Rogers 2003 Annual Report Download - page 17

Letter to Shareholders
2003 Annual ReportRogers Communications Inc. 15
In 2003, revenues from wireless data totalled $68 million,
an increase of 125% from 2002. Yet wireless data revenues
only amounted to just over 3% of total network revenues
for Rogers Wireless, while in many Asian and European
countries, data revenues are approaching 20% of network
revenues. The opportunity is significant, it is growing, and
Rogers Wireless has been preparing to ensure a com-
manding capability in the space, including plans to overlay
Enhanced Data Rates for Global Evolution (“EDGE”) tech-
nology in 2004 to further increase data speeds.
Today, Rogers Wireless has arguably the most robust and
comprehensive portfolio of wireless data services in
Canada – a portfolio that addresses the simplest of youth
text messaging needs to the most complex of wireless
enterprise data solution requirements. In most areas of
wireless data, Rogers has led, and continues to lead, the
market in Canada. And today – whether it’s text messag-
ing, downloadable games and ring tones, mobile access to
e-mail and the Internet, camera phones and picture mes-
saging, personalized information portals, or highly scalable
point-of-sale and fleet management applications – Rogers
Wireless can deliver the solution. Our world standard
GSM/GPRS network ensures customers have access to the
latest and broadest selection of devices – whether they are
cool phones; BlackBerry and other PDAs that integrate
voice and data; laptop air cards; or specialized wireless
field service units – in Canada.
In 2004, Wireless is transitioning its branding to Rogers
Wireless from Rogers AT&T Wireless. Our research shows
that the Rogers brand stands solidly in Canada as a symbol
of innovation, choice and value in communications,
entertainment and information. This change, which will be
complete before the second half of the year, will bring
greater clarity to the Rogers brand in Canada and more
simplicity to our sales and marketing initiatives.
Category-leading media brands
At Rogers Media, 2003 was the year which saw the begin-
nings of a general recovery in the advertising markets,
a year in which we saw significant growth in our sports
and multicultural television channels, and a year in
which we took the opportunity to reposition certain of
our radio stations and to realign the cost structure in our
Publishing division.
While we are pleased with the 6% revenue growth and
22% operating profit growth at Rogers Media, we believe
that the initiatives undertaken in 2003 set the stage for
continued strong growth in 2004 and beyond, across its
portfolio of category-leading radio, television and publish-
ing media brands.
This was an especially strong year for Rogers Sportsnet,
our regional sports television network, which we acquired
control of in late 2001, and which just celebrated the
fifth anniversary of its launch. Not only did Sportsnet
deliver strong top-line growth as advertising continued to
strengthen, but it also crossed break-even to generate
positive and meaningful operating profit for the year.
And to assure our continued participation in the profitable
and growing sports programming business, Rogers Media
also announced a partnership with CTV, each with a 50%
interest, in Dome Productions, which will, amongst other
things, accelerate the production and distribution of HDTV
content in Canada.
This was also the first full year of operations of OMNI.2,
our second multicultural television station in Ontario,
which we launched in the Fall of 2002. While advertising
in the Toronto market remained somewhat soft during the
year, OMNI.2 still delivered a strong first year performance
and added meaningful growth to the Rogers Media group.