EXPRESSVU LOOKING AT AGENCIES
By Adnews Staff
ExpressVu of Mississauga, Ont. has at least six agencies on its list and expects to hire one in the next 30 to 60 days, sales and marketing vice-president Joe Zinner told Adnews yesterday. Advertising for the digital direct-to-home satellite TV service will likely begin in about 90 days, with service starting by late October or early November - if Expressvu can get space on satellites in time. The service was originally supposed to start next month but, according to Expressvu, a delay has been caused by cable companies persuading broadcasters not to use new compression technology that would free up more space on the satellites. The company is putting together a marketing package for satellite dealers to start using in October. Created by Communitech of Toronto, the package has direct mail pieces, videos and point-of-sale materials. ExpressVu also has a new corporate logo created by Twaits & Company of Toronto: the letter "E" set in an oval circumference. The oval represents the means of delivery, the satellite dish, while the "E" is depicted by 15 skyward-pointing lines. ExpressVu is owned by Tee-Comm Electronics of Milton, Ont., BCE Inc. of Toronto and WIC Western International Communications of Vancouver. Customers will pay an initial fee of $1000, for which they will receive major Canadian networks and independent TV stations, Canadian pay-TV and specialty services, a package of 22 Canadian pay-per-view channels, the major U.S. networks and U.S. specialty services and superstations that are legally available in Canada.