Access Communications

For the former cable company in the Maritimes (now part of EastLink), see Access Communications (Nova Scotia).

Access Communications
Co-operative, Limited

Type	Co-operative
Industry	telecommunications
Founded	1974
Headquarters	Regina, Saskatchewan
Key people	Jim Deane (President & CEO)
Products	cable television, high speed internet, telephone
Slogan	part of the community
Website	www.myaccess.ca

Access Communications Co-operative, Limited. is a Canadian cable television provider, operating in Regina, Saskatchewan and several other communities in Saskatchewan. It was previously known as Regina Cablevision Co-operative Ltd. but operated as Cable Regina from commencement of service in Regina in 1978 until April 2000, after acquisitions of cable television operations in Weyburn, Estevan and Yorkton and surrounding communities. Dial-up Internet service was first offered in September 1995. Cable modem broadband service followed in 1997. On February 7, 2007, Access Communications launched its primary line telephone service in Regina in direct competition with Saskatchewan's government-owned ILEC, SaskTel. On July 1, 2009, Access became Saskatchewan's largest cable provider with the purchase of Persona Cable's operations in Saskatchewan.

The co-operative's establishment in the 1970s came about only after a prolonged legal and constitutional battle between the federal government and the province of Saskatchewan's social democratic government, which had differing visions of how cable television service should be delivered to citizens of the province.

Services

Access offers the following services:

• Internet access, including dial-up and high-speed via cable modem
• Analog, digital, high definition television, PVR, PPV and VOD
• Telephone
• Home Security
• Web hosting, both for subscribers and commercial entities

Access is one of the few ISPs that officially list support for the Linux operating system, as well as providing resources to Linux users.

Telephone

Access' digital phone service operates on a device called an ATA (Analog Telephony Adapter) with a built-in cable modem. The modem communicates over cable lines to a private IP (Internet Protocol) network. In this sense it can strictly be considered VoIP, in that it is voice delivered over an IP network. However, because it travels over dedicated lines and is still designed to be usable in a power outage scenario, Access Communications has attempted to distance it from the VoIP moniker. Instead, they have branded it as a "Digital Phone" service, and their marketing and customer service communications strictly avoid using the term VoIP.

See also

• List of VOIP companies

External links

• Official website