Wikipedia

Shaw Communications

Shaw Communications Inc.was aCanadiantelecommunicationscompany which provided telephone, Internet, television, and mobile services. The company was founded in 1966 as Capital Cable Television Company, Ltd. byJR Shawin Edmonton. The company was acquired by and amalgamated intoRogers Communicationsin 2023; most operations were rebranded to the Rogers brand beginning in July of that year, with services and sponsorships in former Shaw markets having used the transitional brandRogers together with Shawfor promotional purposes.[4][5]

Shaw Communications Inc.
FormerlyCapital Cable Television Company, Ltd. (1966–1983)
Shaw Cablesystems Ltd. (1983–1993)
Company typePublic
TSX:SJR.A (Class A) (voting) (1983-2023)
TSX: SJR.B (Class B) (non-voting) (1983-2023)
NYSE:SJR (until 2023)
IndustryTelecommunications
Founded1966;59 years ago(1966)(as Capital Cable Television Company, Ltd.)
Edmonton,Alberta,Canada
FounderJR Shaw
DefunctApril 3, 2023;22 months ago(2023-04-03)
FateAcquired and amalgamated; operations rebranded beginning July 2023
SuccessorRogers Communications
Headquarters
Calgary,Alberta
,
Canada
Key people
ProductsCable television,high speed internet,telephone,satellite television,network and specialty broadcasting, logistics tracking, radio
RevenueIncreaseCAD$5.509 billion(2021)[3]
IncreaseCAD $2.161 billion(2019)[1]
IncreaseCAD $986 million(2021)[3]
Number of employees
9,500 (2020)
ParentShawcor(1966–1970s)
DivisionsShaw Broadcast Services,Shaw Direct
SubsidiariesFreedom Mobile(2015–2023)
Shaw Mobile(Acquired byRogers Wireless)
ASN
Websitewww.shaw.caEdit this at Wikidata
Shaw Communications logo, used from 1993 to 1997
Shaw Communications logo, used from 1997 to 2012

At the time of its acquisition by Rogers, Shaw provided home telecommunications services primarily in Alberta andBritish Columbiaandsatellite televisionnationally. It also operated smallercable televisionsystems inSaskatchewan,Manitoba,andNorthern Ontario.

The company also provided mobile services through its subsidiaryFreedom Mobile,under both the Freedom andShaw Mobilebrands, in areas of Alberta, British Columbia, andSouthern Ontario;Freedom was sold toVidéotronsimultaneously with the Rogers merger. The company's chief competitor for home telecommunications inwestern CanadawasTelus Communications.

History

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Shaw was founded in 1966 byJR ShawasCapital Cable Television Company, Ltd.inEdmonton,Alberta.[6]It was originally a subsidiary ofShawcor,JR's father's firm, but the business was split from Shawcor in the 1970s.[7][8]The company changed its name to Shaw Cablesystems Ltd. (after founder and chairman JR Shaw) and went public on theTSXin 1983. The company grew during the 1980s and 1990s through acquisitions of firms includingClassicommin the Toronto area,Access Communicationsin Nova Scotia,Fundy Cablein New Brunswick,Trillium Cablein Ontario, Telecable inSaskatchewan,[9]Greater Winnipeg Cablevision[10](serving areas east of the Red River), andVideon CablesystemsofWinnipeg(serving areas west of the Red River), which, back in 1998, had itself previously acquiredVidéotron's assets in Alberta.[11]However, two swaps, in 1994 and 2001, withRogers Cablehave resulted in its assets being restricted toWestern Canadaand a few areas ofNorthern Ontario.[12]In 1999, Shaw spun out its media properties into a second publicly traded company,Corus Entertainment.[13][14]In 2001 the Moffat family soldVideon Cablesystemsto Shaw.

Prior to 2003, Shaw owned cable systems in the United States previously owned byMoffat Communications,serving six communities inFlorida(EasternPasco County,Clermont,Palm Coast,Ormond Beach,West Palm BeachandDoral), and theHouston,Texassuburbs ofKingwood,Lake ConroeandLake Livingston.In February 2003, the Florida systems would be sold toTime Warner Cable(with the West Palm Beach and Doral systems later sold toComcast,and the other systems spun off toBright House Networks), while the Texas systems were sold to Cequel III, as part of its then-Cebridge Connections subsidiary (nowSuddenlink Communications).[15][16]

In 2008, Shaw entered theAWSspectrum auctionwith the intention of possibly becoming a wireless phone provider. The auction ended July 2008, giving Shaw Communications enough spectrum to build a wireless network in its home provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba andOntario.[17]This spectrum ultimately went unused and was sold toRogers Communicationsin January 2013.[18]

In July 2009, Shaw announced its acquisition ofMountain Cablevision;in September, Rogers sued Shaw to block the sale, citing violations of anon-compete clause.However, the suit was quickly dismissed by the Ontario Superior Court.[19][20]The purchase was approved by the CRTC on October 22, 2009.[21][22]The acquisition was Shaw's first cable property east ofSault Ste. Mariesince the 2001 swaps with Rogers andCogeco.Shaw's re-entry into Southern Ontario would be short-lived, as its Hamilton system would be resold to Rogers in January 2013 as part of a deal which also saw unused wireless spectrum sold to the company, and saw Rogers sell its stake in specialty channelTVtropolis.[18]

Return to broadcasting

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On April 30, 2009, Shaw announced a deal to acquire three television stations —CHWI-TVinWindsor, Ontario,CKNX-TVinWingham, OntarioandCKX-TVinBrandon,Manitoba — fromCTVglobemedia.CTV had indicated that it would shut down the stations, all of which were incurring extensive financial losses, later in the year if a buyer could not be found, and had placed them on the market at a price of just $1 each.[23]However, it was reported on June 30, 2009, that Shaw had backed out of the deal and was declining to complete the purchase.[24]CHWI-TV would remain on the air as is; CKNX-TV would become a repeater ofLondonstationCFPL-TVin September 2009, while CKX-TV would close down entirely in October 2009.

In February 2010, Shaw announced an agreement with the financially troubledCanwest,whereby Shaw would buy an 80% voting interest, and 20% equity interest, in the restructured entity of Canwest, pending approvals from the CRTC and others.[25]Three months later, following negotiations with rival bidders, the company said it would purchase the entirety of Canwest's broadcasting assets, including the interests in theCW Mediasubsidiary partially held byGoldman Sachs Capital Partners.[26]Canwest's newspapers were not part of the Shaw deal and were sold separately toPostmedia Network.

The acquisition was completed on October 27, 2010, after CRTC approval for the sale was announced on October 22, forming theShaw Mediadivision.[27]

2012–2023

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In November 2012, Shaw underwent a corporate re-branding developed by the Vancouver-based agency Rethink, introducing an updated logo and slogan ( "You won't miss a thing" ), along with a new promotional campaign featuring the animated characters Bit and Bud—robots who lived in a representation of Shaw's "pipe". The campaign drew comparisons toBell Canada's former beaver characters ofFrank and Gordon,which were overseen by Shaw's then-new chief marketing officer Jim Little while he was at Bell.[28][29]

In April 2013, Shaw Business Solutions took overEnmax's Envision subsidiary, which had built a fibre-optic network throughoutCalgary.The acquisition was completed for $225 million.[30]

final Shaw Communications logo, used since 2012 until 2023

In 2014, Shaw partnered withRogers Communicationsto launchShomi,a subscription video on demand service.[31]

In February 2015, Shaw announced that they would close operations for service call centres in Edmonton, Calgary and Kelowna, and consolidate operations in Victoria, Vancouver, Winnipeg and Montreal. 1,600 of Shaw's 14,000 employees were affected by the consolidation and cuts.[32]The company offered affected employees the option to relocate to its centralized offices, apply for a new job at their location, or leave the company with a severance package for former employees unable to relocate.[32][33]

In 2013, Shaw attempted to begin developing anIPTV-based platform for its television services. However, after experiencing issues developing the platform, Shaw took a $55 million write-down in June 2015, and announced that it was licensingComcast's cloud-basedXfinityX1 architecture.[34][35]In January 2016, Shaw launched itsmobile televisionapp FreeRange TV, based on X1 infrastructure, which allows Shaw subscribers to stream selected TV channels and on-demand content.[36][37]On January 11, 2017, Shaw launched its X1-based cable service, BlueSky, in Calgary.[38]Shaw also launched BlueCurve, a new suite of routers which was likewise based on Comcast's xFi platform and hardware.[39]

Freedom Mobile, divestment of media assets

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On December 16, 2015, Shaw announced its proposed acquisition of independent wireless providerWind Mobilefrom its investors in a deal worth approximately $1.6 billion.[40]The transaction closed on March 1, 2016.[41]Under Shaw, the company was renamed Freedom Mobile in November 2016, coinciding with the launch of its4G LTEnetwork.[42]The acquisition of Wind was funded by a reorganization in April 2016, which saw theShaw Mediaunit transferred to Corus Entertainment,[43]in exchange for $1.85 billion in cash and 71,364,853 class Bnon-voting sharesof Corus.[44]The sale did not include Shaw's 50% stake in theShomistreaming service andCJBN-TVKenora; Shomi was shut down in November 2016 and CJBN-TV Kenora was shut down in January 2017.[43][45]

Acquisition by Rogers

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On March 15, 2021, Rogers announced that it would acquire Shaw for $26 billion, subject to regulatory and shareholder approval.[46]This proposed acquisition was criticized by public lobby groups likeOpenMedia,as a move that would reduce national competition in the Canadian wireless communication market by removing one of the four major competitors from the market.[47]

For the sale to go ahead, the CRTC ordered Rogers to divestFreedom Mobile.It was reported on June 17, 2022 thatQuebecor,a media and telecommunications company based in Quebec, intended to acquire the company for 2.85 billion.[48]The CRTC approved the merger on March 24, 2022.[49]

On May 9, 2022, theCompetition Bureauannounced an application to the Competition Tribunal to block the transaction due to its effects on the wireless market.[50][51]

On August 1, 2022, Rogers announced that the merger was expected to be completed at the end of the year; however, on October 25, 2022, it was announced that the Rogers-Shaw merger had been rejected as proposed.[52]On January 24, 2023, Canada's Federal Court of Appeal allowed the merger to proceed.[53]The merger was approved by the federal government on March 31, 2023, and completed on April 3.[54][55]Immediately following the transaction, Shaw Communications wasamalgamatedinto Rogers Communications, and no longer exists as a separate entity, though some subsidiaries such as Shaw Cablesystems may still exist as distinct legal entities.[56]

Other activities

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Shaw was the parent ofShaw Broadcast Services(previously Shaw Satellite Services, Canadian Satellite Communications, or Cancom) and, through Shaw Broadcast Services,[57]Shaw Direct,one of Canada's two nationaldirect broadcast satelliteproviders. For many years it also owned a number of radio stations and specialty television services; these assets were later spun off intoCorus Entertainmentin an effort to satisfy a now-repealed CRTC policy discouraging cross-ownership of cablesystems and specialty services.

Internet usage-based billing

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In December 2010, Shaw filed complaints with the CRTC to have competing internet video services such asNetflixclassified as broadcasters under Canadian law.[58]In the same month, Shaw introducedusage-based billingon internet plans and lowered plan caps an average of 25% while introducing overage fees of $1 to $2 per gigabyte.[59]On February 8, 2011, Shaw agreed to put a hold on usage-based billing for its services and to this date continues to not charge customers any overages for surpassing Internet data caps.[60]

Eponymous buildings

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See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ab"Shaw Senior Leadership".Shaw Communications Inc. Archived fromthe originalon September 17, 2016.RetrievedApril 9,2020.
  2. ^Hardy, Ian (April 12, 2017)."Alek Krstajicwasstepping down as CEO of Freedom Mobile".MobileSyrup.RetrievedJuly 10,2017.
  3. ^ab"Shaw 2021 Annual Report"(PDF).Archived(PDF)from the original on November 1, 2021.
  4. ^jwfadamson (2023-08-01)."Rogers together with Shaw and the BCHL announce five winners for scholarship program".bchl.ca.Retrieved2024-10-05.
  5. ^"Coming together and giving back: Rogers together with Shaw sees a record year".CityNews Edmonton.Retrieved2024-10-05.
  6. ^"Shaw History".Shaw Communications Inc. 2008-09-03.Retrieved2014-11-16.
  7. ^"Shaw business dynasty began in rural Lambton County".Wallaceburg Courier Press.2016-01-14.Retrieved2018-08-19.
  8. ^"ShawCor Boss 's hands-off approach to energy firm leaves time for golf".The Globe and Mail.2002-05-20.Retrieved2018-08-19.
  9. ^"Shaw Cablesystems receives approval from CRTC to purchase Saskatoon Telecable".Canadian Radio and Telecommunications Commission. 1987-11-25.Retrieved2021-01-16.
  10. ^"Shaw Cablesystems receives approval from CRTC to purchase Greater Winnipeg Cablevision".Canadian Radio and Telecommunications Commission. 1992-12-23.Retrieved2011-02-10.
  11. ^"Videon Cablesystems receives approval from CRTC to purchase Vidéotron's assets".Canadian Radio and Telecommunications Commission. 1998-07-22.Retrieved2021-01-16.
  12. ^"Milestones".Shaw.ca. Archived fromthe originalon 16 December 2004.Retrieved2011-03-10.
  13. ^"Canuck players plan splitting up of WIC".Variety.18 October 1999.Retrieved12 March2016.
  14. ^"Corus lines up behind Canuck Shaw's assets".Variety.14 June 1999.Retrieved12 March2016.
  15. ^"Pasco: Time Warner to expand with Shaw purchase".Archived fromthe originalon 27 November 2004.Retrieved8 July2015.
  16. ^"Cequel III to buy Shaw's Texas systems".CED.Archived fromthe originalon 24 February 2014.Retrieved8 July2015.
  17. ^Post, Financial (2008-06-23)."Wireless spectrum auction".Canada. Archived fromthe originalon 2012-11-09.Retrieved2011-03-10.
  18. ^ab"Shaw hangs up on its cellular plans".The Globe and Mail.January 14, 2013. Archived fromthe originalon 16 February 2013.Retrieved13 January2016.
  19. ^"Rogers sues to block Shaw's Ontario cable buy".CBC News.Retrieved27 March2017.
  20. ^"Rogers' territorial lawsuit against Shaw quashed".CBC News.Retrieved27 March2017.
  21. ^"Shaw Communications press release: Shaw Closes Mountain Cablevision Transaction"(PDF).Shaw. October 22, 2009. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 22 November 2009.
  22. ^"Shaw Communications gets CRTC approval to buy Mountain Cablevision in Hamilton".Canadian Press.Ottawa: canadaeast. October 22, 2009.
  23. ^CTV Accepts Shaw Offer to Buy Local Stations,CTVglobemedia press release via TradeMarkets, April 30, 2009
  24. ^Grant Robertson,"Shaw cancels deal for 3 CTV stations".The Globe and Mail,June 30, 2009.
  25. ^Shaw moves for Canwest control,CBC.ca,2010-02-12
  26. ^Pav Jordan (2010-05-04)."Shaw to buy Canwest TV unit".Reuters.Retrieved2010-09-21.
  27. ^Shaw Communications (press release) (2010-10-22)."Shaw announces acquisition of Canwest Broadcasting assets expected to close October 27, 2010".Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2020-10-02.Retrieved2010-10-23.
  28. ^Shaw, Hollie (2 November 2012)."Shaw robot mascots recall Bell's beavers".Financial Post.Retrieved11 December2013.
  29. ^"Shaw Rebrands, launches national campaign".Marketing Magazine.Archived fromthe originalon 4 November 2012.Retrieved11 December2013.
  30. ^JEFF MCINTOSH."Shaw Communications to buy Enmax Envision for $225-million".theglobeandmail.
  31. ^"Shomi set to go to wider audience".The Globe and Mail.Retrieved27 May2015.
  32. ^abDe Vynck, Gerrit (February 12, 2015)."Shaw says 1,600 employees must choose: relocation or severance".BNN.Bell Media. Archived fromthe originalon 14 February 2015.RetrievedFebruary 14,2015.
  33. ^Stephenson, Amanda (February 11, 2015)."Shaw communications relocating customer care operations; 1,000 jobs in Calgary affected".Calgary Herald.RetrievedFebruary 12,2015.
  34. ^"Shaw to Trial Comcast's X1 Platform".Multichannel News.26 June 2015.Retrieved12 March2016.
  35. ^"Shaw: Why We're Testing Comcast's X1".Multichannel News.Retrieved12 March2016.
  36. ^"CES 2016: Shaw Puts Comcast's X1 to Work".Multichannel News.6 January 2016.Retrieved12 March2016.
  37. ^"Shaw targets Telus with mobile app offering live TV, on-demand content".The Globe and Mail.Retrieved12 March2016.
  38. ^Jackson, Emily (11 January 2017)."Shaw Communications Inc. launches Comcast's X1 TV platform to wrestle back market share from Telus".Financial Post.Retrieved12 January2017.
  39. ^"ASSIA deploys service for TalkTalk, Shaw & Virgin Media debut whole-home Wi-Fi".Wi-Fi NOW Events.2019-04-08.Retrieved2019-10-19.
  40. ^Dobby, Christine (December 16, 2015)."Shaw to buy Wind Mobile for $1.6-billion".The Globe and Mail.Archived fromthe originalon 29 January 2016.RetrievedDecember 17,2015.
  41. ^"Shaw enters wireless market with closing of Wind Mobile deal".The Globe and Mail.Retrieved2 March2016.
  42. ^"Wind Mobile to become Freedom Mobile, launch faster network in Toronto, Vancouver".The Globe and Mail.Retrieved21 November2016.
  43. ^ab"Corus Entertainment acquires Shaw Media for $2.65-billion".The Globe and Mail.Retrieved13 January2016.
  44. ^"Shaw Communications completes sale of Shaw Media to Corus Entertainment".Shaw Newsroom.Shaw Communications. April 1, 2016.RetrievedApril 1,2016.
  45. ^"CRTC's Blais raps Rogers, Shaw over Shomi".The Globe and Mail.Retrieved18 November2016.
  46. ^"Rogers signs deal to buy Shaw in transaction valued at $26B".CBC News.Retrieved2021-03-15.
  47. ^"$26B Rogers plan to buy Calgary-based Shaw would create Canada's 2nd-biggest telecom".CBC News. Canadian Press. 15 March 2021.Retrieved16 March2021.
  48. ^"Rogers, Shaw and Quebecor Announce Agreement for Sale of Freedom Mobile | Shaw Newsroom".17 June 2022.
  49. ^"CRTC approves Rogers' takeover of Shaw broadcasting, but with costly conditions - National | Globalnews.ca".Global News.March 24, 2022.RetrievedApril 9,2022.
  50. ^"Competition Bureau seeks to block Rogers-Shaw deal".CTV News. Canadian Press. May 9, 2022.RetrievedMay 28,2022.
  51. ^"Competition Bureau seeks full block of Rogers' proposed acquisition of Shaw - News Release".Government of Canada. Competition Bureau. 9 May 2022.Retrieved28 May2022.
  52. ^"Innovation minister imposes conditions on Rogers-Shaw deal, including 'expectations' for Freedom Mobile sale".Toronto Star.October 25, 2022.
  53. ^"Court rejects Competition Bureau's appeal to block Rogers' takeover of Shaw".CBC News.January 24, 2023.
  54. ^Evans, Pete (March 31, 2023)."Rogers takeover of Shaw approved, with conditions".CBC.RetrievedApril 3,2023.
  55. ^"Rogers closes its historic $20B acquisition of Shaw".BNNBloomberg.ca.April 3, 2023.RetrievedApril 3,2023.
  56. ^Shaw Communications; Rogers Communications (April 4, 2023)."Notice of Change in Corporate Structure (document filed Apr 4 2023 at 08:47:48 ET)"(PDF).Following the completion of the Arrangement, Rogers and Shaw, as Rogers' then wholly-owned subsidiary, completed a vertical short form amalgamation [...]
  57. ^"Shaw Broadcast Services".Shaw.ca. Archived fromthe originalon 7 December 2006.Retrieved2011-03-10.
  58. ^"Companies like Netflix should be regulated by CRTC: Shaw".The Canadian Press.The Globe and Mail. December 9, 2010.RetrievedApril 11,2014.
  59. ^"DSLreports".DSLreports.Retrieved2011-03-10.
  60. ^Shaw, Gillian (2011-02-08)."Shaw puts brakes on usage-based billing".Vancouversun. Archived fromthe originalon 2 May 2012.Retrieved2011-11-18.
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