Communications Monitoring Report 2018
Communications Industry Overview: Telecommunications and Broadcasting
i. Overview
Infographic 3.1
Long Description
In 2017:
- Total communications revenues: $67.6 billion
- Growth 2016-2017: 1.5%
- CAGR 2013-2017: 1.9%%
- EBITDA margin of incumbent TSPs: 38.1%
This section gives an overview of the communications industry from 2013 to 2017, and highlights pertinent revenue trends and key industry characteristics. The communications industry encompasses both the broadcasting and telecommunications market sectors. The data presented in this section is retrieved from CRTC sources.
In 2017, the communications industry made a total of $67.6 billion in revenues.Footnote 1 This represents an overall growth of 1.5% from 2016, and an average annual growth of 1.9% since 2013. Additionally, it is worth noting that EBITDA [earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization] margins of incumbent telecommunications service providers (TSPs) dropped for the first time since 2014, to 38.1% (from 39.1% in 2016). More information, including market financial performance, ownership landscape data, and pricing information for rural and urban centres across the country, can be found in the Telecommunications and Broadcasting sections of the 2018 Communications Monitoring Report (CMR).
ii. Revenues
Infographic 3.2
Long Description
| Telecommunications | Broadcasting | |
|---|---|---|
| Percentage of total communications revenues | 74% | 26% |
| 2017 revenues | $50.3 billion | $17.3 billion |
| Growth 2016-2017 | 3.2% | -3.3% |
Revenues are one of the principal means by which to measure the performance of the communications industry. In 2017, communications revenues reached $67.6 billion, see Figure 3.1. Overall, telecommunications revenues consistently increased over the five-year period from 2013 to 2017, which is reflected in total communications revenues’ year-over-year growth. Broadcasting revenues, however, gradually decreased from 2014 to 2017 (see Figure 3.2).
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Source: CRTC data collectionView data
This figure shows revenues from 2013 to 2017 for TSPs and broadcasters (including all Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) revenues and broadcasting distribution undertakings (BDU) revenues).
As seen in the figure above, total revenues increased each year from 2013 to 2017. From 2014 to 2017, the growth came exclusively from the Telecommunications sectors.
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Source: CRTC data collectionView data
Annual revenue growth rates are an indicator of overall broad trends in the communications industry. This graph shows annual revenue growth rates for the telecommunications and broadcasting sectors from 2013 to 2017.
Revenue growth rates followed a similar pattern in both sectors from 2013 to 2014; however, revenue patterns began following opposing trends in 2014. For instance, in 2017, broadcasting revenue growth rates dropped to -3.3%, whereas telecommunications revenue growth rates rose to 3.2%.
Infographic 3.3
Long Description
| Location | 2017 communications revenues by region ($ billions) |
|---|---|
| Atlantic provincesFootnote 2 | 4.1 |
| British Columbia and the NorthFootnote 3 | 8.4 |
| Ontario | 24.5 |
| PrairiesFootnote 4 | 11.9 |
| Quebec | 12.3 |
This infographic excludes revenues generated from discretionary and on-demand television services as well as direct-to-home (DTH) BDU (satellite television) services, because those services are licensed as national services. Those services generated $4.4 billion and $2.0 billion, respectively, in 2017. Estimates were made for companies that were not required to provide provincial and territorial telecommunications data.
The communications industry served over 14 million households and over 1 million businesses in Canada using both landline and wireless facilities. Over 60%, or $37 billion, of all communications services revenues, excluding revenues generated from discretionary and on-demand television services, as well as from DTH BDU services, were generated in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Ontario accounted for 40% of national revenues, leading the country with the highest revenues.
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Source: CRTC data collectionView data
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Source: CRTC data collectionView data
Data includes all communications revenues (wireline and wireless).
Incumbent TSPs are companies which provided local telecommunications services on a monopoly basis prior to the introduction of competition. Cable-based carriers are the former cable monopolies currently providing telecommunications services.
Figure 3.4 compares revenues of the two major types of service providers. Incumbent TSPs and cable-based carriers held the largest portion of total communications revenues (see Figure 3.3). However, the breakdown by sector shows that more than 75% of revenues come from telecommunications services.
From 2013 to 2017, revenues from cable-based carriers and incumbent TSPs, as a percentage of total communications revenues, remained more or less stable at approximately 33% and 49%, respectively. During that period, cable-based carriers’ telecommunications revenues increased on average by 5.5% annually, from $13.8 to $17.1 billion. However, during the same period, resellers had the highest growth, with revenues increasing on average by 7.5% annually, from $1.5 billion in 2012 to $2.0 billion in 2017. BDU revenues for cable-based carriers and other broadcasting providers continued to decrease year over year, with an average five-year decline of 3.5% and 1.4%, respectively.
iii. Financial performance
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Source: CRTC data collectionView data
Canada’s communications services market is dominated by a small number of large ownership groups. The top five groups (Bell, Quebecor, Rogers, Shaw, and TELUS) accounted for approximately 85% of total industry revenues. The next five largest groups/entities accounted for approximately 8%, and all remaining groups/entities accounted for 8%. Revenues include those of the groups’ affiliates. Revenue market share is calculated from exact amounts although the percentages have been rounded and therefore exceed 100%.
Revenues from the top five ownership groups accounted for approximately 85% of total communications revenues in 2017, compared to 81% in 2013. Of these groups of companies, two are incumbent TSP groups (Bell and TELUS) and three are cable carrier groups (Rogers, Shaw, and Quebecor).
Figure 3.6 Cable-based carriers' wireline revenues, by service type
Source: CRTC data collection
Long Description
| Category | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BDU revenues | $5.4 | $5.2 | $5.1 | $4.8 | $4.6 |
| Wireline telecommunications revenues | $6.0 | $6.6 | $6.8 | $7.1 | $7.4 |
| Wireline telecommunications revenues as a percent of total | 53% | 56% | 57% | 60% | 62% |
This bar graph compares cable-based carriers’ wireline revenues from two principal sources: basic and non-basic programming services (i.e. revenues from the distribution of television services), and wireline telecommunications services (i.e. local, long distance, data, private line, and Internet) between 2013 and 2017. This graph excludes revenues from satellite based BDU services and mobile services.
As illustrated, cable-based carriers’ wireline telecommunications services are generating an increasingly important share of total revenues. In 2017, wireline telecommunications revenues represented the largest portion (62%) of cable-based carriers’ total revenues.
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Source: CRTC data collectionView data
This bubble chart measures the Canadian broadcasting and telecommunications revenue composition for eight large company groups for 2017. Revenue size of each company group, relative to each other, is reflected by the size of the bubble. The revenue composition is represented by the placement of the bubble. Company groups with revenues that are telecom centric are placed closer to the y-axis, while company groups that are broadcasting centric are placed closer to the x-axis. Largest to smallest: Bell Group, Rogers Group, Telus Group, Shaw Group, Quebecor Group, Cogeco Group, SaskTel. Y-axis (telecom centric) to X-axis (broadcasting centric) : Telus Group, Sasktel, Bell Group, Rogers Group, Quebecor Group, Cogeco Group, Shaw Group.
Many of Canada’s largest communications service providers offer telecommunications services as well as broadcasting services. This graph plots the total revenues of these providers by size (the larger the circle, the greater the company’s revenue) and by industry (proximity to an axis indicates a larger share of revenue derived from that industry service).
As seen in Figure 3.7, the Bell Group holds the largest portion of revenues overall, followed by the Rogers Group. The Telus Group has the highest portion of revenues on the telecommunications front and the Shaw Group takes the lead in broadcasting revenue shares.
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Source: CRTC data collectionView data
This graph shows earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) margins for cable-based carriers, incumbent TSPs, and other service providers (including resellers and other alternative facilities-based service providers) for BDU and telecommunications services for the period from 2014 to 2017. EBITDA margin is a measure of profitability. Higher EBITDA margins are generally associated with greater profitability. Only companies with Canadian communications revenues greater than 80% of their total revenues were included in the calculation of EBITDA. Other service providers include resellers and facilities-based service providers that are neither Incumbents nor cable-carriers.
The figure demonstrates an extreme jump in the EBITDA margins of other service providers; this was due mainly to some companies reporting “extraordinary accounting items” in their income statements in 2015; it does not represent a change in their position in the market. The drop in 2016 was due to the reclassification of companies as a result of merger and acquisition activities.
Extraordinary accounting items can include a gain or loss from a sale of assets, a write-off and other non-recurring items.
In 2017, EBITDA margins for other service providers stabilized. EBITDA margins increased for cable-based carriers and decreased for incumbent TSPs for the first time in three years.
iv. Industry characteristics
The communications industry is made up of telecommunications and broadcasting services and each sector outputs a certain degree of revenues. Service providers’ revenues are divvied up according to the sector and the largest portion tends to come from telecommunications services. This section observes service providers’ revenues from each sector.
Infographic 3.4 Industry convergence – cable-based carriers versus incumbent TSPs
Long Description
| 2013 | 2017 | |
|---|---|---|
| Percentage of cable-based carriers’ revenues from telecommunications services | 69.2 | 76.3 |
| Percentage of incumbent TSPs’ revenues from broadcasting distribution services | 8.6 | 9.8 |
As seen in Infographic 3.4 , telecommunications services continue to earn cable-based carriers a majority of their revenues, which gradually increase year after year (see Open Data). Telecommunications services include local telephone, long distance, Internet, data and private line, and wireless services. On the contrary, the portion of incumbent TSPs’ revenues from broadcasting services decreased in 2017 for the first time in the previous five years. Overall, the figure illustrates one measure of the state of convergence in the industry between 2013 and 2017.
| Number of sectors in which companies offer service | Number of reporting groups or entities operating in these sectors | Percentage of broadcasting and telecommunications revenues generated in these sectors | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | |
| 10 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 59 | 60 | 62 |
| 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 30 | 29 | 29 |
| 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | 17 | 18 | 16 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 4 | 27 | 35 | 29 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 3 | 39 | 43 | 73 | 4 | 5 | 4 |
| 2 | 45 | 42 | 47 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 1 | 220 | 212 | 218 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
The table above shows that three communications service providers offered services in all 10 sectors of the communications industry: radio, television, BDU, discretionary and on demand television, local and access, long distance, Internet, wireless, data, and private line, and generated 62% of communications revenues. In contrast, 218 providers that offered only one service generated 2% of communications revenues.
The communications industry is still highly integrated, with the vast majority of revenues generated by companies operating in eight or more sectors.
v. Consumer voices
Infographic 3.5
Long Description
Change in number of broadcasting and telecommunications complaints received
- Broadcasting: -22%
- Telecommunications: -5%
The latest reported CRTC complaints data shows that the number of telecommunications-related complaints received decreased by 5% when compared to previous year, while broadcasting-related complaints decreased by 22%. Data on complaints to the CCTSFootnote 5 can be found in the Telecommunications Overview.
| Type of contact | 2012-2013 | 2013-2014 | 2014-2015 | 2015-2016 | 2016-2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Broadcasting-related contacts | 18,272 | 14,652 | 14,269 | 12,898 | 10,123 |
| Broadcasting-related complaints | 12,202 | 9,778 | 9,579 | 8,317 | 6,879 |
For the 12-month period from 1 September to 31 August.
| Type of contact | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Telecommunications-related contacts | 25,153 | 27,077 | 23,453 | 18,243 | 16,805 |
| Telecommunications-related complaints | 18,624 | 19,818 | 16,613 | 11,724 | 11,142 |
For the 12-month period from 1 January to 31 December.
| Type of contact | 2013-2014 | 2014-2015 | 2015-2016 | 2016-2017 | 2017-2018 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electronic commerce-related submissions (Spam Reporting Centre) | N/A | 264,821 | 291,145 | 373,943 | 343,799 |
| Telecommunications-related complaints (Unsolicited Telecommunications Rules) | 113,641 | 107,293 | 129,984 | 79,417 | 95,978 |
For the 12 month period from 1 April to 31 March.
The Spam Reporting Centre (SRC) began collecting data in July 2014.
For detailed information on Unsolicited Telecommunications Rules (UTR) complaints, see the National Do Not Call List (DNCL) report.
Source: CRTC correspondence tracking system, Spam Reporting Centre, and Unsolicited Telecommunications Rules database
Contacts refers to the total number of cases (comments, questions, complaints, campaigns, and petitions) that were assigned to and dealt with by Client Services across Canada. Complaints refers to a consumer lodging a complaint, expecting feedback and resolution. Submissions refers to the total number of submissions and reports from Canadians sent to the Spam Reporting Centre.
The CRTC tracking system counts multiple communications from the same client regarding the same complaint as separate units; therefore, the number of actual complaints received may be slightly lower.
Contents of the Report
- Communications Services in Canadian Households: Subscriptions and Expenditures 2012-2016
- Communications Services Pricing in Canada
- Communications Industry Overview: Telecommunications and Broadcasting
- Telecommunications Overview
- Retail Fixed Internet Sector and Broadband Availability
- Retail Mobile Sector
- Broadcasting Overview
- Radio Sector
- Television Sector
- Broadcasting Distribution Sector
Go directly to:
| Report Section | Open Data |
|---|---|
| Communications Services in Canadian Households: Subscriptions and Expenditures 2012-2016 | Households data |
| Communications Services Pricing in Canada | Pricing data |
| Communications Industry Overview: Telecommunications and Broadcasting | Industry overview data |
| Telecommunications Overview | Telecommunications Overview data |
| Retail Fixed Internet Sector and Broadband Availability | Internet data |
| Retail Mobile Sector | Mobile data |
| Broadcasting Overview | Broadcasting Data |
| Radio Sector | |
| Television Sector | |
| Broadcasting Distribution |
- Date modified: