Why is Canada living in the technological dark ages?
Posted by:
Adrian Corscadden in Apple, Canada, Technology
Rogers, a Canadian wireless provider, announced today that the iPhone is coming to Canada. To that, I say Duh! Rogers is the only Canadian provider with a GSM/EDGE network that could even support the iPhone. Rogers was going to be the only provider all along, which is why I think that today’s news doesn’t matter that much. It only means that Rogers and Apple have come to an official deal. Ted Rogers issued the following statement in a press releases: “We’re thrilled to announce that we have a deal with Apple to bring the iPhone to Canada later this year. We can’t tell you any more about it now, but stay tuned.” A release date is still not set, which leaves Canada pretty much at the status quo.
Well, that was a long introduction to what I really wanted to talk about. Why is Canada still in the technological dark ages? The iPhone has been out in the states for almost a year and a second generation iPhone is being readied while Canada still hasn’t got the first one yet. I am not just referring to the cell phones. Canada often gets new technology months or years after it is released. Canada still doesn’t have Amazon’s Kindle, Netflix (although we do have alternatives), and videos in the iTunes store. Another example is the recently released Livescribe smartpen. It is only available to people with a US address.
I am writing this post not to answer the above question, but to explore it because I don’t know the answer.
There are a few possible reasons. Firstly, Canada is a small market and it is not worth it for companies to market new products immediately. Also, with regards to movies and TV shows on iTunes, I am pretty sure that there are legal issues. For example, Apple doesn’t have the rights to broadcast certain shows in Canada. The third and most probable reason is that there are only a few wireless providers and they have a huge monopoly. Most of the products that Canada is lacking use cell networks and it is ultimately the Canadian telcos that prevent the release of new products in Canada.
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Good points but I think you missed a key one; some companies use canada as a dumping ground for products that aren’t being sold or are being phased out of being sold in the US.
I just don’t understand why Bell hasn’t jumped on the GSM train, I mean honestly. Fido has it, Rogers has it… what are Bell waiting for? An invitation? I’ll freakin’ send them one! In all honesty though I don’t find there to be that much of an issue getting a cell phone that isn’t available in the Canadian Market - all you have to do is go to an asian mall and get it unlocked and you can use a cell phone purchased from anywhere around the world with Rogers’ or Fido’s service. So that’s what I do
I definitely could’ve used the pulse when I was in University and I may even venture into Buffalo to get one when I go back to get my Masters.