QUEBEC FIRMS JOINING IN INTERNET SERVICE
By Adnews Staff
Four companies are joining together to form what is being called the largest Internet service provider in Quebec. Operating under the name Totalnet, the new company will not only put surfers onto the Net; it will also provide things for them to see and ways for companies to sell products to them. With more than 7,000 subscribers, Totalnet will be one of the largest Internet service providers in Canada. Accent Internet, a privately owned Internet service provider in Montreal, will own two-thirds of Totalnet. Malofilms Communications of Montreal will have the other third. Malofilms produces movies, television shows, videos and multimedia programming, and distributes them around the world. Infobahn Online Services of Montreal, which provides technical support, will also be part of Totalnet. Infobahn owns 20% of Accent. Accent is currently doing newspaper and radio advertising in Montreal and Quebec City, as well as point-of-sale advertising at outlets where its Internet access software is sold. Accent president Rory Olson says Totalnet will use the same media for aggressive campaigns in all the markets it moves into. Olson is currently negotiating with a creative shop to do the advertising. A server was recently set up in Toronto and Totalnet plans to have servers in Hamilton, Ont., Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver by the end of February. Malofilm is paying $2 million to buy into Totalnet. It will roll its own Quebec City Internet service provider, Megatoon Station, into the operation. Malofilm's Megatoon Studios will provide content exclusive to the Totalnet service, such as children's programs and games, which will carry advertising. Megatoon will also design Web pages for companies that want to do business on the Internet.