The Utility Company™ Is Accepted Into the Canadian Franchise Association

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November 21, 2006, Ottawa, Canada – The Utility Company, the leader in Technology-as-a-Service™, received approval by the Canadian Franchise Association’s Board of Directors for immediate membership to the CFA.

“We are excited about our quick acceptance into the CFA,” stated Janice Siddons, VP and GM of The Utility Company. “Our goal in 2006 is to bring aboard entrepreneurial franchisees who are interested in our utility service model and in bringing consumption-based IT services and business-technology consulting to the small and medium-sized business (SMB) market. Becoming a Canadian Franchise Association member instantly lets potential franchise owners know that The Utility Company is a franchise model that they can trust – one that meets the CFA approval and conforms to their high-level of ethical standards.

The Canadian Franchise Association represents over 400 franchise companies and the professionals who support this way of doing business. Their board of directors represents all regions of the country, and promotes a strong code of ethics as well as the mandatory use of the CFA disclosure document guide. In signing on as a CFA member, a company agrees to give potential franchisees all the information they require to make a viable business decision.

“We are very pleased that The Utility Company has joined the growing list of franchise systems from across Canada who are dedicated to franchise excellence. By joining the Canadian Franchise Association (CFA), The Utility Company is demonstrating a strong commitment to the principles of the CFA code of ethics including mandatory disclosure rules and exceptional franchisor/franchisee relations”, said Jeffrey Hanlan, Senior Membership Coordinator for the CFA.

Utility Service Providers, or USPs, are franchises that operate in an exclusive territory, which The Utility Company is making available across North America. “We’ve been encouraged by the level of understanding by prospective franchisees about the opportunity available to them”, continued Siddons. “Our selection criteria for USPs is extensive and we expect our potential franchisees will do similar due diligence in choosing their franchise opportunity. By gaining acceptance to the CFA, we are hoping that their due diligence process should be made that much easier.”

“On our end, we can have a qualified franchise operating as a Utility Service Provider within as little as thirty days. In fact, we can have them offering MORE than managed services - or what we like to call Beyond Managed Services™ - avoiding the typical time and six figure investment.”

The Beyond Managed Services™ franchise opportunity includes a complete business system – people, process and technology – including the front and back office support to deliver managed/utility services to the SMB market, including:

• Sales - inside sales support, sales management, customer events.
• Marketing - programs, collateral, campaigns, PR, Utility Service Provider (USP) locator.
• CRM - centralized customer relationship management.
• Administration - documentation, operations guide, HR assistance.
• Finance - billing, collection, tax, leasing; monthly franchise report.
• Service management - policies, procedures, best practices.
• Help desk – end-user technical support.
• NOC - centralized operations, dispatch and management tools.
• Utility Service Center - remote support portal for end-user self-help, ticketing and remediation.
• Utility Vehicle - branded Mini leased by USP (optional).
• Utility U training - franchisee and end-user.
• Vendor relations - centralized procurement and administration.

About the CFA

With more than 400 corporate members nationwide, including some of Canada's best known brands, the Canadian Franchise Association is the national voice for Canadian franchising. The CFA promotes ethical franchising and educates Canadians about franchising, specific franchise opportunities, and proper due diligence. For more information, visit www.cfa.ca

About The Utility Company™

The Utility Company™ the leader in Technology-as-a-Service™, delivers information technology as a utility to small and medium-sized businesses, providing the required hardware, software and service for a monthly fee per user. Our Connected Office™ service suite empowers people to properly leverage technology to operate, communicate and manage their business more effectively to increase productivity, performance and ultimately profit. Our customers are supported by the Utility Service Network delivering on-site service across North America – technology sales and service professionals can review the Beyond Managed Services™ franchise opportunity on our website. Learn how to make technology work for your business today at www.theutilitycompany.com

For more information contact:

Aaron Bradley
Marketing Manager
1-866-My-Utility ext.7675
abradley@theutilitycompany.com