Business
Growth in cable and radio fuels COGECO results
Growth in cable and radio fuels COGECO results.
About this update from Cogeco Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"\n\n\n\n\nMONTREAL, Jan. 12 /CNW Telbec/ - Today, COGECO Inc. (TSX: CGO.SV)\nannounced its financial results for the first quarter ended November 30, 2005.\nIn the first quarter, net income is up by 47.4% to $4.6 million compared\nto the same period last year. This increase is mainly attributable to the\ncable sector, which benefits from increased digital video services, high-speed\nInternet (HSI) and digital telephony penetration as well as rate increases. On\nthe media side, the increase is due to higher radio advertising revenue.\n\nCogeco Cable demonstrates strong internal growth\n\nFor the first quarter of 2006, net additions of Cogeco Cable basic\ncustomers were approximately 10,900 compared to about 7,700 for the same\nperiod last year. The sustained appetite for digital video and HSI services\ncontinues to prevail as shown by over 21,000 digital video customer additions\nand close to 23,000 HSI customer additions during the quarter. As for digital\ntelephony, at the end of the first quarter, 6,900 clients subscribed to this\nnew service and 2,200 installations were pending.\nFurthermore, with the addition of current and classic movie titles from\nWarner Bros. International Television Distribution, Cogeco Cable's video-on-\ndemand subscribers now enjoy access to movies representing about 60% of\ndomestic box office receipts.\n\"In our cable subsidiary, the first quarter showed strong marks in\nattracting customers and improving financial results. Demand for Cogeco\nCable's products and services continues to prevail in our markets as customers\nshow increasing interest for our triple-play bundled offer,\" explained\nMr. Audet, President and Chief Executive Officer of COGECO Inc.\n\nCogeco Radio-Television Inc.\n\nThe first quarter shows progress in the media sector. All COGECO radio\nstations show notable improvement in advertising revenue, while the\nadvertising market remains difficult for conventional television in the\nFrancophone market. \"Our RYTHME FM station in MontrDeal continues to lead the\nmarket and we are very proud of that. Furthermore, the other Company's radio\nstations performed according to our expectations. As for the television side,\nTQS continues to be a challenge, but we foresee improvements as a result of an\nincrease in programming investments,\" concluded Mr. Audet.\n\n>\n\n10. Comparative figure...