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Bell ExpressVu is the division of Bell Canada that sells digital television services in Canada. Launched on September 10, 1997, ExpressVu has traditionally offered satellite TV services, and as of summer 2004 began offering digital TV via VDSL to select condos and MDUs (multiple-dwelling units) in Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal. Bell ExpressVu provides over 300 digital video and audio channels to, as of March 2006, over 1.7 million subscribers. Its major competitors include satellite service StarChoice, as well as various cable and communications companies across Canada.
ExpressVu was conceived in 1994, at the time of American DSS systems launch, as a consortium of Ontario-based Tee-Comm Electronics, Canadian Satellite Communications (Cancom), Vancouver-based Western International Communications (WIC) and Bell Canada (BCE), with a projected startup date of late 1995. High technology development costs and delays placed Tee-Comm in a severe financial position, prompting the remaining partners to pull out in 1996. Instead, U.S. satellite-TV provider Echostar Dish Network was chosen to provide the receivers and uplink equipment. The Hughes DirecTV system had already been optioned to Power Broadcasting, in Canada; since withdrawn. Tee-Comm on its own managed to launch the first DBS service in Canada, AlphaStar, in early 1997 however in a manner of months the company went bankrupt and the service was discontinued, leaving thousands of consumers with useless receivers. ExpressVu launched service in September 1997, as "ExpressVu Dish Network", using the Echostar logo. In 2000 Bell took over full ownership of ExpressVu.