Canada Speaks: Presented by Sympatico/MSN

Toronto, ON - With Halloween just around the corner, a new Canada Speaks survey released by Sympatico / MSN reveals that nearly half of Canadians are wary of ghosts and goblins not only during the trick-or-treating festivities, but all year long. The poll was conducted for Sympatico / MSN by Ipsos Reid.

Forty-seven percent of Canadians indicate that they believe in ghosts - 31% say they "think such things are likely" and 16% say they "know such things exist". Further:

• One in five Canadians (18%) say they have been in the presence of a ghost;
• 12% have had an "out-of-body experience";
• 9% have "visited with the ghost of a dead relative"; and
• The same proportion (9%) says they have "lived in a haunted house".

Fortunately, for ghost-believers, more (32%) feel that ghosts are usually "forces of good" rather than "forces of evil" (8%).

But, when it comes to the Halloween holiday, many Canadians don't appear enthusiastic about the occasion. Approximately one-third of Canadians agree that with the statement that "I don't like Halloween" (31%), while just 29% say they "will likely put on a costume this year for Halloween". And, 32% agree that they "don't really understand what we're celebrating on Halloween".

Fifty-seven percent of Canadians agree that "on Halloween, I would rather stay at home and hand out candy then go out and walk the neighbourhoods with the kids when they go trick-or-treating".

Perhaps this lack of enthusiasm towards Halloween is related, in part, to the fact that the very strong majority of Canadians (84%) feel "in this day and age, it's unsafe for children to go trick-or-treating on Halloween without an adult to supervise".

On average, Canadians think a child should be no more than 13 years of age before they should stop trick-or-treating.

With Canada Speaks, Sympatico / MSN is listening to its readers' opinions in order to continue providing them with the information they care most about. Canada's most popular online destination with more than 18.4 million visitors per month*, Sympatico.MSN.ca is the one online destination that provides the tools and information Canadian's need to connect with friends, family, and what's happening - in their community and around the world.

These are the findings of an Ipsos-Reid poll conducted from September 28th to October 3rd, 2006 via a regionally representative online Canadian sample of 1267 adult Canadians. For this sample, results can be considered accurate 95% of the time with a 2.8% margin of error, of what it would have been had this entire population been surveyed.

Full tabular results are available in the attached factum and tables

For more information or to schedule a media interview, please contact:

Paul Orovan
Research Manager
Ipsos Reid Publc Affairs
(416) 324-2900
[email protected]

Nicole Flippance
High Road Communications
(416) 644-2259
[email protected]

Ipsos Reid
Ipsos Reid is Canada's market intelligence leader, the country's leading provider of public opinion research, and research partner for loyalty and forecasting and modelling insights. With operations in eight cities, Ipsos Reid employs more than 300 research professionals and support staff in Canada. The company has the biggest network of telephone call centres in the country, as well as the largest pre-recruited household and online panels. Ipsos Reid's marketing research and public affairs practices offer the premier suite of research vehicles in Canada, all of which provide clients with actionable and relevant information. Staffed with seasoned research consultants with extensive industry-specific backgrounds, Ipsos Reid offers syndicated information or custom solutions across key sectors of the Canadian economy, including consumer packaged goods, financial services, automotive, retail, and technology & telecommunications. Ipsos Reid is an Ipsos company, a leading global survey-based market research group.

To learn more, please visit www.ipsos.ca.

Ipsos
Ipsos is a leading global survey-based market research company, owned and managed by research professionals. Ipsos helps interpret, simulate, and anticipate the needs and responses of consumers, customers, and citizens around the world.

Member companies assess market potential and interpret market trends. They develop and build brands. They help clients build long-term relationships with their customers. They test advertising and study audience responses to various media. They measure public opinion around the globe.

Ipsos member companies offer expertise in advertising, customer loyalty, marketing, media, and public affairs research, as well as forecasting, modeling, and consulting. Ipsos has a full line of custom, syndicated, omnibus, panel, and online research products and services, guided by industry experts and bolstered by advanced analytics and methodologies. The company was founded in 1975 and has been publicly traded since 1999. In 2005, Ipsos generated global revenues of e717.8 million ($853.8 million U.S.).

Visit www.ipsos.com to learn more about Ipsos offerings and capabilities.

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