Investing in Canada and Canadians: Remarks from President & CEO Tony Staffieri at Canadian Club Toronto  

Thank you to the Canadian Club for inviting me here today. 

It’s hard to believe that it’s been one year since I was last here.  

At the time the ink was still drying on the Shaw transaction, and we were coming out of the regulatory fog we’d been under for a little over two years. 

I remember being both relieved and excited to bring together two iconic, entrepreneurial companies. It was a 20-billion-dollar deal, so this was no small feat. 

Ted Rogers and JR Shaw were pioneers who built Canada’s communications landscape. They were legends in our industry and our country. 

So, it wasn’t lost on Edward and me that we needed to get it right.  

Looking back, it’s hard to believe how much we accomplished. 

We integrated the two companies, delivered one billion dollars in synergy targets and we’re six months ahead of our integration plan.  

Overall, we’re meeting or exceeding our commitments.  I’m incredibly grateful to Edward, our board, and our entire team for their relentless commitment.  

At the same time, we turned around the performance of the company. 

We went from last to leading on most key metrics.  

We delivered nine straight quarters of growth. And we attracted the most internet and postpaid wireless customers in our industry. 

We did this while making record investments in infrastructure and innovation. 

Last year Rogers reinvested 90% of its profits back into Canada – into Canadian networks, Canadian content, and Canadian jobs. 

We’re a proud Canadian company, and we invest for the long-term. 

We just released our first economic impact assessment as a combined company and together we supported 92,000 jobs and contributed $14 billion to Canada’s GDP last year.  

Investing in our networks is the foundation of everything we do.  

Connectivity plays such an integral role in the lives of consumers, businesses, and economies. 

But if I leave you with one thought today, it’s that we’re more than a communications company.  

We’re an entertainment company too. And through our media brands we reach 96% of Canadians. 

We operate where entertainment and connectivity meet. 

Canadians are consuming content and entertainment differently. Try mentioning ‘Must See TV Thursdays’ to your kids and they’ll have no idea what you’re talking about. 

Because they go from live TV to on demand to streaming apps.  

Canadians are chewing up bandwidth like never before. They’re flipping back and forth between Wi-Fi and wireless. 

Content and technology need to be integrated in a seamless way.  

The network running in the background, the technology, it just needs to work. 

The content, it needs to draw the viewer in, and it needs to capture their imagination.   

There’s no point, though, if you can’t find the content. Roughly half of all Canadians say they can’t find the content they’re looking for. 

And that’s where Comcast comes in. 

Last week we announced a 10-year agreement with Comcast to bring world-class Xfinity products to Canadians.  

Comcast is a world leader in technology and Xfinity connects over 50 million homes and businesses globally.   

Their new Entertainment system will bring live sports, entertainment, and news with on demand and streaming apps together into one, simple viewing experience.  

Canadians will spend less time searching, and more time viewing. 

And the foundation for this new experience is 10G internet. It will deliver multi-gigabit speeds, ultra-low latency, and even better reliability, 

With 10G internet, we will bring Canadians the most reliable internet experience. Period. 

And we will converge our 5G network and 10G internet so we can seamlessly connect customers in and out of the home. 

As a sports owner, broadcaster, cable company, internet and wireless provider, we take a macro view.   

It’s why we announced a deal with Amazon and the NHL last week to bring Monday night hockey to Prime Video.  

It will bring the game to more fans, across more devices. And it’s a perfect fit with our Comcast roadmap.  

The world around us is evolving, and we’re evolving with it.  

Thank you.