Originally established as Manitoba Government Telephones after the Government of Manitoba purchased the Manitoba assets of Bell Canada, the corporation was privatized in 1996. On March 17, 2017, Bell regained control of MTS after the Bell Canada group's holding company BCE Inc. closed its $3.9 billion acquisition of the provider and, for regulatory reasons, Bell divested approximately one third of MTS's wireless business (including subscribers and retail outlets) to Telus, and a smaller portion to the new entrant Xplornet. Under Bell ownership, Bell MTS will serve as the headquarters of Bell's telecom businesses in western Canada.
One of the first two telephone subscribers in Manitoba was Winnipeg businessman James Henry Ashdown in 1881.[1]
Early 20th Century
MTS is the descendant company of Manitoba Government Telephones, which went into operation in January 1908 after the government of Manitoba bought Bell Canada's Manitoba operations.[2] The Crown corporation became Manitoba Telephone System in 1921, and eventually took over all private telephone operations in the province.
1940s
MTS announced in late 1947 that it would modernize its long-distance equipment in both Winnipeg and Brandon, using Siemens Brothers Ltd. switching equipment,[1] to better handle routing of automatic dialing of long-distance calls by telephone operators using the currently known Area Code system.[1] To accomplish this, MTS needed to expand its Corydon Ave. long-distance switching centre by adding four additional storeys to the building.[1] Initial communities to be set up with the new long-distance hardware included Boissevain, Deloraine, Dauphin, Kenton, Melita, Waskada, Lyleton, Tilston, Portage la Prairie, Pierson.[1]
A trial of Mobile radio-telephone service, a technology that was developed by AT&T, took place early in 1948. An earlier trial of wireless telephone service was conducted in northern Manitoba mining towns.[which?]
Also in the late 1950s, MTS located one of its administrative offices on Empress St. near the newly opened Polo Park Shopping Centre complex. In 2000 these employees were moved to 333 Main St., commonly known as MTS Place, where 1,500 employees now work.[4] This formed part of the Province's Downtown First strategy.[5]
1970s
In the late 1970s, similar to policy changes implemented by AT&T in the U.S., MTS allowed its customers to purchase their own telephone equipment and with this, provided free installation of RJ11 telephone jacks.
In July 1979, MTS announced that it would be a pioneer in Telidon-based two-way electronic information services. The trial was called "Project IDA" and ran from 1980 to 1981.[6][7][8]
1980s
MTS was a pioneer in offering videotex at the commercial level. In 1981, it partnered with Infomart (then owned by the Torstar and Southam newspaper chains) to create the Grassroots service, providing information relevant to farmers on the Canadian prairies. Customers paid $47.50 per month to subscribe to Grassroots, plus connection fees to DATAPAC. Terminal equipment was manufactured by Norpak.
They opened MTS Phone Centre stores in shopping malls to sell residential and business phones and services, and in 1984 opened two MTS Business Centre locations (Commodity Exchange Tower lobby and Empress St. office) to provide sales of business-level equipment.
In the mid-1980s, MTS started a subsidiary known as MTX, which had invested in telecommunications in Saudi Arabia. However MTX was forced to shut down after controversy about the company back in Manitoba after MTX lost $27 million on the venture.[9][10][11][12]
In the late 1980s MTS launched MTS Mobility providing cellular and paging services in Manitoba[13] after competitor Cantel was allowed to set up the cellular radio infrastructure and market the service before MTS.[14]
1990s
In 1996, the Provincial government of Premier Gary Filmon decided to sell the Manitoba Telephone System to private shareholders. The decision to privatize was seen as controversial, as it marked a significant departure from the Progressive Conservatives' earlier position that MTS should remain provincially owned.[15]
In January 1999, MTS partnered with Bell Canada to form Intrigna, a Competitive Local Exchange Carrier (CLEC) which was created to expand telecommunications options for the business market in Alberta and British Columbia. As part of the deal, Bell Canada gained 20% ownership of MTS. They set up a jointly operated office in Calgary. By the summer of 1999, fibre optic cable had been laid in Edmonton and Calgary, and later extended to Vancouver, British Columbia.[16]
In August 1999, MTS completed work on a new trunked (digital) radio system known as FleetNet 800, technology licensed from neighbouring SaskTel.[16]
In the Fall of 1999, MTS began to offer DSL high-speed Internet service in Winnipeg and Brandon, which later expanded to other areas of the province.[16]
The CRTC met with the various telecommunications providers in Canada and required of them to implement a Service Improvement Plan (SIP). This meant that MTS had to improve service to northern remote areas that even by the 21st century had poor quality phone service. Customers in northern Manitoba complained that the microwave system could not handle data communications (modem, fax) well. This, as well as the collapse of a microwave relay tower linking Churchill in early January 2000, lead MTS to initiate upgrades to the Radisson-Churchill corridor with fibre optics and the Lynn Lake-Thompson corridor with a digital microwave system to replace the outdated equipment.[17] Cellular telephone service is currently available to 98% of population in the province.
In 2003, MTS purchased the naming rights for the True North Centre in downtown Winnipeg, renaming it the MTS Centre. The 10-year deal between True North Sports & Entertainment and MTS, which was MTS's single largest advertising expenditure, was extended when the arena became a National Hockey League venue in 2011.[18]
In February 2004, MTS sold its 40% stake in Intrigna to Bell Canada for $230 million.[19]
MTSAllstream Logo 2004
In April 2004, MTS acquired Allstream,[20] the successor to the transcontinental railways' telegraph businesses. It renamed the main subsidiary to MTS Allstream Inc. until 2012, when it was split as MTS Inc. and Allstream Inc.
Manitoba Telecom Services logo used until BCE acquisition in 2017.
On March 31, 2011 MTS officially launched a HSPA+ wireless network along with the availability Apple's iPhone series of smartphones starting with the iPhone 4. The wireless network had claims it would provide data speeds up to 21Mbit/s.[21] In September 2012, MTS launched LTE, with it initially rolling out in the cities of Winnipeg and Brandon.
MTS' older CDMA network continues to work with CDMA handsets. According to the MTS website, MTS plans on shutting down its CDMA service by the end of 2016.[22]
In May 2013, Allstream was to be sold to Accelero Capital, with the deal expected to close by the end of the year.[23] However, on October 7, 2013, the Canadian government blocked the sale over national security concerns, declining to mention the specific concerns.[24]
In November 2014, Jay A. Forbes was appointed as CEO effective January 1, 2015.[25][26][27]
On November 23, 2015 it was announced that Allstream Inc would be sold to Zayo Group in a cash transaction deal worth $465 million.[28]
Acquisition by Bell
On May 2, 2016, BCE Inc. announced that it would acquire MTS in a $3.9 billion all-stock deal, paying $40 per-share and assuming $800 million in debt. Following the closure of this purchase pending regulatory approval, the company will operate as Bell MTS, a subsidiary of Bell Canada; the acquisition was expected to be closed in late-2016 to early 2017. Bell committed to investing $1 billion over five years into expanding broadband service in Manitoba, and upgrading MTS's infrastructure to support new services, including Bell Fibe and LTE-Advanced. Bell will also base its Western Canadian operations out of Bell MTS in Winnipeg, increasing its staff to 6,900 employees. As a condition of the sale, Bell agreed to divest one-third of MTS Mobility's wireless subscribers and MTS retail locations to Telus; the divestment aimed to give the three national carriers (Bell, Rogers, and Telus) a roughly equal market share in Manitoba.[29][30][31][28]
The deal faced criticism for the possibility that it would result in a higher cost of services. Due to the market positioning of MTS as a fourth major wireless carrier in the region, the three major national carriers have historically offered lower prices in Manitoba to remain competitive. As such, with the removal of a competitor, there would no longer be an incentive to do so.[29][28][30] A similar business climate exists in Saskatchewan, where the three national carriers must compete against the dominant, government-owned regional carrier SaskTel.[29] A survey by the Angus Reid Institute found that 61% of those surveyed moderately or strongly disapproved of the deal.[32]
On December 20, 2016, the CRTC approved the sale of MTS's broadcast distribution undertakings to Bell.[33] On February 15, 2017, the deal was approved by the Competition Bureau and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada. To relieve concerns over the reduction of wireless competition in Manitoba post-merger, Bell additionally agreed to divest 24,700 customers, 6 retail locations, and wireless spectrum to rural internet provider Xplornet so it may launch its own competing wireless business. Bell will provide Xplornet with "expedited access" to its towers for five years, as well as roaming and handset stock. This aspect of the deal will maintain the presence of four competing wireless providers in Manitoba, with the fourth being a new entrant to the market.[34][35]
The acquisition closed on March 17, 2017; at this time, Dan McKeen (who led the integration of Bell Aliant into the company's national operations) was installed as the new head of the division, replacing the outgoing Jay Forbes. Along with the closure of the deal, Bell launched LTE service in Churchill, Manitoba.[36] Bell stated that it intended to maintain MTS's existing wireless pricing structure for at least a year after the closure of the acquisition.[35] Rates for all other Bell MTS services were raised in September 2017.[37] The MTS Centre was renamed to Bell MTS Place on May 30, 2017, following Bell Canada’s acquisition of MTS.[38]
In October 2018, Bell MTS began to integrate its wireless subscribers into the national Bell Mobility business.[39]
In late August 2019, BellMTS announced that it will no longer serve some rural communities with wireless Internet service via the "rural Internet program" because of a decrease in wholesale fees mandated by the CRTC.[40]
The administration offices are located at 333 Main St. in Winnipeg, in the former Bank of Montreal Building. The complex is now known as MTS Place.
The MTS Long Distance Gateway is located in the J.F. Mills Building on Corydon Avenue near what is locally known as Confusion Corner. One of its functions is to transmit local television signals from Winnipeg to retransmitters throughout the province. However, since 2011 MTS no longer transmits CBC television and Radio-Canada television signals by satellite and since no longer performs this function for CTV as satellites and fibre-optic technologies have replaced. Bell MTS is the former naming rights holder of a venue in Winnipeg, the Bell MTS Iceplex.
Services
Fibe TV
Bell MTS operates an IPTV service, Bell MTS Fibe TV (formerly MTS Ultimate TV), which is available in Brandon, Carberry, Dauphin, Killarney, Minnedosa, Neepawa, Oakbank, Portage la Prairie, Selkirk, Steinbach, The Pas, Thompson, and Winnipeg. The service launched in 2009 and is based on Ericsson Mediaroom middleware.[42]MTS Classic TV was the company's legacy digital television service; it was discontinued in 2015 due to its incompatibility with Alert Ready.[43][44] The service was updated and rebranded as Fibe TV in November 2017 (unifying it with the Fibe TV-branded services it offers in the Atlantic and Ontario), adding new features such as "Restart".[45]
Cable TV
Bell MTS also offers cable television service in Carman, Holland, Manitou, Miami, Morris, Notre Dame de Lourdes, Plum Coulee, St. Claude, St. Jean Baptiste, Treherne, Altona, Morden, and Winkler.[46]
See also
Bell Aliant, a similar subsidiary in Atlantic Canada
Bell Canada is a Canadian telecommunications company headquartered at 1 Carrefour Alexander-Graham-Bell in the borough of Verdun, Quebec, in Canada. It is an ILEC in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec; as such, it was a founding member of the Stentor Alliance. It is also a CLEC for enterprise customers in the western provinces.
BCE Inc., an abbreviation of its full name Bell Canada Enterprises Inc., is a publicly traded Canadian holding company for Bell Canada, which includes telecommunications providers and various mass media assets under its subsidiary Bell Media Inc. Founded through a corporate reorganization in 1983, when Bell Canada, Northern Telecom, and other related companies all became subsidiaries of Bell Canada Enterprises Inc., it is one of Canada's largest corporations. The company is headquartered at 1 Carrefour Alexander-Graham-Bell in the Verdun borough of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Bell Mobility Inc. is a Canadian wireless network operator and the division of Bell Canada which offers wireless services across Canada. It operates networks using LTE and HSPA+ on its mainstream networks. Bell Mobility is the third-largest wireless carrier in Canada, with 10.1 million subscribers as of Q3 2020.
Bell Media Inc. is a Canadian media conglomerate that is the mass media subsidiary of BCE Inc.. Its operations include national television broadcasting and production, radio broadcasting, digital media and Internet properties.
Bell Aliant is a brand name used by Bell Canada for telecommunications services in Atlantic Canada.
Super Écran is a Canadian premium television network owned by Bell Media. It airs a mix of commercial-free films and television series. Films are primarily sourced from the United States and Canada, while the television series mostly consist of original series and programs from HBO and Showtime in the United States.
Shaw Communications Inc. was a Canadian telecommunications company which provided telephone, Internet, television, and mobile services. The company was founded in 1966 as Capital Cable Television Company, Ltd. by JR Shaw in Edmonton. The company was acquired by and amalgamated into Rogers Communications in 2023; most operations were rebranded to the Rogers brand beginning in July of that year.
Télébec LP is a telephone company located in the province of Quebec in Canada. It serves various sectors like the James Bay territory area, the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region, parts of central and southern Quebec and parts of the Outaouais region.
Saskatchewan Telecommunications Holding Corporation, operating as SaskTel, is a Canadian crown-owned telecommunications firm based in the province of Saskatchewan. Owned by the provincial government, it provides wireline and wireless communications services, including landline telephone, mobile networks, broadband internet, IPTV, and security services. Through a subsidiary, SaskTel International, the company has also worked on telecom infrastructure projects in countries such as Argentina and the Bahamas, as well as being the lead implementation company for the communication and control systems of the Channel Tunnel between England and France.
Bragg Communications Inc., doing business as Eastlink, is a Canadian cable television and telecommunications company. The privately held company was founded in Nova Scotia in 1969 by the Bragg family, and has grown since through the amalgamation of several telecommunications companies.
Allstream is a business communications provider based in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, that provides Internet Protocol (IP) connectivity, managed IP services, unified communications and voice services to its customers in the United States and Canada.
The Stentor Alliance was a formal alliance of Canada's major telecommunications companies, specifically its incumbent local exchange carriers. It derives its name from the Greek mythological figure Stentor.
Ontera is a telecommunications company in Ontario, Canada and a subsidiary of Bell Aliant. It provides local telephone service in the Northern Ontario towns of Bear Island, Iroquois Falls, Marten River, Moosonee, Moose Factory and Temagami, and also offers long-distance services in most of area code 705.
Dryden Municipal Telephone System (DMTS) is a formerly-municipally owned telephone company in Dryden, Ontario, Canada, offering local residential and business land line service within Dryden, long-distance service to Dryden and surrounding areas.
Island Telecom Inc. was a Canadian internet service provider in Prince Edward Island. Its headquarters is located in Summerside.
Iristel is a Canadian provider of telecommunication services that is a competitive local exchange carrier (CLEC). The company was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Markham, Ontario.
Freedom Mobile Inc. is a Canadian wireless telecommunications provider owned by Quebecor. It has 6% market share of the Canadian wireless market, mostly in urban areas of Ontario, British Columbia and Alberta. Freedom Mobile is the fourth-largest wireless carrier in Canada, with 2,290,497 subscribers as of November 30, 2022.
TV1 is a group of community channels operated by Bell Canada's Fibe TV and FibreOP TV services and are exclusive to those services.
Xplore Inc. is a Woodstock, New Brunswick-based rural internet service provider. It is the largest rural focused broadband service provider in Canada.
References
1 2 3 4 5 "Big Telephone Expansion Plans Now Under Way". Winnipeg Free Press. September 17, 1947. p.3.
↑ "The Telephone Deal". The Winnipeg Tribune. January 2, 1908. p.4.
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