When Bell Canada announced in June it was selling Northwestel Inc. to a consortium of northern Indigenous communities, the telecom giant hailed the $1-billion deal as a milestone in advancing Indigenous self-determination.
Bell said Northwestel, which provides phone, internet and television services in Canada’s north, would benefit from commitments by its new owner, known as Sixty North Unity, to double fibre internet speeds and expand high-speed availability.
But the deal also signalled a shift for Bell’s owner, BCE Inc., which appeared focused on “unlocking value from its business and monetizing standalone assets,” said CIBC analyst Stephanie Price in a recent research note.
That is to say, it was time to sell off parts of the company it no longer made sense to keep.
As Canada’s telecommunications sector copes with challenges such as slower growth and fierce competition, the dominant players are poised to continue shedding assets to reduce costs, industry watchers say.
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