Mountain Cablevision
Encyclopedia
Mountain Cable was one of three cable television
service providers for the city of Hamilton, Ontario
and its surrounding area. The other two providers are Cogeco
and Source Cable
(formerly known as Southmount Cable). Each company has a monopoly in a specific part of the city of Hamilton; Mountain Cable served the Hamilton Mountain
area and Haldimand County
.
s, and resort
s.
That same year, The Ontario Housing Corporation (which designed the Buchanan Park subdivision
on Hamilton Mountain
) was surveying the possibility of building a whole housing project with no above-ground utilities (placing them all underground to improve safety and reliability during storms). The neighbourhood's homeowners approached the company to have General Co-axial Services install a CATV system with the intention of an alternative to bulky and somewhat unsightly roof-top antenna
s. The homeowners also asked the company to lay the first neighbourhood-wide underground utility lines. The neighbourhood would become the first housing development in all of Canada
that would have all of its utilities placed underground, with no utility pole
s other than street light
s.
Within two years, over three quarters of the homes in the subdivision were linked to the CATV system, and the roof-top antennas (which were considered eyesore
s) were rendered inferior and obsolete to the newly installed CATV system, which provided superior delivery of consistent and reliable television station signals.
Since these early days, the company has since changed its name to Mountain Cable, and has expanded greatly in size from offering just 12 channels to 400 customers, to offering more than 230 channels to over 40,000 customers in Hamilton
, Mount Hope
, Binbrook
, Byng, Caledonia
, Cayuga
, Hagersville
, Dunnville
and Jarvis
.
In July 2009, Shaw Communications
announced that they will be acquiring Mountain Cablevision, pending CRTC approval. This would be Shaw's first cable system acquisition east of Sault Ste. Marie
since the 2001 swaps with Rogers Cable
and Cogeco
. The sale was approved on October 22, 2009. Mountain Cablevision officially became Shaw in November 2009.
" was also carried on Mountain; it has continued to be carried on Shaw.
Cable television
Cable television is a system of providing television programs to consumers via radio frequency signals transmitted to televisions through coaxial cables or digital light pulses through fixed optical fibers located on the subscriber's property, much like the over-the-air method used in traditional...
service providers for the city of Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
and its surrounding area. The other two providers are Cogeco
Cogeco
Cogeco Inc. is a Canadian media and communications company. The name is an acronym for Compagnie Générale de Communication .-History:...
and Source Cable
Source Cable
Source Cable is one of three main Cable television service providers for the city of Hamilton, Ontario. The other two are Shaw Communications and Cogeco...
(formerly known as Southmount Cable). Each company has a monopoly in a specific part of the city of Hamilton; Mountain Cable served the Hamilton Mountain
Niagara Escarpment
The Niagara Escarpment is a long escarpment, or cuesta, in the United States and Canada that runs westward from New York State, through Ontario, Michigan, Wisconsin and Illinois...
area and Haldimand County
Haldimand County, Ontario
Haldimand is a rural city-status single-tier municipality on the Niagara Peninsula in Southern Ontario, Canada, on the north shore of Lake Erie, and on the Grand River. Municipal offices are located in Cayuga....
.
History
Mountain Cable was founded in 1959 as "General Co-axial Services, Limited"; it specialized in installing Master Antenna systems on Apartment buildings, hotelHotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
s, and resort
Resort
A resort is a place used for relaxation or recreation, attracting visitors for holidays or vacations. Resorts are places, towns or sometimes commercial establishment operated by a single company....
s.
That same year, The Ontario Housing Corporation (which designed the Buchanan Park subdivision
Subdivision (land)
Subdivision is the act of dividing land into pieces that are easier to sell or otherwise develop, usually via a plat. The former single piece as a whole is then known in the United States as a subdivision...
on Hamilton Mountain
Hamilton Mountain
Hamilton Mountain is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1968. The riding is located in the Hamilton, Ontario region....
) was surveying the possibility of building a whole housing project with no above-ground utilities (placing them all underground to improve safety and reliability during storms). The neighbourhood's homeowners approached the company to have General Co-axial Services install a CATV system with the intention of an alternative to bulky and somewhat unsightly roof-top antenna
Antenna (radio)
An antenna is an electrical device which converts electric currents into radio waves, and vice versa. It is usually used with a radio transmitter or radio receiver...
s. The homeowners also asked the company to lay the first neighbourhood-wide underground utility lines. The neighbourhood would become the first housing development in all of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
that would have all of its utilities placed underground, with no utility pole
Utility pole
A utility pole is a pole used to support overhead power lines and various other public utilities, such as cable, fibre optic cable, and related equipment such as transformers and street lights. It can be referred to as a telephone pole, power pole, hydro pole, telegraph pole, or telegraph post,...
s other than street light
Street light
A street light, lamppost, street lamp, light standard, or lamp standard is a raised source of light on the edge of a road or walkway, which is turned on or lit at a certain time every night. Modern lamps may also have light-sensitive photocells to turn them on at dusk, off at dawn, or activate...
s.
Within two years, over three quarters of the homes in the subdivision were linked to the CATV system, and the roof-top antennas (which were considered eyesore
Eyesore
An eyesore is an unpleasant view. Its technical usage is as an alternative perspective to the notion of landmark. Common examples include dilapidated buildings, graffiti, litter, polluted areas and excessive commercial signage such as billboards. Some eyesores may be a matter of opinion such as...
s) were rendered inferior and obsolete to the newly installed CATV system, which provided superior delivery of consistent and reliable television station signals.
Since these early days, the company has since changed its name to Mountain Cable, and has expanded greatly in size from offering just 12 channels to 400 customers, to offering more than 230 channels to over 40,000 customers in Hamilton
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
, Mount Hope
Mount Hope, Ontario
Mount Hope, Ontario can refer to:*Mount Hope, Bruce County, Ontario*Mount Hope, Hamilton, Ontario...
, Binbrook
Binbrook, Ontario
Binbrook is a small, but growing community in southeastern Hamilton, Ontario in Canada. It was unpopularly amalgamated into the City of Hamilton in 2001. Since 2001, Binbrook has added hundreds of new homes as it becomes an "island" suburb of Hamilton, separated by conservation and agricultural lands...
, Byng, Caledonia
Caledonia, Ontario
Caledonia is a small riverside community and former town located on the Grand River in Haldimand County, Ontario, Canada. Haldimand County is in the western part of the Niagara Peninsula, and had a population of 43,280 in 2001. The current mayor of Haldimand County is Ken Hewitt; Caledonia is...
, Cayuga
Cayuga, Ontario
Cayuga is an unincorporated community and county seat in the province of Ontario, Canada located at the intersection of Highway 3 and Munsee Street and along the Grand River in Haldimand County. Cayuga is about a 20 minute drive from Lake Erie and 30 minutes south of Hamilton and 115 minutes south...
, Hagersville
Hagersville, Ontario
Hagersville is a community in Haldimand County, Ontario which gained international notoriety in 1990 for a gigantic uncontrolled tire fire which spewed toxic smoke for seventeen days...
, Dunnville
Dunnville, Ontario
Dunnville is an unincorporated community of 6,000 people located near the mouth of the Grand River in Haldimand County, Ontario, Canada, near the historic Talbot Trail...
and Jarvis
Jarvis, Ontario
Jarvis is a small community in Haldimand County, Ontario, Canada. Jarvis is located near the towns of Simcoe, Townsend, Cayuga, Port Dover and Hagersville. It is located at the crossroads of Highway 3 and Highway 6.- Facilities :...
.
In July 2009, Shaw Communications
Shaw Communications
Shaw Communications is Canada's largest telecommunications company that provides telephone, Canada's fastest Internet and television services as well as broadcasting and soon Wifi. Shaw is headquartered in Calgary, Alberta...
announced that they will be acquiring Mountain Cablevision, pending CRTC approval. This would be Shaw's first cable system acquisition east of Sault Ste. Marie
Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario
Sault Ste. Marie is a city on the St. Marys River in Algoma District, Ontario, Canada. It is the third largest city in Northern Ontario, after Sudbury and Thunder Bay, with a population of 74,948. The community was founded as a French religious mission: Sault either means "jump" or "rapids" in...
since the 2001 swaps with Rogers Cable
Rogers Cable
Rogers Cable Inc., a subsidiary of Rogers Communications Inc., is Canada's largest cable television service provider with about 2.25 million television customers, and over 930,000 Internet subscribers, in Manitoba, Southern & Eastern Ontario, New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador.The...
and Cogeco
Cogeco
Cogeco Inc. is a Canadian media and communications company. The name is an acronym for Compagnie Générale de Communication .-History:...
. The sale was approved on October 22, 2009. Mountain Cablevision officially became Shaw in November 2009.
Services
In addition to their cable television services, Mountain Cable also offered digital phone and high-speed internet services.See also
The local cable television station "Cable 14Cable 14 (Hamilton)
Cable 14 is a community channel licenced to Hamilton, Ontario, and is available to cable television subscribers of Cogeco, Shaw Communications , and Source Cable systems. The cable TV station is also available to customers in Hamilton, and the communities of Dunnville, Caledonia, and Cayuga in...
" was also carried on Mountain; it has continued to be carried on Shaw.