The cable and satellite industry shows no signs of slowing down, as evident in recent numbers from the CRTC, which say revenues for the sector eclipsed the $10-billion mark for the first time in 2008.

Cable companies such as Rogers, Cogeco, Shaw and Videotron saw profits climb to $2.1 billion last year from $1.5 billion. Cablers also saw a slight increase in basic service subscriptions, up 2.9% to 7.9 million households.

Meanwhile, direct-to-home satellite and multipoint distribution companies, including Bell ExpressVu and Star Choice, saw revenues grow to over $2 billion – up 10.8% over 2007. As with cable, subscribers for satellite also rose, though by a slightly less 2.6% to 2.7 million.

It’s the third year in a row that numbers are up for broadcast distributors, in stark contrast to private broadcasters such as CTVgm and Canwest, which are struggling to make ends meet.

The CRTC says broadcast distributors contributed $323 million to Canadian programming in 2008, an increase of 7.9%. The Canadian Television Fund pocketed the largest portion at $166 million, followed by $115 million to local community stations and $41 million to independent funds.

From Playback Daily