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Rogers Expected to Beat Telus and Bell in Q4 Wireless Growth

6:00 am on January 5, 2009 | Category: Business, Telecom Services, Wireless

Canadian cable and telecom giant, Rogers Communications, experienced the strongest wireless subscriber growth in the fourth quarter of 2008, and will likely gain market share as a result, according to a research note by UBS analyst, Jeffrey Fan.

The company’s wireless businesses, Rogers Wireless and Fido, added a combined total of 185,000 postpaid customers in Q4, according to Fan’s forecast. Subscriber growth likely benefited from Rogers decision to rebrand Fido as a discount cell phone service, offering plans from $15 per month with no system access fee.

Vancouver-based Telus Corp., which launched its own discount wireless brand (Koodo) earlier in the year, added an estimated 117,000 postpaid subscribers in Q4, and will maintain its market share, Fan said.

Canada’s third-largest wireless provider, Bell Canada, will turn out to be the big loser for the all-important fourth quarter, Fan predicted, estimating that the company added just 76,000 new postpaid customers during the three-month period.

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