Bell Canada expands VDSL television service into Montreal, Ottawa markets

Bell Canada is quietly in the process of rolling out its VDSL television service in multiple-unit dwellings (MUDs) in Montreal and Ottawa. The TV service delivered over broadband was piloted last year in the Toronto market, where it is currently being bundled with the company’s Sympatico high-speed Internet offering. "We’re not going to be giving specifics on which buildings and when the service will be rolled out for obvious competitive reasons," says Steve Smith, senior VP of consumer marketing, video and ISP at Bell Canada. Smith says that the goal is to be offering the service to 300 MUDs in the three cities by year-end. For competitive reasons, he would not provide any details on how many Toronto MUD residents have signed up so far for the service. Because Bell’s TV service offered over VDSL contains the same programming as that offered via its direct-to-home (DTH) satellite television distributor Bell ExpressVu LP, the VDSL TV subscribers are reported in ExpressVu’s subscriber numbers. Smith sees VDSL as a way to cost-effectively service the MUD market. "We see the way that VDSL has evolved as a terrific way of serving the multiple-dwelling units, and obviously focused in the urban areas, specifically in Toronto where you’ve got a significant percentage of people who live in multiple-dwelling units," he tells Canadian Communications Reports. "VDSL provides an elegant way of providing both Internet and television in one simple bundle. VDSL is a real enabling technology." Bell Canada’s lead VDSL bundle combines ExpressVu programming with Sympatico basic Internet service and a digital terminal that can support up to three TV sets in a housing unit for $55.95 a month. Smith says offering the ExpressVu programming via VDSL in MUDs will provide consumers with another choice in their entertainment purchases. "It’s a market predominately served by the cable companies. There is a little bit of penetration by some of the other satellite companies, such as Look TV. So the message here is that it’s all about choice. Customers watching analog cable have a better alternative in digital television - which is the VDSL offering of ExpressVu programming," he says. But the MUD market, especially that in Toronto, has proved a difficult market to crack. Last July, Bell ExpressVu filed a complaint with the CRTC, accusing Rogers Cable Inc. of a litany of anti-competitive practices in protecting its hold on delivering TV service to MUDs in Toronto (CCR, July 31/03). The CRTC has asked both parties for clarification on the matter in interrogatories, but has yet to rule on the complaint. In filing the complaint, Bell ExpressVu indicated to the regulator that it had only managed to acquire 10,000 MUD customers in Toronto despite expending "considerable effort" in trying to break into the market. CCR has also learned that Bell Canada has filed an application for a licence for a wireline TV service, which is expected to be gazetted soon. If the wireline licence is approved, Bell would build on the VDSL technology and use it to expand to other communities, such as new subdivisions. The wireline application to use VDSL technology to service customers outside the MUD market is necessary because the CRTC indicated when it gave Bell Canada the clearance to use the technology it was only applicable to multiple-unit dwellings. But Smith doesn’t believe Bell Canada’s expansion of its VDSL TV service will take away from potential dish customers to ExpressVu. "It’s cheaper to do that (use VDSL) obviously than if you had 150 units in a building and put 150 dishes on it," he notes. "The satellite service has worked wonderfully in urban areas as well. But the way we look at it is: Will the technology get me to the house, whether it’s a single family or multiple- dwelling unit? The technology is the delivery method. We think the combination of both DTH and VDSL and carrier technologies will allow ExpressVu programming to grow the market because more customers will have (Bell) alternatives to chose from." A subsidiary of Manitoba Telecom Services Inc., which has launched a VDSL television service in Winnipeg (CCR, Dec. 19/01), is getting its equipment from California-based Next Level Communications, as is Bell Canada (CCR, March 13/03). Smith says that Bell Canada plans to add new services such as personal video recorders (PVRs), video-on-demand (VOD) and high-definition (HD) channels to its VDSL television offering. He would not give target dates for the rollout of VOD, but expects some HD channels to be offered by next spring. "The customer is going to demand these things. They are going to want that level of service," he says, adding that he sees no hurdles to offering the new services due to bandwidth constraints. "Right now, we’ve got the compression to provide the capability (for these offerings). We’ll be looking to compress more to get even more services, but that’s the future," he states.

Bell Canada expands VDSL television service into Montreal, Ottawa markets

Broadcast | February 27, 2004

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