Public Mobile Users All Told to Buy New Phones As Telus Network Looms

public mobile

Starting in May, Public Mobile’s 220,000 customers will start to notice a change, after the company was bought out by Telus.

All Public Mobile customers will be required to purchase a new phone because their existing phones will not work on Telus’ 4G network. A spokesperson from Public Mobile said:

“On the upside, customers will immediately benefit from national coverage, faster wireless data speeds, and better phones.”

The carrier also says that existing customers will be getting a discount on new phones. For example, the Moto G will be offered for $200 off contract, as opposed to Telus’ price of $250. For many customers the switch will not be welcome because of the cost required to purchase a new phone.

Along with Wind and Mobilicity, Public Mobile operates in the Greater Toronto Area and in Montreal and is one of the three smaller wireless carriers that have an impact on the Canadian wireless industry.

The three largest carriers in Canada, Bell, Rogers, and Telus, have dominated the Canadian wireless market and the three smaller companies have struggled to keep up. Wind, Mobilicity, and Public Mobile did not compete in the 700MHz wireless spectrum auction.

Mobilicity is currently under creditor protection and they rejected a bid from Telus last year, which saw the large Canadian carrier try and buy them out.

Wind Mobile is hanging in there, but its Dutch parent company, Vimpelcom, recently wrote off the entire value of its investment in Canada.

The acquisition of Public Mobile by Telus was secured last year and pricing structure of its wireless plans have already begun changing to match those offered by Telus and the other major wireless carriers.

[via Huffington Post Canada]

P.S. - Like our news? Support the site with a coffee/beer. Or shop with our Amazon link. We use affiliate links when possible--thank you for supporting independent media.