Cogeco qualifies for wireless auction, CEO says no more

Despite qualifying this week for an auction of wireless spectrum, the head of Cogeco Inc. refused to answer questions about the company’s intentions on wireless going forward. “I would like to point out that this is congruent with the company’s previously announced strategy to seek out options to offer wireless services in a profitable way, respecting its financial means,” CEO Louis Audet said on a conference call with analysts following the company’s fiscal second quarter results Friday. Three days before those comments, ISED released the list of applicants who are qualified to participate in an auction to bid on residual licenses in the 700 Mhz, 2300 Mhz, 2500 Mhz and PCS-G bands. The list of names includes Shaw Communications Inc.’s Freedom, Rogers Communications Inc., Telus Corp. and Xplornet Communications Inc. BCE Inc. was not listed. “There are many ways to enter the wireless sector,” Audet said, “and at the moment by registering for this auction, we are keeping all our options open, which I think is good business.” In January, he told media that one of the conditions needed to enter the space was a decision by the CRTC to mandate WiFi MVNOs access to roaming on incumbents’ networks, given the company’s WiFi coverage in the homes it serves. The CRTC decided WiFi MVNOs were not the way to go last month. The deadline to submit an application to participate in the residual spectrum auction was March 27, according to ISED’s website, which was after the MVNO decision. Cogeco previously won 12 bids worth $25,000 in the 2300 MHz and 3500 MHz residual auction beginning in 2004, the ISED website said. The website said the auction bid deadline is at noon on May 15 and the winners will be announced three days later on the 18th. Audet on Friday refused to say any more due to what he said are rules, imposed by Innovation Canada (ISED), against disclosing intentions during the auction process. Cogeco is the only publicly-traded telecom in the country without a wireless division. Audet has said in the past that Cogeco would enter the wireless market if it was profitable for his company. For the three months that ended Feb. 28, Cogeco reported revenue of $623.2 million, up 6.3 per cent from the previous year. Total company profit ballooned 83.8 per cent to $143.8 million due to favourable tax circumstances related to recent United States tax reform and offset by expenses related to its MetroCast acquisition, which closed in January. Cogeco’s communications side reported revenue growth of 6.8 per cent to $598.9 million compared to the same quarter last year. Profit for the communications segment was $141.8 million, an 84.9 per cent increase. Breaking that down by geography, Canadian revenue was down 0.6 per cent to $323.9 million compared to last year, while U.S. revenue was up 28.8 per cent to about $206 million. An additional $70.2 million in revenue came from business information and communications technology segment, down by 7.8 per cent year-over-year. Internet services in Canada saw new subscribers in the amount of 6,880 in the quarter, which was less than the close to 10,000 it added in the same quarter last year, for a total of 786,314. On the U.S. side, it added 7,571 subscribers in the quarter compared to 6,032 last year for a total of 412,887, up from 264,367 last year. Video and telephone services hobbled in Canada. The former lost more subscribers, at 7,020, compared to the 2,880 it lost in the comparable period a year earlier, ending the quarter with 708,584 subs. The latter also lost more this quarter, in the amount of 5,621 compared to 2,792 last year, for a total of 419,280. The total number for both those segments in the U.S. was 321,317 for video (up 270 in the quarter compared to a loss of 1,805 last year) and 139,886 for telephone (adding 1,845 in the quarter versus 1,718 last year), compared to 239,022 and 98,991 last year, respectively. Total figures for both Canada and the U.S. were about 1.2 million internet, just over one million video, and roughly 560,000 telephone subscribers. Overall, the U.S. focus has been occupying a lot of time for Cogeco, and for good reason, Audet said. “I think the key to our growth strategy, we should not forget, is to continue to acquire U.S. cable systems and integrate and grow them — that is the major chapter in our company’s growth story.” — With reporting by Ahmad Hathout at ahathout@thewirereport.ca and editing by Anja Karadeglija at akarad@thewirereport.ca

Cogeco qualifies for wireless auction, CEO says no more

News | April 13, 2018

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

FREE TRIAL

SUBSCRIBE

Inside The Wire Report

Information

Hill Times Publishing

Get in Touch With Us

Cogeco qualifies for wireless auction, CEO says no more

News | April 13, 2018

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

FREE TRIAL

SUBSCRIBE

Related Stories

Cogeco appoints Mike Henry as chief commercial officer

Cogeco continues push towards wireless service in Canada with two network access deals

Cogeco reports drop in profits in Q3, while revenue rises slightly

Cogeco announces acquisition of municipally-owned telecom provider

Reuse & Permissions

Inside The Wire Report

Information

Hill Times Publishing

Get in Touch With Us