TALKING POINT
Telus surpasses 8M subscribers, beats rivals in push for new clients.
Telus Corp. attracted and retained more mobile phone customers last quarter than its two main rivals, helping the company surpass the eight million wireless subscriber mark for the first time in its 25-year history.
The Vancouver-based carrier reported Thursday that the 110,000 new net subscribers it gained on its contract and pay-as-you-go plans in the three months ended Dec. 31 had bolstered its total subscriber count to roughly 8.1 million from 7.989 million at the end of its previous quarter. Further, Telus said just 0.94% of its contracts were discontinued — a metric known as churn — during the period, adding that it averaged an alltime company-best attrition rate of 0.93% in 2014
BCE Inc. almost matched Telus’ success in the quarter with roughly 118,000 new postpaid subscribers, but its net 83,500 customer count was hampered by bigger losses in prepaid accounts.
Juggernaut Rogers Communications Inc., which is currently shifting its strategy away from heavy discounts, was the biggest loser of customers in the fourth quarter, shedding a net 47,000 mobilephone users compared with the 5,000 it added during the same period last year. However, Rogers says it generated a sector-leading $67.40 in average revenue per postpaid user.
Telus chief executive Joe Natale credits his company’s steadfast commitment to high-quality service.
Beginning in 2009, Telus has eliminated as many as 30 practices that he says customers deemed to be irritants and replaced them with smoother, more transparent alternatives. These included rewriting confusing fine print, scrapping contract cancellation fees, introducing a flat $35 fee to unlock a phone, and removing device-activation fees
Further, each quarter em- ployees are expected to spend one day at the retail level in search of ways Telus can improve the client experience.
“These ideas over time have ... created a set of values that say our job is to figure out what’s important to customers,” Mr. Natale told the Financial Post Thursday. “And the proof is in the pudding: our churn numbers.”
But Macquarie analyst Greg MacDonald attributes the boost to merely poaching from Rogers, which he says will not last.
“I think the market-share loss for Rogers sustains until Rogers decides to fight back,” said Mr. MacDonald.
“It’s kind of inevitable that Rogers will have to capitulate on price.”
He expects that Rogers may capitulate on price, possibly this summer, when three- and newer two-year plans will reach the end of their contracts. “The double-cohort season is where you’re going to see much more aggressive pricing from everyone,” he said.