Sprint Canada
Encyclopedia
Sprint Canada was a Canadian
telecommunication
s service provider from 1993 to 2005, when was acquired by Rogers Communications
. Sprint offered both residential and business services. It was a key company in the long distance wars of Canada.
for all of its services. The home phone, long distance and Internet services each had a $4.25 fee, while the Sprint and Fido bundles have a $6.95 fee. For clarity purposes, prices stated in this article already include such fees.
's monopoly.
address. For an additional $3, one could upgrade to "THE MOST online XTRA", which included Internet call waiting
and four additional email addresses. This allowed the customer to answer calls while surfing online.
. It consisted of bundling Sprint Canada's landline phone service with Fido's wireless phone service. Sprint's long distance plans could be used on either or both phones, but Fido month minutes would be deducted for any calls made on the Fido phone.
Two monthly plans were offered, with different allowances for local wireless minutes:
Daytime minutes could be used from Monday to Friday between 8 AM and 7 PM. Evenings and weekend minutes could be used at any time on Saturdays and Sundays. From Monday to Friday, they could only be used between midnight and 8 AM, plus between 7 PM and midnight. If a customer has any unused minutes at the end of a month, they cannot be carried over to the next month.
All plans included call waiting
, conference call
and 1000 call forwarding
minutes. In addition, customers could add two extra calling features at no cost: Caller ID
, voicemail
, or 50 sent SMS
to Canada and the USA. All features can be obtained for $3/month
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
telecommunication
Telecommunication
Telecommunication is the transmission of information over significant distances to communicate. In earlier times, telecommunications involved the use of visual signals, such as beacons, smoke signals, semaphore telegraphs, signal flags, and optical heliographs, or audio messages via coded...
s service provider from 1993 to 2005, when was acquired by Rogers Communications
Rogers Communications
Rogers Communications Inc. is one of Canada's largest communications companies, particularly in the field of wireless communications, cable television, home phone and internet with additional telecommunications and mass media assets...
. Sprint offered both residential and business services. It was a key company in the long distance wars of Canada.
Services
Sprint Canada charged a system access feeSystem access fee
The System access fee is a non-governmental surcharge imposed by most Canadian telephone companies on their customers' monthly bills . Although it is normally charged for wireless services, Rogers Communications and the now-defunct Sprint Canada also charged its home phone customers a System Access...
for all of its services. The home phone, long distance and Internet services each had a $4.25 fee, while the Sprint and Fido bundles have a $6.95 fee. For clarity purposes, prices stated in this article already include such fees.
Long distance
Sprint Canada's flagship product was its long distance. It was available both for landline and mobile phones. The rates at the time were very competitive and challenged Bell CanadaBell Canada
Bell Canada is a major Canadian telecommunications company. Including its subsidiaries such as Bell Aliant, Northwestel, Télébec, and NorthernTel, it is the incumbent local exchange carrier for telephone and DSL Internet services in most of Canada east of Manitoba and in the northern territories,...
's monopoly.
Internet access
Multiple dial-up Internet access options were available for Sprint Canada customers. Both time-limited and unlimited plans were available. "THE MOST online Basic Unlimited" had a cost of $23.20 per month and included a single emailEmail
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
address. For an additional $3, one could upgrade to "THE MOST online XTRA", which included Internet call waiting
Call waiting
Call waiting , in telephony, is a feature on some telephone networks. If a calling party places a call to a called party which is otherwise engaged, and the called party has the call waiting feature enabled, the called party is able to suspend the current telephone call and switch to the new...
and four additional email addresses. This allowed the customer to answer calls while surfing online.
Wireless phone
Sprint Canada had a partnership with Fido SolutionsFido Solutions
Fido Solutions is a Canadian cellular telephone service provider currently owned by Rogers Communications. It was formerly owned by Microcell Telecommunications. Fido does, however, remain a separate entity from Rogers...
. It consisted of bundling Sprint Canada's landline phone service with Fido's wireless phone service. Sprint's long distance plans could be used on either or both phones, but Fido month minutes would be deducted for any calls made on the Fido phone.
Two monthly plans were offered, with different allowances for local wireless minutes:
- $51.90 for 150 anytime minutes
- $63.90 for 150 daytime minutes and 1000 evening and weekend minutes
- $71.90 for 300 daytime minutes and 1000 evening and weekend minutes
Daytime minutes could be used from Monday to Friday between 8 AM and 7 PM. Evenings and weekend minutes could be used at any time on Saturdays and Sundays. From Monday to Friday, they could only be used between midnight and 8 AM, plus between 7 PM and midnight. If a customer has any unused minutes at the end of a month, they cannot be carried over to the next month.
All plans included call waiting
Call waiting
Call waiting , in telephony, is a feature on some telephone networks. If a calling party places a call to a called party which is otherwise engaged, and the called party has the call waiting feature enabled, the called party is able to suspend the current telephone call and switch to the new...
, conference call
Conference call
A conference call is a telephone call in which the calling party wishes to have more than one called party listen in to the audio portion of the call. The conference calls may be designed to allow the called party to participate during the call, or the call may be set up so that the called party...
and 1000 call forwarding
Call forwarding
Call forwarding , in telephony, is a feature on some telephone networks allowing an incoming call to a called party to be redirected to a third party. For example, the third party may be a mobile telephone, voicemail box or other telephone number where the desired called party is situated. It was...
minutes. In addition, customers could add two extra calling features at no cost: Caller ID
Caller ID
Caller ID , also called calling line identification or calling number identification or Calling Line Identification Presentation , is a telephone service, available in analog and digital phone systems and most Voice over Internet Protocol applications, that transmits a caller's number to...
, voicemail
Voicemail
Voicemail is a computer based system that allows users and subscribers to exchange personal voice messages; to select and deliver voice information; and to process transactions relating to individuals, organizations, products and services, using an ordinary telephone...
, or 50 sent SMS
SMS
SMS is a form of text messaging communication on phones and mobile phones. The terms SMS or sms may also refer to:- Computer hardware :...
to Canada and the USA. All features can be obtained for $3/month
External links
- Sprint Canada website (December 28, 2004, from the Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
)