Rogers' profit up 23%; 3G users now account for a third of contracts

Canadian quad-play operator Rogers Communications has posted a 23% year-on-year rise in consolidated net income for the three months ending 31 March 2010 to CAD380 million (USD375 million), on revenues that climbed 5% y-o-y to CAD2.89 billion. Operating income in the first quarter of 2010 was CAD1.12 billion, up by 4% compared to the same period of 2009. A highlight of Rogers’ first-quarter report was its year-on-year wireless data revenue growth of 40%. Wireless data services accounted for 26% of the company’s overall mobile revenues in the three-month period, whilst it activated or upgraded 348,000 gross additional smartphone devices on its 3G network during the quarter, of which approximately 35% were for subscribers new to Rogers’ wireless services. The figures resulted in smartphone users representing 33% of Rogers’ overall post-paid subscriber base at 31 March 2010, up from 23% at end-March 2009, whilst these users generated ARPU nearly twice that of voice-only subscribers in 1Q10.