Canada's Rogers Communications posted a 17% year-on-year drop in total revenue in the second quarter of 2020 to CAD3.155 billion (USD2.341 billion), largely driven by a 14% fall in Wireless revenue to CAD1.934 billion (with underlying 13%/17% decreases in Wireless service/equipment revenues) resulting from: lower roaming revenue due to global travel restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic, lower mobile data usage as customers spent more time at home on Wi-Fi; decreases in certain fees, partially from waivers provided to customers amid the crisis; reduced sign-ups for both post-paid and pre-paid services with around 90% of Rogers stores temporarily closed due to COVID-19; and lower data overage revenue due to continued adoption of Rogers 'Infinite unlimited' data plans. Roger's Media division saw an even sharper fall in sales, down 50% to CAD296 million mainly resulting from lower advertising revenue and lack of sports-related income. Cable division revenue was more resilient, declining by 3% y-o-y to CAD966 million in the three months to 30 June 2020, influenced by ongoing falls in legacy TV and home phone subscriber bases partially offset by growth in internet and new-generation 'Ignite TV' subscribers.
Consolidated adjusted EBITDA decreased 21% y-o-y in Q2 2020, primarily as a result of lower revenue and higher bad debt expense due to the national economic conditions, and quarterly net income fell 53% to CAD279 million.
Rogers' CEO Joe Natale said: 'As we expected, our second quarter results reflect the economic pressures we saw in our business as Canadians adapted to the challenges of COVID-19. As Canada's business environment slowly improves, we will rely on our strong balance sheet, world-class networks, and leading market share position to support long-term growth … Our priorities in the second half of the year are to drive the competitive benefits and efficiencies from the customer-first and digital initiatives we have accelerated during the pandemic, and to resume growth across our businesses as more of the Canadian economy opens up.'
Thanks to TeleGeography for this industry update