Craig Wireless hoping to roll out MDS service in Vancouver next month
Despite asking the CRTC for a delay until the end of the year to launch its wireless cable service in British Columbia (CCR, July 18/02), Craig Wireless International Inc. says it could be up and running as early as next month. Craig Wireless CFO Darcy Kindred tells Canadian Communications Reports that the company’s number one priority is getting the digital TV service deployed, followed by Internet access this fall. He says Craig Wireless is targeting seniors in multi-unit dwellings, and would be happy if it can sign up 2,500 cable subscribers in the first year. Kindred adds that Craig has a deal with the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. to place transmitters on its tower on Mt. Seymour, and will use IPWireless to provide the Internet service. He further notes that Craig Wireless could refurbish and transfer one of two headends from its Manitoba MDS system to B.C. Failing that, Kindred says Craig is looking at feeding the video signal from its existing headend in Manitoba via fibre to B.C. For more on this story, see the July 22/02 issue of CCR affiliate publication Report on Wireless.