By Ahmad Hathout
Quebecor CEO Pierre Karl Peladeau said Thursday that the CRTC must ensure that the final last mile fibre access rates are set appropriately to bolster competition.
Since the CRTC’s decision Monday to allow wholesalers to force negotiations for access on the last bit of Bell’s and Telus’s fibre network to the home, the competitors have been concerned about the rate set for the temporary regime. Some say while it is an important step forward, those interim rates are still significantly higher than what the telcos sell their own services at.
“We are happy that the CRTC has announced its long-awaited decision on [fibre-to-the-home] wholesale rates, which will foster and enhanced competition in Quebec and Ontario,” Peladeau said on the company’s third quarter conference call.
“But it will be essential that these rates continue to be reflective of Bell’s true cost. We hope that the rate that the commission will approve, on a final basis, will consider the fact that Bell continues to offer its 1.5 Gig access in Quebec at a retail price of $65 while Bell has filed to the CRTC $108 for the rate for the same access.”
In the immediate aftermath of the CRTC’s decision, Bell announced it was significantly cutting its fibre deployment spending, after its CEO said the telco slowed down its progress on the fibre last mile due to uncertainty on the regulatory front.
Quebecor’s revenues were up to $1.4 billion for the period ending September 30, higher than the $1.1 billion from the same period last year. That was boosted by its acquisition of Freedom Mobile. Net income was also up to $209 million, compared to the $181 million last year.
Mobile wireless carried, seeing a boom in revenue to $412 million for the quarter, more than double the $201 million it made in the same period last year. That would owe to the acquisition of Freedom, which the company said has done well since introducing new plans over the past couple of months.
Internet revenues were also up if just slightly, to $323 million compared to $315 million it made in the same period last year.
Television revenues were flat at $201 million, while home phone was down a bit to $69 million compared to the $72.3 million last year.
Because of the Freedom acquisition, the company’s Videotron subsidiary saw its total sub base balloon to 3.7 million mobile wireless subscribers, up from the 1.7 million it claimed in the same period last year.
The company added 88,700 subscribers in the quarter, well above the 36,300 it added in the same period last year and a year-over-year increase of 177,100.
Mobile wireless average revenue per user was down $2.30 to $37.60 in the quarter.
The internet base was also up to 1.72 million compared to the 1.68 million over the same period, which translates to an increase of 4,500 in the quarter and a year-over-year increase of 23,000.
The television base was down slightly to 1.36 million compared to 1.4 million, translating to a decrease of 12,000 in the quarter and a year-over-year decrease of 39,600.
Home phone declined to a total base of 692,000 compared to the 770,000 it had last year, representing a decrease of 20,200 in the quarter and a year-over-year decline of 78,000.
The company reported media division revenues were down year-over-year to $166 million in the quarter compared to the $170 million it bagged in the equivalent period.
Last week, Quebecor’s TVA announced it was eliminating 547 jobs, or 31 per cent of its workforce, due in large part to the continued deterioration of the advertising market.
The company reported Thursday that most of the costs associated with the restructuring will be recognized next quarter.
Photo of Quebecor CEO Pierre Karl Peladeau.
