ST. JOHN’S – Phil Keeping, proud Newfoundlander and founder of cable companies including N1 Cable TV and Cable Bahamas, died suddenly in Mount Pearl, NL on December 9. He was 65. He fell from a mechanical scissor lift inside a Harley Davidson dealership he owned, reportedly while changing a light fixture.
Keeping was involved in the telecommunications and cable TV industry for more than four decades. After starting his career in the early 1970s as a coast guard in the telecommunications group of Transport Canada, he left to found N1 Cable TV Ltd. in 1986 which, in partnership with Canadian Satellite Communications (Cancom), delivered television services to 220 small, rural communities in Newfoundland.
Between 1988 and 1991, Keeping expanded N1 Cable TV to New Brunswick before disposing of his interests in the Newfoundland systems to form Cable 2000 Inc. He grew that company into the second largest cable TV operator in New Brunswick over the following three years, largely through his construction of the first fibre ring in the province.
In the late summer of 1994, Keeping sold those interests to Fundy Cable Ltd. and turned his focus to the development of cable television systems in the Caribbean. He founded Cable Bahamas Ltd. and, amidst fierce competition from large, established American MSOs, won an exclusive cable TV license from the Government of the Bahamas.
Keeping served as president and CEO of Cable Bahamas for more than 10 years before moving on to pursue other business interests in Canada and Florida. He returned to Cable Bahamas to assume the position of chairman of the board in early 2010.
Ted Boyle, a long-time colleague and friend of Keeping’s, said that the television service business was “in his blood”, recalling a story of how a young Keeping and his father erected their own CBC re-broadcast transmitter to provide service to their remote hometown of Rencontre East.
“This guy wrote the small community cable story”, Boyle told Cartt.ca. “This was a man who basically proved the concept because of his effort and his commitment. He was committed to extending service and making it work, both from a technical and marketing point of view, and he made it work and it resulted in Regional Cablesystems which became Persona, which became the sixth biggest cable company. And it was all thanks to his early work on the ground in Newfoundland.”
Brendan Paddick, head of Columbus Communications, has known Keeping for 28 years after starting his career as a door-to-door salesman for N1 Cable TV in 1985.
“The first time I met Phil was on the side of the highway in Placentia, Newfoundland and he came down off a pole but couldn’t shake my hand because his hands were bleeding”, he told Cartt.ca. “He was the president of N1 at the time, but that’s who he was: hands on, always tinkering with something, never asking for help.”
Paddick, who continued to work alongside Keeping at Regional Cablesystems, Persona Communications and Cable Bahamas, described Keeping as “a gentle giant” who lived by a mantra of “build it once, build it right”.
“He may not have been a household name like other cable pioneers… but if you really think of the definition of a pioneer, Phil’s picture should be right by it." – Brendan Paddick
“Basically Phil was just a guy that made a pie out of out of everybody else’s scraps. In many respects, he paved the dusty information highway in not only the rural parts of Canada but even in the Caribbean.
“He may not have been a household name like other cable pioneers who have served large metropolitan areas and tend to name companies after themselves… but if you really think of the definition of a pioneer, Phil’s picture should be right by it. Phil Keeping is the guy who was in Hudson Bay checking his trap line versus the guy that flew over from London on the Concorde. You know, the real pioneer.”
A statement issued by Cable Bahamas described Keeping as "a true gentleman and friend".
"During his lengthy career, Mr. Keeping impressed many as an accomplished leader and visionary", that statement continues. "While his technology expertise was remarkable, his true legacy will be the meaningful impact he had on the scores of people with whom he interacted. Whether it was the gardener maintaining the grounds of the company, his management team who daily sought his counsel, the shareholders of the company who looked to him for his guidance and acumen, or national leaders seeking knowledge and proficiency, all were impressed by his integrity, sincerity and genuineness. Phil's unassuming manner and his ability to convey assurance and calm will be fondly remembered and missed by many."
"He was a giant of a man in many ways, a real friend and inspirational mentor", added Anthony Butler, Cable Bahamas' president and CEO.
Keeping is survived by his wife Eleanor; their children Kimberly, Eleanor, Gerald and Kenneth; and six grandchildren. He is resting at Carnell’s Funeral Home, 329 Freshwater Road in St. John’s on Thursday from 2:00 – 4:00 PM and 7:00 – 9:00 PM. The service will be held on Friday, December 13 at 11:00 AM from the Anglican Parish of St. Mary the Virgin, Cornwall Crescent.
A statement issued by Keeping’s family described him as “a relentless promoter of the importance of education for the young people in his life”. In recognition of this, donations to THRIVE's educational initiatives (c/o P.O. Box 26067, St. John’s, NL, A1E 0A5) would be gratefully accepted.
