Virgin Plus

Virgin Plus is a Canadian provider of postpaid and prepaid wireless voice, text and data communications services throughout Canada. They also offer home Internet and TV services in select areas of Ontario and Quebec. Launched as Virgin Mobile Canada on March 1, 2005, as a joint venture between Virgin Group and BCE Inc., BCE took sole ownership on July 1, 2009, when it closed a deal to purchase the stake it did not already own. Virgin Plus calls its customers 'Members' and offers a Member Benefits program, which provides its customers with special offers, discounts, and VIP experiences.

The VirginMobile.ca domain name was registered by Virgin Enterprises Limited on July 4, 2003, with the Canadian Internet Registration Authority. When accessed, it displayed a domain parking page until June 14, 2004, when it was replaced with an announcement. There were also links to information about the company, related news articles, and career opportunities. Virgin Mobile claimed: "we work like maniacs to bring you Canada’s most awesome mobile phone company."

Virgin Mobile launched in Canada on March 1, 2005, as a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) using the Bell Mobility network. At the time, Virgin Mobile was operating solely as a prepaid service. The company's website showcased several feature phones it offered, and advertised itself as a "no catch" mobile operator. Virgin Mobile Canada was the first mobile carrier in Canada to launch without a system access fee. The company's “no catch” campaign at launch featured cheeky advertisements likening existing Canadian mobile carriers as “the catch”, and Virgin Mobile Canada as the cure to unclear contracts and undesirable hidden fees. Sir Richard Branson helped create excitement at launch by zip-lining from a high-rise building into Yonge-Dundas Square (now Sankofa Square) in a superhero costume, and drove a monster truck over three cars symbolizing “The Big Three” mobile carriers in Canada – Rogers, Telus, and Bell. Since its launch, Virgin Mobile has used edgy and controversial advertising, leading to demands for an apology, requests to cease and desist the advertising, and even boycotts.^{[citation needed]} This marketing technique is still used by Virgin Mobile Canada to this day.

In February 2008, Virgin Mobile Canada launched postpaid wireless service. To promote and encourage Canadians to consider the new postpaid service, the company released a new slogan, "It's Better to Be a Member". At launch, this was known as 'myPlan', and the company offered a multitude of options, including the ability to set one's own timeframe for unlimited calling, as opposed to the windows generally offered by competing mobile companies. Since then, postpaid plans have become a popular choice for new and existing Members, and plans continue to evolve in the highly competitive telecom market.

On July 1, 2009, Bell Mobility acquired 50% of Virgin Mobile Canada that it previously did not own for $142 million and entered into a long-term agreement to use the Virgin brand. Following this, Bell greatly reduced its investments into Solo Mobile in order to invest in and improve its new Virgin brand. On December 21, 2009, Virgin Mobile Canada's then-president Robert Blumenthal promised "a very different Virgin Mobile" with "higher-value devices and services" in 2010.

Virgin Mobile officially launched HSPA+ services on February 2, 2010. This was promoted with a “SIM Fashion Show” launch event featuring Victoria's Secret models. The company launched HSPA+ with several phones, including the BlackBerry Bold 9700, BlackBerry Curve 8530, the iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS, MiFi and Samsung M330. A Broadband2Go USB mobile broadband modem was also part of the launch lineup. To prepare for the back-to-school season of that year, the Virgin Mobile SuperTab was introduced on August 23 as a response to competition from other providers, especially Koodo Mobile. The SuperTab was only available to postpaid Members, while HSPA+ products and services were unavailable to prepaid Members until around spring in 2011.

To differentiate itself from other mobile providers, Virgin Mobile Canada launched its Member Benefits program in 2010. This program is available to all Postpaid and Prepaid Members and provides exclusive discounts and VIP experiences with many well-known brands in the fashion, travel, music, and entertainment space. Since launch, the program has grown and offers exclusive offers for its Members.

In response to competition from major mobile brands and new entrants, Virgin Mobile introduced a City Unlimited plan on February 18, 2011. Later that year, in order to imitate Koodo Mobile's pricing, Virgin Mobile reduced Canadian long-distance charges, eventually eliminating them altogether. For the same reason, a plan with unlimited Canadian long-distance minutes was launched by Virgin, priced identically to Koodo's equivalent offering.