Shaw Rebrands Wind Mobile to Freedom Mobile, Plots LTE Rollout

Following Shaw Communication’s $1.6 billion acquisition of Wind Mobile earlier this year, the wireless company has been rebranded as Freedom Mobile.

“As Wind Mobile, we built a strong foundation of more than a million customers,” said CEO Alek Krstajic. “And as Freedom Mobile, we are reaffirming our commitment to them and to the core principles of our business: value, transparency and fairness.”

The first move the company as making as Freedom Mobile is a big one: launching an LTE network in Toronto and Vancouver. Freedom says it will roll out LTE to other markets in 2017.

“We are now able to begin activation of our new LTE network, and are very proud to do so under our new name, which reflects what we stand for: Freedom to connect and communicate, freedom from excessive and unfair prices,” Krstajic said.

The brand features “a new look, a new tone of voice, and a friendly for-the-people approach,” while accounts and rate plans will be automatically transitioned—no customer action is required, the company says.

The Freedom Mobile LTE rate plan is available for $45 per month.

The new LTE network launches on November 27 in Toronto and Vancouver, with LTE coverage expanding to include all of the Greater Toronto Area and Greater Vancouver by Spring 2017. Ottawa, Calgary and Edmonton will join by summer, with remaining 3G coverage areas joining by the Fall.

LTE roaming will be available in the US and Canada in 2017.

“We are extremely proud and excited to be launching LTE and giving our customers a service everyone can be proud of,” said Krstajic. “We owe a debt of gratitude to our one million customers who have stood by us. We will continue on our journey to keep improving our offering and remain the most competitively priced wireless service.”

Wind Mobile Begins Nationwide Network Upgrade to Boost Data Speeds, Call Clarity