Cogeco more interested in MVNO than Freedom

The addition of Shaw Communications Inc.'s Freedom Mobile brand, should Shaw be forced to sell it off by the Competition Bureau as part of the regulator's review of the company's acquisition by Rogers Communications Inc., would do less for Cogeco's entrance to the wireless market than the CRTC's wholesale framework, according to Cogeco CEO Philippe Jetté. Freedom "would be a nice product addition into our existing operation, but our existing operation actually exceeds the footprint" for Freedom, Jetté said in a Friday morning call with reporters ahead of the company's annual shareholders meeting. "We are looking at all of our existing operations – Quebec and Ontario – and we're looking for solutions like the wholesale framework from the CRTC as the right place to start to build, over time, a business," he said. Jetté also reiterated a criticism he made back in November of the incumbent approach to the terms and conditions negotiation at the CRTC when it comes to the new wireless wholesale framework. "I'm not surprised that the incumbents are taking as much time as possible to delay the entry of new competition in Canada," he said, adding that "the number one concern is one of time: it's taking a very long time." The incumbents are "trying to insert in the process very unreasonable terms and conditions and the CRTC is really caught in the middle," Jetté said. "They understand that we need something reasonable as far as terms and conditions but something that will also lead to reasonable rates when time comes to negotiate the rates." Cogeco is one of the companies that stands to benefit the most from the April CRTC limited mobile virtual network operator decision, and the company spent $295 million on 38 licenses covering a population of 10.3 million at the Innovation, Science, and Economic Development (ISED) auction in July. In its quarterly earnings report, the company reported a 16.1 per cent increase in overall revenue for the three months ended Nov. 30, up to $718.5 million from $616.9 million this time last year. The company's profit increased a more modest 1.6 per cent, up to $116.6 million from $114.9 this time last year. The company saw revenue from its Canadian broadband services climb 8.2 per cent to $355 million from $328 million last year, while its American broadband services division jumped 25 per cent to $363.5 million from $290.9 million a year ago. The company added 198,881 internet subscribers in the quarter for a total of 1,635,082 internet subscribers. Cogeco also reported adding 36,802 video subscribers, for a total of 1,019,510. — Reporting by Michael Lee-Murphy at mleemurphy@thewirereport.ca and editing by Paul Park at ppark@thewirereport.ca

Cogeco more interested in MVNO than Freedom

Broadcast | January 14, 2022

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Cogeco more interested in MVNO than Freedom

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