iRoam formerly Brightroam was a Canadian mobile
roaming
Roaming is a wireless
Wireless communication (or just wireless, when the context allows) is the transfer of information (''telecommunication'') between two or more points without the use of an electrical conductor, optical fiber or oth ...
provider. The company provided global cellular communications and prepaid
SIM card
A typical SIM card (mini-SIM with micro-SIM cutout)A SIM card or SIM (subscriber identity module) is an integrated circuit (IC) intended to securely store an international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI) number and its related key, which are u ...
s to corporations and individuals that provided reduced rates for
international roaming.
To reduce costs customer service was minimal and automated. The company was headquartered in
Toronto, Ontario
Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
. The company was acquired by another Canadian telecommunications company ''Telehop'' in 2014. The IRoam service continued as a brand of Telehop until 2022.
History
Foundation
Founded in 2006, Brightroam Inc began as a subsidiary of Roadpost inc, leveraging their 15 years of history in providing short term cellular and international roaming services. The goal of the company was to provide international roaming services to North Americans, both to undercut roaming rates for
GSM
The Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) is a family of standards to describe the protocols for second-generation (2G) digital cellular networks, as used by mobile devices such as mobile phones and Mobile broadband modem, mobile broadba ...
subs and to provide services to
CDMA
Code-division multiple access (CDMA) is a channel access method used by various radio communication technologies. CDMA is an example of multiple access, where several transmitters can send information simultaneously over a single communicatio ...
subscribers. Brightroam based its business plan around automated online sales, provisioning and customer service to reduce costs and pricing.
iRoam Mobile takeover
On December 22, 2010, BrightRoam was purchased by iRoam Mobile Solutions Inc. iRoam Mobile Solutions purchased Brightroam to complement its connectivity and security products and services for the mobile and roaming user, including
iPass Inc., mobile device management and existing enterprise cellular roaming solutions.
[
]
With this purchase, iRoam assumed responsibility for all Brightroam customers, including maintaining 24/7 customer service, SIM cards delivery, activation as well as the user portal to allow users to manage their accounts.
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]
Telehop merger
In May 2014, Telehop Communications Inc. acquired the business assets of iRoam Mobile Solutions Inc., a Canadian company that operates under the iRoam and Brightroam brands in North America. In line with the acquisition,
G3 Telecom's G3 Wireless and Brightroam would form part of iRoam's consumer branding.
The brand was discontinued in 2022 when the web site was closed.
References
{{Reflist
Telecommunications companies established in 2006
2006 establishments in Ontario
Canadian companies established in 2006