In its year-end financial report for 2017, Videotron parent company Quebecor reported the carrier added 130,100 connections to its mobile telephony service, an increase of 14.6 percent year over the year.
Videotron also added 46,900 subscribers to over-the-top streaming video service Club illico, and there was a net increase of 53,700 subscribers to cable internet access, the largest annual increase since 2013.
Overall, Quebecor (which includes media subsidiary TVA Group) reported revenues of $4.12 billion CAD, up $105.8 million (or 2.6 percent) from fiscal 2016.
After costs and expenses, the company’s adjusted operating income came to $1.59 billion, up $99.3 million (6.6 percent) over last year — the largest increase since 2009.
A considerable part of the increase is attributable to Quebecor’s telecom business, which grew its revenues by $133.3 million (4.2 percent) and its adjusted operating income by $84.6 million (5.8 percent) in 2017.
Within Videotron, the greatest annual revenue growth was seen by Club illico, which increased by $8.3 million (up 26.4 percent over the previous year). Meanwhile, mobile telephony increased by $99.4 million (19.5 percent), internet access by $52.2 million (5.3 percent) and business solutions by $13.4 million (12.1 percent).
Over the year, Videotron’s average monthly revenue per user went up by nearly $10, now at $154.59 from $144.86 in 2016.
Quebecor further made note of the profit from its spectrum sales this year. It realized a $243.1 million gain from its July 2017 sale of seven 2500MHz and 700MHz spectrum licenses to Shaw, and an $87.8 million gain from its June 2017 sale of Toronto AWS spectrum to Rogers.
As for the fourth quarter specifically, revenue came in at $1.06 billion, up $8.8 million from the same time the previous year, while operating income is $411.9 million.
Within the quarter, the carrier gained 33,700 mobile telephony connections, 12,400 subscriptions to cable internet and 14,200 memberships in Club illico.
“The Corporation now has more than $2.0 billion in available liquidity, placing it in a powerful position in a highly competitive environment,” said Quebecor president and CEO Pierre Karl Péladeau in a press statement.
“Our excellent financial position will enable us to continue investing in Videotron’s wired and wireless networks, in Comcast Corporation’s XFINITY X1 platform, and in the process of repurchasing the Quebecor Media Common Shares held by CDP Capital d’Amérique Investissement.”
In November 2017, Videotron announced that it has passed the 1 millionth wireless subscriber mark. The company launched its wireless network in 2010.
Source: Quebecor
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