Shaw reports Q1 revenue decrease as it waits to face the Federal Court of Appeal

Shaw added thousands of new wireless customers in the first quarter of 2023, its financial results show.

The company, which offers its services in Ontario, Alberta and B.C., has 13,800 wireless customers. Most of them (12,300) are prepaid, and only 1,500 are postpaid, a sharp decrease from the 36,000 added year-over-year. Shaw blames the latter figure partially on increased competition and a higher churn rate, which refers to customers who stopped doing business with the company.

Subscriber growth contributed to wireless service revenue growing by 5.4 percent. On the wireline side, Shaw lost approximately 52,800 customers, and revenue decreased by 2.7 percent.

The company reports $1.37 billion in total revenue, a 1.2 percent decrease compared to the first quart of 2022.

Rogers-Shaw merger

The merger is set to face the Federal Court of Appeal on January 24th, based on the Competition Bureau’s challenge to block the merger.

The Commissioner of Competition has until the 13th to file his arguments. Shaw, Rogers, and Québecor must provide a reply by the 17th. Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) also needs to provide approval, and Minister François-Philippe Champagne said he’ll wait to see how the legal proceedings play out before sharing anything.

The Freedom Mobile transaction, which will see Québecor subsidiary Vidéotron acquire Freedom Mobile, also faces regulatory approval from the Commissioner of Competition and ISED. The merger can only close if Rogers’ takeover of Shaw is approved.

The proposed closing date for the Rogers-Shaw transaction has been extended to January 31st.

But the date could be extended due to the current appeal and ISED’s decision. However, Vidéotron will have to “consent” to the expansion, Shaw stated in its financial results.

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Source: Shaw