Despite racking up its best second quarter in almost two decades, the head of Montreal telecom giant BCE Inc. is calling on the federal government for “urgent” assistance to prop up its money-losing broadcasting and media divisions..The company, which owns Bell Media — which in turn owns CTV, iHeart Radio and Crave — reported $6.1 billion in Q2 operating revenue on Thursday, up from $5.86 billion a year earlier. .Adjusted net earnings of $722 million, or 79 cents per share, compared with $791 million or 87 cents per share a year earlier, but still managed to handily meet analyst expectations of about 68 cents..All-in-all, BCE’s telecom division reported its best second quarter for new subscribers in 18 years — a quarter which saw it fire 1,300 workers, close six radio stations and shutter two foreign news bureaus despite taking more than $122 million in Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy during the pandemic, all the while increasing dividends to shareholders..Indeed, it was on the media side where it warned of future “cost restructuring” in the face of “a prolonged advertising slump with no signs of immediate recovery,” according to CFO Glen LeBlanc..On a conference call with analysts, CEO Mirko Bibic urged the federal government to accelerate reforms to the country’s media laws. In June — the same day it announced the layoffs — Bell asked the CRTC to waive local news and programming requirements for its TV stations, saying the rules are “based on outdated market realities.”.“On the media front, more needs to be done by the CRTC faster. The ecosystem in Canada is under severe stress and requires urgent government assistance,” Bibic said. “The regulatory playing field does not present an environment where the same rules apply to all.”.He added the company continues to “closely monitor” Bills C-11 — which gives the CRTC power to regulate social media — and C-18, the Online News Act that became law earlier this summer..“But what's encouraging to see is the federal government trying to help out on the news side of things and the industry at large pushing back into very aggressive moves by Meta and Google,” he added. "More needs to be done.".Bell Media’s advertising revenue was down 9% year-over-year in the quarter, partially offset by a 20% jump in digital revenue which now comprises a third of the company’s total media revenue.
Despite racking up its best second quarter in almost two decades, the head of Montreal telecom giant BCE Inc. is calling on the federal government for “urgent” assistance to prop up its money-losing broadcasting and media divisions..The company, which owns Bell Media — which in turn owns CTV, iHeart Radio and Crave — reported $6.1 billion in Q2 operating revenue on Thursday, up from $5.86 billion a year earlier. .Adjusted net earnings of $722 million, or 79 cents per share, compared with $791 million or 87 cents per share a year earlier, but still managed to handily meet analyst expectations of about 68 cents..All-in-all, BCE’s telecom division reported its best second quarter for new subscribers in 18 years — a quarter which saw it fire 1,300 workers, close six radio stations and shutter two foreign news bureaus despite taking more than $122 million in Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy during the pandemic, all the while increasing dividends to shareholders..Indeed, it was on the media side where it warned of future “cost restructuring” in the face of “a prolonged advertising slump with no signs of immediate recovery,” according to CFO Glen LeBlanc..On a conference call with analysts, CEO Mirko Bibic urged the federal government to accelerate reforms to the country’s media laws. In June — the same day it announced the layoffs — Bell asked the CRTC to waive local news and programming requirements for its TV stations, saying the rules are “based on outdated market realities.”.“On the media front, more needs to be done by the CRTC faster. The ecosystem in Canada is under severe stress and requires urgent government assistance,” Bibic said. “The regulatory playing field does not present an environment where the same rules apply to all.”.He added the company continues to “closely monitor” Bills C-11 — which gives the CRTC power to regulate social media — and C-18, the Online News Act that became law earlier this summer..“But what's encouraging to see is the federal government trying to help out on the news side of things and the industry at large pushing back into very aggressive moves by Meta and Google,” he added. "More needs to be done.".Bell Media’s advertising revenue was down 9% year-over-year in the quarter, partially offset by a 20% jump in digital revenue which now comprises a third of the company’s total media revenue.
