TORONTO – On the good news side, Rogers Communications’ fourth quarter results showed an addition of 114,000 new postpaid wireless subscribers while churn improved.
As for the bad, the Covid crisis continues to impact the company’s operations as full year revenue (for the period ended December 31, 2020) dropped 8% to $13.92 billion and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization declined 5%, compared to the same period of 2019 to $5.86 billion.
On the cable side, service revenue rose by 3% to just over $1 billion in the quarter as the company added 19,000 internet subscribers and 71,000 Ignite TV customers. Both of those, however, grew at a lower pace than Q4 2019.
Media margins stayed strong even though revenue dropped for Sportsnet with the delay of the start of the NHL and NBA seasons. With no games to broadcast, expenses were lower. Media revenue in the quarter was $409 million, down 23% compared to 2019, but expenses came in at $327 million, a decrease of 36%.
Corporate free cash flow was $568 million in the quarter, up 14%.
The company’s wireless service revenue decrease of 8% in the quarter to $2.3 billion was mainly a result of lower roaming revenue due to global travel restrictions during Covid-19, said the company, and lower data overage revenue, primarily as a result of the continued adoption of Rogers Infinite unlimited data plans.
That “overage melt” of revenue is expected to be mostly complete by the end of Q2 this year, company executives said on the Thursday morning conference call with financial analysts.
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