Rogers announced Monday the sale of all of its shares in Cogeco to pension fund Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec.
The transaction, worth $829 million, will allow the cable giant to reduce its debt and exit non-core businesses as it focuses on its core competencies, including telecommunications after its acquisition of Shaw.
“This sale further demonstrates our commitment to strengthen our investment grade balance sheet and aggressively reduce our debt leverage ratio,” Tony Staffieri, Rogers president and CEO, said in a press release. “We’re tracking six months ahead on our deleveraging priorities and we’re committed to reducing our debt leverage ratio…
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TORONTO – The Eastern Ontario Regional Network (EORN), the Government of Canada, the Government of Ontario and Rogers announced Wednesday that Rogers 5G mobile services are now available in 26 more rural communities.
By building 18 new sites and making upgrades to an additional seven existing sites, Rogers is now able to offer 5G mobile services for the first time to residents in parts of the following areas: Renfrew County, Northumberland County, Lennox and Addington County, Haliburton County, Frontenac County, Peterborough County, Hastings County, Lanark County, Leeds and Grenville United Counties, City…
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GATINEAU – The Competition Bureau announced Monday it has obtained a court order from the Federal Court requiring Rogers to produce records and information relevant to the bureau’s investigation into the wireless provider’s alleged marketing practices, specifically related to its “unlimited” wireless plans.
“The Bureau’s investigation involves claims made by Rogers when promoting its Infinite wireless phone plans. In particular, the Bureau is examining claims that the plans have unlimited data, when there are allegedly significant reductions in data speed, known as throttling, after a subscriber reaches a certain data…
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Rogers and Cogeco urge lowering regulatory burden and need to sustain local news
By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – Representatives from Rogers argued Tuesday that if online streamers are not required to commit a base financial contribution to the enhancement of Canadian content, traditional Canadian broadcasters must not be required to do the same.
Broadcasting distribution undertakings are required to commit a certain percentage of their previous year’s revenues toward Canadian content funds – for example, a chunk of the base 5 per cent goes toward the Canada Media Fund every year. The CRTC is now asking whether it should similarly require a…
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Rogers says being singled out is ‘concerning’
By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – Three days after Rogers closed its acquisition of Shaw, the Competition Bureau launched an investigation into the cable company’s marketing of its “unlimited” wireless plans, saying it is misleading because the speed of the data is throttled after the monthly allotment is used.
The investigation was revealed when the bureau filed a request to the Federal Court this week to compel Rogers to divulge information related to the deceptive practices inquiry, which was launched on April 6.
The competition watchdog claims in its application that Rogers’s marketing of its “Infinite” plans…
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TORONTO – Rogers announced Friday that its 5G network is online for its customers at all remaining stations in the TTC subway system and has improved 911 reliability for all riders.
The service is also available along the Vaughan extension between Sheppard West and Vaughan Metropolitan Centre stations.
“I’m thrilled that our team has completed the upgrade of the legacy network well ahead of schedule,” Ron McKenzie, Rogers chief technology and information officer, said in a press release. “We’re now transitioning to the next critical phase of the project, expanding 5G coverage to connect the remaining 36 kilometers of track.”
The cable…
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CALGARY – Rogers Communications and the City of Calgary announced Tuesday clients of the city’s Fair Entry subsidy program are now eligible for low-cost internet, wireless and TV services through the Rogers Connected for Success program.
“This pilot program with Rogers will increase Calgarians’ access to affordable wireless and internet services, which will open more doors for employment, education, healthcare and more,” Jyoti Gondek, Calgary’s mayor, said Tuesday in a press release.
“Our hope is to partner with other telecommunications companies in the future to give Calgarians a wider choice of service…
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By Ahmad Hathout
Rogers CEO Tony Staffieri said Thursday that the CRTC’s decision to force the large telephone companies to open access to their last mile fibre networks “levels the playing field” with cable carriers who service the bulk of wholesale-based subscribers.
“We’ve been required to wholesale under the regulatory regime high-speed internet for quite some time,” Staffieri said during a third quarter conference call. “So it’s good to see a level playing field.”
The majority of wholesale-based competitors were using the large cable companies’ hybrid fibre-coax networks, which accounts for 75 per cent of all wholesale-based subscriptions, the CRTC said.
The decision…
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TORONTO – Rogers Communications announced Tuesday the launch of its new Connected for Success 5G Mobile Plan, available to eligible low-income Canadians for $25 per month.
The new plan offers 3 GB of 5G data with no overage charges and a no-cost Samsung Galaxy A14 or Motorola G 5G smartphone with financing when eligible subscribers keep their phone for a 24-month term.
Canadians eligible for the plan include people receiving provincial income support or disability benefits, seniors receiving the federal Guaranteed Income Supplement, rent-geared-to-income tenants of a non-profit housing partner organization, recipients of…
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By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – Rogers is arguing that the practice of bulk internet billing deals with residential buildings, which it says has been promoted by the CRTC, does not hamper competition, and in fact provides benefits that push forward the policies promoted by the commission.
Fibre service provider Beanfield filed a Part 1 application in late September asking the CRTC to prohibit Rogers from signing those bulk service agreements because it allegedly limits competition. Beanfield’s reasoning is that the multi-year contracts Rogers and others sign with building developers to provide default internet service disincentivizes switching service providers…
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