TORONTO — Rogers Communications Inc. is moving to implement a raft of untested initiatives over the coming quarters, a period that could reignite growth for the country's biggest mobile operator — or shape up to be as challenging as the present.
With revenues slowing or even declining in traditional telecom services such as home Internet and rates for cellphone calls, Rob Bruce, head of the Toronto telecom giant's wireless and cable operations, said Monday the company is turning toward three new markets: so-called "machineto-machine" technology; retail transactions made with smartphones; and video consumption over mobile devices.
"At times, people in their day-to-day lives look at our business and they don't see the incredible growth opportunities ahead of us. Today [is] about calling out some of those things that are going to change the shape of our industry," Mr. Bruce said.
Each will reap hundreds of millions in additional revenue, he told the Canadian Telecom Summit here, if consumers and companies can be steered toward the new services. Rogers stock has been plagued this year by investor fears that fortunes are cresting at a company that remains the Canadian wireless market leader by total subscribers but whose position is slipping as refocused chief competitors Telus Corp. and BCE's Bell Mobility steal share while a host of smaller carriers led by Wind Mobile undercut the carrier on price.
Consolidated revenues dipped 1% to $2.954-billion in the latest quarter. At the Rogers annual meeting in April, chief executive Nadir Mohamed braced the market for further pressure. "As we go forward through, let's call it the near term, it's prudent to continue to assume there's going to be pressure on the top line," he said.
Shares in the mobile and cable giant are off more than 10% year-to-date.
Yet a resurgence of growth lies just around the corner, company officials say. Over the next few years, Rogers is looking to ramp up mobile traffic from connected parking meters, remote healthcare-monitoring technology and other automated, or "machine to machine" activity. By 2015, Mr. Bruce said industrywide revenues from "M2M" will amount to $400-million annually.
"Frankly this is just the beginning," he told the conference, adding: "We expect to hold a significant share of this growing market."
With M2M initiatives, Mr. Bruce said a strategy allowing its smartphones to make dayto-day retail transactions is another opportunity.
He said Canadians carry about 100 million credit cards today and 675 million in total, including driver's licences, healthcare and product loyalty cards. All of an individual's information can be housed on a Rogers device via an internal chip. A "rent" can then be charged to banks, governments and other institutions looking to house consumer "credentials" on clients' phones.
One deal has already been signed. In mid-May, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and Rogers announced a plan to launch by year-end a service allowing CIBC Mastercard and Visa holders to pay for small-ticket items by tapping a phone equipped with their encrypted credentials on a terminal at retail locations across the country.
The new service leverages the two credit-card companies' existing tap-and-go terminal network. Mr. Bruce said Rogers hopes to have one million enabled devices in the market by year-end.
Fast-moving events in the distribution of television content online and on mobile devices is another area Rogers eyes to fuel growth. The integrated media and telecom firm is racing against companies such as Netflix Inc. and Google Inc. to establish a video business online.
Mr. Bruce, who likened the pace as "more of a sprint than a marathon," said the company plans to allow "authenticated" customers to access more of its own content via smartphones and laptops — moves that can help drive bandwidth consumption against "capped" plans and, with the right incentives and cost structure, nurture customer loyalty.
It remains "early days" on all three fronts, the executive noted, but the firm is set up for this "next revolution." Will it amount to growth? Analysts says yes, some at least on wireless, the company's biggest unit by revenue.
For 2015, Canaccord Genuity forecasts wireless revenue of $7.3-billion, and consolidated of $12.8-billion. While wireless is expected to rise by $200-million in 2015, consolidated revenue will decline by $300-million, Canaccord says.
Raj Rajput [ MBA ]
Mobile Reviews Expert
On Line Assistence :
Mexico América Móvil ,
Spain Telefónica (Movistar, O2 & Vivo)
France Orange,
Finland/Sweden TeliaSonera,
Saudi Arabia Saudi Telecom Company (STC)
South Africa MTN Group
United Arab Emirates Etisalat ,
India Reliance Communications ,
Germany T-Mobile ,
United States Verizon Wireless ,
Russia MTS ,
United States AT&T Mobility
China China Telecom,
Indonesia Telkomsel,
India Idea Cellular,
India BSNL,
India Tata Teleservices,
Italy Telecom Italia / TIM
Malaysia Maxis Communications
Turkey Turkcell
Qatar Qtel
Mobile Opreter,China China Mobile ,United Kingdom Vodafone,India Airtel,
For Franchisee, call : For Bookings (birthday & marriage party) 
No comments:
Post a Comment