OTTAWA-GATINEAU – Canada’s TV distributors generated $8.95 billion in revenues in 2007, according to the CRTC’s statistical and financial summaries for Canadian broadcasting distribution companies released Wednesday.
The cable companies accounted for $7.1 billion of the total, while direct-to-home satellite and wireless cablecos brought in $1.85 billion.
Cable revenues were up 16.1% to $7.1 billion in 2007 from $6.1 billion a year earlier, according to the data. The number of basic cable subscribers increased 2.3% to 7.65 million from 7.48 million during that period.
This sector’s profits before interest and taxes (PBIT) rose 10% to $1.5 billion in 2007 from $1.4 billion in 2006. But a 19.1% rise in expenses reduced cable’s PBIT margin to 21.17% in 2007 from 22.34% a year earlier.
Cable companies paid out a total of $1.07 billion in salaries to 17,900 people in 2007. In 2006, the industry paid $933.1 million in salaries to 15,271 people.
Combined revenues for DTH and wireless cable increased 11.4% to $1.85 billion in 2007 from $1.7 billion. The number of subscribers to DTH and wireless cable inched up just 0.1% to 2.6 million.
However, this sector’s PBIT grew more than 153.6% to $17 million from a loss of $32 million. The PBIT margin for DTH and wireless cable companies jumped from negative 1.93% in 2006 to 0.93% in 2007.
DTH and wireless cable, or MDS companies, employed 2,884 people and paid out $191 million in salaries. In 2006, the sector employed 2,813 people and paid out $138.2 million in salaries.
The distributors contributed a total of $296.7 million to Canadian programming in 2007, an increase of 8.4% from the previous year. Of that total, $155.3 million went to the Canadian Television Fund, $38.4 million to independent funds and $103 million to local expression, such as community channels.
As well, cable companies in 2007 directed $1.4 billion to affiliates, including pay and specialty services, an increase of 10.4% over the $1.2 billion paid in 2006.
Similarly, payments made by DTH and MDS companies to their affiliates grew by 12.3% to $696.6 million in 2007 from $620.3 million in 2006.
