Wind Mobile has reached the West Coast by starting service in Vancouver on Thursday, the fifth city in the startup's network.The others are Toronto, Ottawa, Calgary and Edmonton.
There are three company stores in the Vancouver area, one in trendy Yaletown, another in suburban Kitsilano and the third in the Park Royal Shopping Centre. In addition there are kiosks in seven Blockbuster video rental stores.
“A new day in wireless is here in Vancouver,” Anthony Lacavera, Wind Mobile chair said in a news release. “We’ve been working to build an entirely new wireless experience in Canada, one city at a time, by listening to Canadians. We’ve been using their feedback, suggestions and ideas to give Canadians what they want from wireless and are the only wireless provider in Canada giving our customers total control and freedom.”
Also on Thursday another startup, Mobilicity, opened what it calls a customizable mobile download store so subscribers can personalize the “digital skins” of their handsets. The Mobilicity Content Platform sells games, ringtones and wallpapers from the music industry’s Top 40 plus Asian and Bollywood pop stars. Debut featured artists include Katy Perry, B.o.B, Jason Derulo, T.I., Charice, Khalil Fong, and favourites from the new Bollywood blockbuster Kites. Purchases are paid for from a pay-per-use depository called My Wallet.
“We searched the world for great content to make our customers’ wireless experience more meaningful and enjoyable, based on their individual tastes or backgrounds.” Mobilicity CEO Dave Dobbin said in a news release.