MONTREAL – It’s hoped that today’s quarterly financial report is the final one Bell Canada Enterprises has to make public, as the giant telco has almost finished the work to become a private company.
But since that’s not done yet, the company released decent results for the first quarter of 2008, ended March 31st.
"During the quarter, we made good progress on the completion of the privatization transaction and delivered solid financial results, consistent with our plan for the year," said Michael Sabia, CEO. "With respect to the privatization transaction, the Québec Superior Court approved the plan of arrangement…
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IN A WIRELESS MARKET crowded with canines (Fido), assorted other creatures (the bugs, birds and lizards of Telus; Bell’s beavers) and the big red machine (Rogers), Koodo’s multicolored leg warmers and goofy re-creation of “The 20-Minute Workout” stand out.
Deliberately positioned as a low-cost, no-frills wireless brand, Koodo invites customers to trim fat like excess applications, features and contracts, from their wireless service plans – and therefore their monthly bills.
Launched just over a month ago, Koodo has been hard to ignore with its kooky name and weirdly funny ad campaign (seriously, where’s Olivia Newton-John and ‘Let’s get Physical’?)…
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TORONTO – Limited in our questions as we were (no talking about iPhone, no talking about the advanced wireless spectrum auction), here’s a pretty good taste of what we media types who cover Rogers Communications asked about during Tuesday’s press conference just prior to the RCI AGM (we omitted the questions about the Blue Jays and their dismal start to the season, however). ************* About the AWS auction, and the fact they wouldn’t talk about it, said CEO Ted Rogers: “If you’re going to bid on a Rembrandt, you don’t want to talk about it ahead of time.” *************…
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TORONTO – With Rogers Communications saying this week it will release Apple’s iPhone into the Canadian market this year some time, just who will those buyers be?
According to research firm Solutions Research Group and its Fast Forward report, the buyers will be richer than average men.
SRG says 61% of the buyers will be male – with an average age of 29 and that 54% of them will live in Ontario. As well, look for some existing cell contracts to be torn up as over 30% of the iPhone’s buyers are said to be existing Bell and Telus…
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TORONTO – Rogers Communications has elected Isabelle Marcoux to the company’s board of directors.
She is vice-chair of the board, and vice-president, corporate development, of Transcontinental Inc. of Montreal, the company which prints Rogers Media’s magazines. Marcoux has a Bachelor of Economics and a degree in law from McGill University and in 2007, she was honoured as one of Canada’s Top 40 Under 40.
"We are pleased to welcome Isabelle to the Rogers’ Board of Directors," said Alan Horn, Rogers’ board chair. "Isabelle’s background and extensive experience as an executive and as a director will be an asset to…
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TORONTO – Ted Rogers said today the Apple iPhone will be released this year by his company and Apple this year, but he can’t say when.
“We’re thrilled to announce that we have a deal with Apple to bring the iPhone to Canada later this year,” said Rogers, founder and CEO of Rogers Communications. “We can’t tell you any more about it right now, but stay tuned.”
www.rogers.com
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TORONTO – Rogers Communications first quarter results met analyst expecations, showing good growth in all units.
RCI’s consolidated revenue climbed 14% to $2.6 billion in the first quarter, ended March 31st while adjusted operating profit rose 21% to $984 million, and net income 102% to $344 million.
Cable subscribers continued to grow, thanks to home phone additions and Rogers Wireless postpaid net subscriber additions were 97,000 in the quarter, with ARPU up 7% and churn down to 1.1%;
"This was a robust start to 2008 both operationally and financially for which I’m thankful to our loyal customers and our thousands…
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KAMLOOPS – RTNDA Canada, The Association of Electronic Journalists has honoured its best in electronic journalism in the B.C. region in 2007.
RTNDA Canada presented the RTNDA Awards at the B.C. Region Pro Dev Seminar & Awards Banquet this weekend in Kamloops, B.C.
"Congratulations to all the winners" said RTNDA President Bob McLaughlin. "This is an incredible accomplishment and it shows that quality journalism is thriving in Canada." The B.C. Regional winners go on to compete for the RTNDA National Awards to be presented at the RTNDA National Conference in Ottawa on June 21, 2008.
The 2007 TELEVISION winners…
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GATINEAU – Of all the submissions we’ve heard over the past three weeks, Channel Zero’s boiled the issues down very well, kicking of its oral remarks on Wednesday.
Cal Millar, vice-president and general manager of the company which owns Silver Screen Classics and Movieola said he believes the hearing is about Canadian programming and the fact that the consumer doesn’t really care about all the machinations going on within the CRTC or any of the broadcast and distribution companies.
“Canadians don’t say to themselves: ‘I want to spend money on cable or satellite’,” explained Millar. “They say ‘I want…
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WHERE IS JIM SHAW? is what CRTC chairman Konrad von Finckenstein wanted to know Wednesday morning when he moseyed into the hearing room in Gatineau and spied the Shaw Communications panel, minus its CEO, facing him.
It’s more than a fair question. The Shaw Communications CEO has lobbed several virtual grenades into Ottawa of late, most notably challenging the existence of the Canadian Television Fund throughout 2007, and then declining to appear at the hearing into the CTF earlier this year – telling a newspaper that since von Finckenstein wasn’t leading that hearing, it amounted to a Commission…
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