CANADALAND29 Dec 2022

COMMONS: Against the WIND

This episode was originally aired on December 7, 2022

WIND Mobile, now known as Freedom, was a small company that tried to break through Canada’s telecom oligopoly. It did not have an easy ride.

WIND faced numerous hurdles from regulators, it was subjected to dirty tricks from the telecom oligopoly, and was eventually sold to Shaw. But it also helped lower cell phone rates and brought in unlimited data and U.S. roaming, changing the wireless market permanently.

This is the inside story of WIND Mobile, from the people who were there.

Featured in this episode: Simon Lockie, Brice Scheschuk, Tony Clement

To learn more

“Why can’t TTC riders use their cellphones on the subway? Ask Bell, Rogers or Telus” in The Toronto Star by Lex Harvey

“Wind Mobile backer regrets Canadian launch” in CBC News

“Globalive offers $3.75-billion to buy Freedom Mobile” in The Globe and Mail by Alexandra Posadzki

Credits: Arshy Mann (Host and Producer), Jordan Cornish (Producer), Noor Azrieh (Associate Producer), André Proulx (Production Coordinator)

Additional music from Audio Network

Sponsors: Oxio, Squarespace

If you value this podcast, Support us! You’ll get premium access to all our shows ad free, including early releases and bonus content. You’ll also get our exclusive newsletter, discounts on merch, tickets to our live and virtual events, and more than anything, you’ll be a part of the solution to Canada’s journalism crisis, you’ll be keeping our work free and accessible to everybody.

You can listen ad-free on Amazon Music—included with Prime.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Det här avsnittet är hämtat från ett öppet RSS-flöde och publiceras inte av Podme. Det kan innehålla reklam.

Avsnitt(1578)

Is Doug Ford Dead in the Water?

After the Premier's meeting in PEI last week hosts San Grewal and Rahim Mohamed look at who got the media's attention, who didn't, and what strategies Premiers are using to capture the nation's intere...

29 Juli 32min

Mexico is Giving Trump What he Wants. Is it Working?

Canada's relationship with Donald Trump feels like it's one big, messy, public fight. Meanwhile, Mexico seems... strangely calm. Has President Claudia Sheinbaum figured out how to deal with Trump in a...

28 Juli 31min

Fastened to a Dying Animal: How to Survive the Collapse of the U.S. Empire

Is the American empire officially in its "dying animal" era? Author and cultural critic Stephen Marche certainly thinks so and for the first time in his career, he’s feeling downright optimistic. In S...

27 Juli 40min

Carney is Brilliantly Bullsh*tting Alberta on Energy

Decoding Carney’s climate pivot. Despite the headlines about pipelines and Carney’s offer to double oil exports to the US, Canada’s future as an energy superpower may still be clean and green. Max Faw...

24 Juli 34min

Surprise! More Trump Tariffs

After threatening to tariff Canada in response to wildfire smoke crossing the border, Trump announces 50% tariffs on a long list of products, ostensibly in response to Canada’s "discriminatory" trade ...

22 Juli 37min

Inside the Bishnoi Gang

Unsealed U.S. indictments allege that India-based organized crime networks orchestrated political assassinations, extortion schemes, and large-scale drug trafficking across North America and Europe. A...

21 Juli 37min

The Canadaland Guide to Kevin O’Leary

Kevin O'Leary is not just a rich Canadian businessman — he's a phenomenon. He's a media phenomenon both here in Canada and in the US. And he's known for one thing: being an asshole. But is he really a...

20 Juli 1h 2min

Meta's Gas-Guzzling $13 Billion Data Centre Coming to Alberta

Danielle Smith announces a $13 billion Meta data centre in Sturgeon County, Alberta, set to be the largest in Canada.In contrast to Carney’s federal A.I. strategy, which promised clean, sovereign, and...

17 Juli 34min