“In the U.S., the AT&T iPhone plan offers 450 anytime minutes (unused minutes can be rolled over to the next month), 5000 additional night and weekend minutes, and unlimited data for $59.99. If/when the iPhone makes its way to Canada, Rogers will be the sole carrier given the absence of any competition for GSM services (unless Apple decides to wait for a much-needed fourth carrier following a set-aside for the 2008 spectrum auction, but that is a long time to wait without a guarantee of a set-aside),” Michael Geist blogs.
A comparable plan for Rogers today costs:
• 500 minutes (Canada-wide, no rollover) – $60
• 500 additional evening and weekend minutes – $25
• 500 MB of data (no unlimited data offered) – $210
Geist explains, “In other words, a plan from Rogers (Rogers plan in C$, AT&T in US$ but currencies now nearly at par) that offers less than AT&T – the Canadian version does not have unlimited data, does not offer rolled over minutes, and has only 10 percent of the night and weekend minutes – currently runs $295 per month.”
Full article here.
$295/month would be some Strange Brew, indeed. Apple would never let such a thing happen, eh?
Take off, you hosers!
“My question is if RIM can survive in Canada, why not Apple’s iPhone? Just asking the obvious question here. Surely Apple would negotiate with Rogers, which company would be severely embarrassed if their rates turn out to be several times the rates in the U.S. and everybody finds that out.”
Since RIM is a Canadian company, could this be a protective measure to favor a Canuck company?
One slim possibility is Telus’ “Mike,” which I think may actually be GSM. Very slim, though.
… is from BC.
Where is Johnny Canuck from?
Someone sits at his desk, adds up the present costs of different services, decides which company Apple will go with (I assume because Rogers is affiliated with AT&T), and voila! comes up with how much it is going to cost Canadians a month for the iPhone.
I wonder when Steve Jobs will be informed of this done deal? He’s just waiting eagerly for this information before rushing off to Ottawa to launch the iPhone in Canada!
That’s why I’m glad as hell the iPhone has Wifi! I have Nokia E61 with WiFi right now. Other than checking email occasionally using GPRS data, I won’t bother trying to surf the web unless I have access to a Wifi hotspot.
But I pay $25/month for 400 weekday minutes and unlimited evenings/weekends including voicemail, call display and call waiting. It’s a group discounted plan, I think regular price is about $35/month. Sure, not exactly the same as the AT&T plan, but not too far off. Data of course is another matter altogether. I think I pay about $5 extra for 10MB of data and 200 sms messages. I’d pay up to $30/month for unlimited data and sms if they offered it.
Rogers coverage and reception is excellent in Ontario and Quebec.
I switched to Roger’s from Bell and previously from Telus about two years ago. Their rate plans are competitive with the others up here and their coverage good and bad depending on where you are (just like all the others.)
Give the wireless companies in Canada a bit of a break. Canada is the second largest country in the world and our whole population is less than New York State. And our land-line infrastructure is pretty amazing considering the above, unlike the other side of the world where they are leap-frogging to wireless.
BustingTheSkullsOfIdiots: People don’t educate themselves. That is a big problem. I refer them ot two Nobel Prize winning economists: Milton Freedman and Friedrich Hayek.
All of the Free Market Deniers ought to move to Canada and get their heads examined, that is after they get on a six-month waiting list.
Rogers will tell you its expensive to operate a sparsely populated network. No one is rocking the boat ’cause high tide (prices) lifts all boats (corporate profits). Telus, Bell, Rogers are criminal in their charges to customers.
We would love for Apple to become a Telco in Canuck land. At least they would make you enjoy the experience.
When you think of Telco’s lacking innovation you can start here. My 283 minute bill was $111.96 on Bell last month. Long Distance charges – $1.20 That averages $.39 cpm all charges and fees in.
Who freed Milton? Why were we not informed?
Is this a fact? or is it rumuor…..
@ Abdullah,
2% Camel’s Milk is not Camel’s Milk, It is Camel Milk Flavoured Water! I don’t do that…..
Your Glass of Cold Camel’s Milk has been revoked!!!
Wait a second. I thought only American companies could be complete bastards. What, no socialized wireless plans ? How barbaric. Oh, right people will wait two years for a hip replacement but not a cell phone. Why, it smacks of capitalism!
And government deregulation of energy companies has worked so well in the States.
MDN word: growing
My electric bill keeps growing and growing and growing.
@Camel’s Milk Drinker
Sheesh! All I wanted was to take the camel out of the milk, you Free Market Denier! I prefer my Camels powdered.
no iphone, BUT we do have health-care and gun-control
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Johnny Canuck is from Lotus Land.
I currently own a Roger’s phone and they charge me 5¢ per kilobyte to browse – needless to say I never use the internet as it is way too expensive. As a Canadian this is one unfortunate reality I’ll have to consider before buying an iPhone. Roger’s Wireless is a very greedy bloodsucker and they just may charge so much for usage that the iPhone would essentially be useless unless they upgrade it and add iChat via WiFi. Apple has no say in Canada and our CRTC (like the FCC in the US) is the main culprit that allows them to operate non-competitively as monopolies so they can charge whatever outlandish prices they want.
Rogers prices do indeed suck, but so do all of the “first tier” Canadian offerings – Bell, Telus, Rogers. And I’ve heard horror stories on all of them regarding customer ‘service’.
You need to look into the “mass market” plans, – Solo, especially (GSM based, Rogers purchased) Fido.
I have nationwide, unlimited Fido to Fido, unlimited evenings and weekends, 150 daytime minutes (because that’s all I use – I can get more if I pay more) for $30/month. Every time I’ve phoned them for customer service, I’ve been happy, amazingly.
Yes, Fido’s rollover was discontinued before Rogers bought them, which sucks.
Data in general sucks badly but the (now discontinued) hiptop – another highly data intensive device was only $20/month unlimited data at Fido. Solo (Bell’s mass market brand) also has unlimited data but a sucky phone selection, last I checked.
So, it depends on the phone, brand and plan – do your homework.
Now if Rogers only gives the iPhone to its Rogers brand, Steve will insist they import Fido/AT&T style pricing, I’m sure. In a showdown, I know who I’ll bet on…
Also check the blackberry rates – cheaper data, again, depending on the carrier.
I just love the negative B.S. on the iPhone – the iPhone is so good, the B.S. is really easy to spot. Almost as easy to spot as Universal Health Care B.S….
Say, I’ve got a great idea – privatized Fire Departments – with deluxe and entry level plans (choice is good, after all), such that the total bill is double, and 20% won’t be serviced at all…
(couldn’t resist)
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The service plan rates for iPhone from AT&T were also going to be sky-high… until it wasn’t. Just more FUD.
easy fix, CDMA version of the phone. no biggy, Palm and RIM have GSM and CDMA versions. come on Apple, make what the people want.
@Jonny Canuck:
I’m a Fido customer. As soon as Rogers took over, 2 things happened: Customer service deteriorated, but coverage improved.
I don’t know how long Fido will continue to exist as a subsidiary, as it is likely to be totally absorbed by Rogers. However, should Apple decide to go to Fido (unlikely), things might change. It’s a message to Rogers that says: “That part of your company we like, the rest sucks”.
I think Apple would be better off forming their own subsidiary MNVO (Mobile Network Vertual Operator), renting spectrum from Rogers, Bell or Telus. Apple would then teach us what a mobile company should be like, just as Apple is teaching us what a phone should be like.
correction of MDN:
$295/month would be some Strange Brew, eh? Apple would never let such a thing happen.
I dunno very well about all those networks but Bell does offer gsm too and they will have much more gsm phones in the end of the year. Also, a Bell Mobility supervisor told me today that there’s rumors about a Bell iPhone (or nano iPhone ??). So, maybe we’ll be surprise…
“I dunno very well about all those networks but Bell does offer gsm too and they will have much more gsm phones in the end of the year. Also, a Bell Mobility supervisor told me today that there’s rumors about a Bell iPhone (or nano iPhone ??). So, maybe we’ll be surprise.
huh? I don’t see any mention of GSM in the link.
Supporting GSM (the iPhone digital standard, so far) and CDMA (the other digital standard, the one Bell uses) would mean massive costs, so this seems unlikely.
Now another possibility is that Apple will bring out a CDMA phone for Japan (where GSM isn’t used) and sell that to Bell, if Rogers doesn’t play ball. It will be a 3g iPhone, also, surely (Japan has an advanced 3g network), which will ease the pain of being forced to wait.
Only problem is that 3g in Canada is even worse than in the U.S. It would send a wakeup call to AT&T on their crappy network tho.