beloved brands (Apple) in the world when people get their thousand dollar cell bills for sending a few dozen pictures. And you'd have to have your head checked for watching / sending video on a Rogers data plan. Apple isn't about to let Rogers' greed destroy its brand. Better to sit on the phone until Ted smartens up or competition comes to the market.
  73. J Ross from Houston, Canada writes: News flash. The iPhone works fine in Canada with no exorbitant Rogers data plan. I bought my $399 iPhone in Houston. Unlocked it for free following instructions on the internet. Brought it up to Calgary, and swapped out the AT&T SIM card for a Rogers Pay as You Go SIM card. Got to access everything the iPhone has to offer when in range of a WiFi network, and only had to pay the Rogers Pay as You go phone rates. Couldn't use the EDGE network anywhere, mind you, but that is to be expected.
  74. Eric S from Waterloo, Canada writes: I hate Rogers, I hate paying roaming charges every time I leave my area code, I hate going down to the states where long distance and roaming charges are included in their regular fees and feeling ever so envious of them.

    Bring on Google, AT&T, Verizon, Cingular, anyone who wants to provide me with service I am listening!!
  75. Matthew Peterson from Canada writes: Digital Taco--

    I think you missed the point. Apple wants to sell as many iPhones as possible in any marketplace. Rogers' rate plans conflict with its supplier's objectives.

    If the Lexus driver had to pay a premium for using the same highway that all other drivers use for less, it would interfere with their ability to sell cars.

    Two things: first, Lexus is positioning itself (it made its own strategic decision) to be a premium car. Rogers doesn't have that premium positioning with its own wireless packages. Their rates (have a look) are usurious, and unnecessarily so (there is only a marginal incremental capital expense to increasing a user's bandwidth). So lowering their rates, or consolidating them at a lower rate, wouldn't amount to much.

    Second, it would be in Roger's best interest to lower rates on iPhones if it meant that lower rates would attract more users. There is a high cost to companies in certain industries when they lose a customer (such as phone companies and banks). The iPhone would offer Rogers a way to attract customers to its service who are current customers at competitors like Bell and Telus.

    Lower rates, therefore, would benefit both Apple and Rogers... not to mention the consumer.
  76. Matthew Harper from Toronto, Canada writes: How come Loc Dao always gets the last word in this forum?
  77. Tired Ofitall from toronto, Canada writes: With regards to the potential 'solution' with the HP6955, does that also work if you subscribe to a cheap Telus or Bell cell plan?
  78. Alex Yaxmos from Canada writes: As long as people are willing to pay the higher prices, Rogers and the rest of them will continue to charge those prices.
  79. Jeff Lee from Ontario, Canada writes: k
  80. jack mendez from Toronto, Canada writes: Rogers and Bell have been gouging their customers with their made-up 'competition'.

    I hope Apple and perhaps Google forces them to change their plans.

    It's about time!
  81. Darcy McAllister from Gold Coast, Australia writes: I'm currently a few months away from moving back to Canada. Yesterday I was perusing the Canadian mobile phone providers' websites to see what sort of handsets they are currently offering. I was shocked to find that the handsets being offered are far from new could be considered sparse on features. I decided that I was comfortable with my unlocked Motorola A1200, cool phone that never has been and never will be offered in Canada. I bought this phone outright over eBay from a vendor in Hong Kong for $250AUD.

    I never put 2 and 2 together regarding why Canadian carriers were so technologically behind until I read this story. Wireless service provision in Canada stinks of oligopoly and price-fixing. I can see now that service providers profit from a popular atmosphere of ignorance and complacence. They sell phones with contracts attached to them at prices most people in the world wouldn't pay for unlocked, no-strings-attached phones. Furthermore, they sell handsets that are effectively outdated, allowing for cheaper and easier service provision, as well as larger profit margins on the handsets themselves. Finally, all of them refuse to carry handsets without WiFi technology, not a new technology on a phone, to ensure the WAP usage.

    Did it ever seem odd that Rogers is the sole GSM carrier in Canada? GSM, across the Globe, is by far the most popular network-type. Nobody else is catching onto this craze? All of the Canadian service providers are technologically behind, they all charge comparable prices and offer comparable service. Perhaps the CRTC isn't the only body that needs to examine what is currently happening in the Canadian telecommunications market these days; perhaps the anti-trust bureau should be taking a closer look as well.
  82. al reimer from vancouver, writes: rogers and fido dont have a monopoly on gsm.Telus and Bell use a different technology.Iam sure Rogers is looking at the future.Telus and bell may have to change their technology
  83. Loc Dao from Vancouver, Canada writes: It is completely bewildering and frustrating as a Rogers and Fido(Rogers owned) customer that Rogers not only maintains a monopoly on GSM technology but refuses to look at the big picture. Sure its revenue may dip with a plan similar to AT

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