By Adriano Marchese


Quebecor Inc. said Thursday that it has made more wireless-spectrum acquisitions across Canada as it seeks to expand its service reach on a national level.

The Canadian diversified media and telecom company said that it has paid about 10 million Canadian dollars, the equivalent of US$7.5 million, to acquire 600 megahertz spectrum in Manitoba and 3,500 megahertz spectrum in Quebec.

The company said it and its subsidiary Videotron made the acquisition by way of an auction of residual spectrum licenses by Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, a department of the Canadian federal government.

"Buying additional spectrum to follow up on the potential acquisition of Freedom Mobile is a key element of our business plan for extending our robust, powerful wireless network outside Quebec," President and Chief Executive Pierre Karl Peladeau said.

In June, Rogers Communications Inc. and Shaw Communications Inc. agreed to divest its Freedom Mobile business to Quebecor for C$2.85 billion in a bid to make their own merger more palatable to Canadian regulators and create a new competitor in the wireless telecommunications space.

In 2021, Quebecor said Videotron spent C$830 million to acquire 294 blocks of 3,500 MHz spectrum in the provinces of Ontario, Manitoba, Alberta, British Columbia and Quebec.


Write to Adriano Marchese at adriano.marchese@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

01-26-23 0748ET