Bell Canada’s EBITDA up 3.3% on 4.5% sales hike

Quadruple-play telecoms group Bell Canada’s revenues increased by 4.5% year-on-year in the second quarter to CAD3.79 billion (USD3.73 billion), as growth in its wireless and pay-TV subsidiaries more than offset declining wireline turnover. Bell’s operating income increased by 30.6% year-on-year to CAD820 million in the three months to the end of June 2010 due to lower restructuring and other costs and lower depreciation and amortisation of intangible assets. EBITDA rose by 3.3% y-o-y to CAD1.50 billion in 2Q10, driven by higher sales, improved cost management and lower pension expense. Bell’s wireline segment had local access line net losses of 129,000 in the quarter, an improvement of 2.6% compared to losses a year ago, whilst its high speed fixed internet subscribers decreased by a net 4,000 in the three-month period, compared to a net increase of 2,000 in the year-ago quarter. Things were better in the wireless sector, where, driven by the launch of a nationwide HSPA+ network last November, Bell Mobility’s post-paid net mobile customer activations in April-June 2010 reached 103,000, 60.1% higher than the take-up rate achieved in 2Q09.