Naughty or Nice? Survey Shows Over One Third of Canadians Expect to Find Guests Talking, Texting or Emailing during a Holiday Dinner This Season

TORONTO, Nov. 5 - Turkey, stuffing, gravy and… BlackBerries?  A new survey commissioned by WIND Mobile, coinciding with the launch of their 'Naughty or Nice' holiday campaign, revealed that more than a third of Canadians expect to find someone talking, texting or emailing at a holiday dinner this season.

The study also revealed that most Canadians (85 per cent) believe that if asked, Santa would say they had been nice this year. But the proof really lies in what Canadians are doing that's nice - 69 per cent of Canadians surveyed said that they had received a call, text or email just to say something 'nice' within the last day or week! Atlantic Canada and Ontario appear the nicest at 75 and 74 per cent but love is really lacking in Alberta and Saskatchewan where 33 per cent said they couldn't remember, it had been so long or they had never received a nice call, text or email.

"We're asking Canadians whether they've been naughty or nice this year - and we're rewarding them for getting in on the fun," said WIND Mobile Chairman Anthony Lacavera.  WIND Mobile's new 'Naughty or Nice' Facebook app lets users invite their friends and social networks to hand down the verdict - egg nog spiker or Christmas caroler? Ratings will be tracked on the Naughty or Nice meter, and whether the consensus is sugar plum or scrooge, users will get a $20 handset discount from WIND.

Beyond the app, WIND Mobile unveiled their ultimate holiday offer:  $17.50/month for unlimited province-wide talk and global text as well as 50 per cent off all plans for six months. In response to requests from customers, WIND recently launched 'WINDtab', enabling customers to put up to $150 of the cost of their phone on a 'tab'. With the newly launched LG dLite, that could mean a $0 phone. "We believe that this holiday season, customers deserve a significant treat - nice is truly getting half off our regular rates and a real $0 phone," said Lacavera. 

Survey Highlights:

• Are Canadians using their mobile devices to spread the love? 69 per cent of Canadians surveyed said that they had received a call, text or email just to say something 'nice' within the last day or week!
  • Atlantic Canada appears nicest with 75 per cent with Ontario right behind (74 per cent) but Manitoba/Saskatchewan definitely lacked love - 33 per cent said they couldn't remember, it's been so long or it had never happened.
  • British Columbia and Alberta are also quite nice with 71 per cent but love is also lacking a little in Quebec with on 65 per cent receiving nice communications
• 70 per cent of Canadians are likely to call friends and family with their holiday wishes. When asked, Canadians also indicated:
  • 18 per cent would text message. Not surprisingly, 30 per cent of 18-24 year olds would text compared to only 5 per cent of people over 55.
  • 66 per cent would send an email and 55 per cent would send snail mail.
• About 20 per cent of Canadians expect their mobile device will be a helpful tool while doing their holiday shopping.
  • Nearly a quarter (23 per cent) will use their phone to find store locations (24 per cent of men compared to 21 per cent of women - who said men never ask for directions?).
  • 20 per cent would use it to carry their shopping list as well as research prices.
  • 19 per cent said they would research product information and find deals and discounts.
  • Only eight per cent plan to purchase gifts using their mobile device.
• 85 per cent of Canadians believe that if asked, Santa would say they had been nice this year
  • Women claim they are nice (versus naughty) slightly more than men (89 versus 78 per cent)

About WIND Mobile and Globalive Holdings
WIND Mobile provides voice, text and data services to Canadians on a next-generation wireless network and is committed to offering a level of wireless service presently not available in Canada. WIND Mobile is built on actual conversations that are happening with Canadians who are passionate about wireless and creating a better mobile offering nationally. For more information, please visit: www.WINDmobile.ca.

Globalive Holdings is a leading provider of telecommunications solutions in Canada and internationally to the consumer, business and hospitality markets. The Globalive companies include: WIND Mobile, Yak, OneConnect, Canopco and Globalive Carrier Services. For more information, please visit: www.globalive.com

About the Survey
Methodology: From October 15 to October 16, 2010, Angus Reid Public Opinion conducted an online survey among 1,018 randomly selected Canadian adults who are Angus Reid Forum panelists. The margin of error—which measures sampling variability—is +/- 3.1%, 19 times out of 20. The results have been statistically weighted according to the most current education, age, gender and region Census data to ensure a sample representative of the entire adult population of Canada. Discrepancies in or between totals are due to rounding.

Surveys