Ottawa wants every Canadian community to have high-speed broadband Internet services by 2004 and two Calgarians have been chosen to help make it happen.
Federal Industry Minister Brian Tobin says that Jim Shaw, CEO of Shaw Communications, and Mamoru Watanabe, emeritus professor of medicine at the University of Calgary, will be among members of the new National Broadband Task Force. It will advise Ottawa on the best ways of making it technically possible for all communities to have rapid Internet links.
Tobin says that access to high-speed broadband will provide the foundation for improved services such as distance learning and telehealth, and will help promote regional and local economic development.
The task force chairman is University of Waterloo president David Johnston.
Members represent various Canadian regions, industry stakeholders, digital-content producers, rural communities, aboriginal groups and users of education, library and health services.
The task force membership list – which reads like a Who’s Who of high-tech in Canada — includes Larry Boisvert, president and CEO of Telesat Canada; Micheline Bouchard, chair, president and CEO of Motorola Canada Ltd.; Darren Entwistle, president and CEO of TELUS; John McLennan, vice-chairman and CEO of AT&T Canada; John Roth, president and CEO of Nortel Networks; Michael Sabia, president of BCE Inc. and corporate vice-chairman of Bell Canada; and John Tory, president and CEO of Rogers Cable Inc.
Ed Baker and Jackie Rafter have both resigned from UFX Enterprises Inc. of Calgary. Baker, a director, and Rafter, the corporate secretary, cited other business interests as reasons for leaving UFX.
Roger Jewett, president and chief financial officer, has assumed the role of corporate secretary.
UFX, which trades on the Canadian Venture Exchange, operates three wholly owned subsidiaries — UnReel Effects Inc., Mystical Fireworks Ltd. and Trilogic Relocation Systems Inc.
UnReel markets innovative special effects, pyrotechnics and fireworks services to clients in the sports and entertainment industries. Mystical is a manufacturer of consumer and professional fireworks, marketing to clients across the country. Trilogic transports theatrical production materials for the live entertainment industry.
D. Hugh Gillard has resigned as president and chief operating officer of PrimeWest Energy Trust after two years with the company.
“During these years, PrimeWest has matured — in part by refining and strengthening its business strategies, processes and focus,” says vice-chairman and CEO Kent MacIntyre.
PrimeWest, a Calgary-based oil and gas royalty trust, acquires, develops, produces and sells crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids for the generation of cash to be distributed to trust unit holders. The trust units trade on the TSE.
Westcoast Energy Inc. has made high-level management changes at Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline and Westcoast Gas Services.
Irv Koop, executive vice-president of Westcoast Energy Inc. and president and CEO of pipelines and midstream operations, announced that Phillip Knoll, president of Westcoast Gas Services Inc., will become president of Canadian operations of Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline on Feb.1.
Knoll, a Nova Scotia native, will be returning to his home province to for his new job. He replaces Pat Langan, who is retiring from the company to pursue other interests. He will continue to provide consulting services.
As well, Ron Brintnell of Calgary has been promoted to director of commercial services and operations at Westcoast Gas Services Inc., taking over from Knoll. Westcoast trades on the TSE and NYSE.
Canadian and U.S. operations of JAWZ Inc. are being restructured, and new appointments made to deal with tremendous growth.
Peter Labrinos is the new president of JAWZ’ Canadian operations. JAWZ chairman and CEO Robert Kubbernus says Labrinos, previously chief operating officer, has been focusing on the operational and customer excellence that has fuelled much of the company’s growth. Labrinos also recently secured the Cu Connect contract that will generate $12 million US in revenue for JAWZ over the next five years.
Kubbernus says: “To keep up with the explosive growth of our Canadian operations, it was clear that we needed a Canadian president who could focus on our dual goals of increasing our profitability and reaching operational excellence.”
Bob Mahood has been appointed President of JAWZ’ U.S. operations. Formerly, he was executive vice-president of JAWZ corporate development. Mahood has held numerous senior positions in the industry, including that of president and CEO of Telus Advanced Communications.
JAWZ has also announced the appointment of BlueStone Capital Securities Inc. of New York as its financial and investment banking adviser.
Kubbernus says BlueStone is a leader in providing financial advice to emerging growth companies, and will provide JAWZ with a broad range of corporate finance services to support the company’s growth initiatives.
“We believe that this team can assist us in the areas of capital formation, capital structuring, mergers and acquisitions and other matters of corporate finance that will lead to enhanced shareholder value,” he says.
“As we expand our market reach and deliver on our services to partners like Verizon, Siemens, Intermedia and others, we recognize the critical nature of having a strong U.S.-based corporate banker.”
For its services, BlueStone will receive warrants to purchase 500,000 shares of JAWZ common stock, as well as monthly consulting fees and transaction fees.
JAWZ, which trades on Nasdaq, specializes in information security. It markets security software products, consulting services and secure Internet and remote data storage services to governments, law-enforcement agencies, health-care providers, financial companies, e-commerce businesses and telecom suppliers.
JAWZ International headquarters are in Toronto, but it has several offices across Canada and the U.S., including one in Calgary.
VoIP Telecom Inc. of Kirkland, Wash. Has appointed Ken Berscht as senior vice-president of corporate finance.
Since 1981, Berscht was has been a senior broker with Yorkton Securities in Calgary, L.O.M. Western Inc. and Canaccord Capital Corp. in Vancouver. He has also held numerous positions in the U.S.
VoIP president Michael Tan says Berscht, who has been on the company’s board since last June, has been instrumental in funding many private and public companies in Canada and the U.S. over the last two decades.
VoIP Telecom, Inc. focuses on deployment of worldwide digital, voice as well as data communications, via fibre-optic, Internet circuit satellite and public switched networks.
Michael Sadler has been appointed director of business development for Aqua-Pure Ventures Inc. Aqua-Pure, which processes municipal and oilfield-produced waste water, recently moved its head office to Calgary from Kelowna. Sadler was previously industry manager with Air Liquide America Corp.
And finally there’s one more “moving on” to report — my own. By the time you read this, I will be on staff at Parallel Strategies in Calgary and Mike Dempster will take over writing this column. I’ve enjoyed being part of this dynamic, start-up venture and look forward to reading Mike’s work.
