Economic News/Trends and Analysis — April 9, 2009

TELUS announces certain first quarter wireless subscriber results

    VANCOUVER, April 9 /CNW/ - TELUS today announced certain first quarter
ended March 31st, 2009 wireless subscriber information. First quarter 2009
wireless segment financial results are expected to be adversely impacted by
lower than expected wireless net additions and average revenue per unit
(ARPU). Wireless operating results are being impacted by a weak macro-economic
environment, reflect the acceleration of a negative trend first observed in
the fourth quarter of 2008, and are below TELUS' expectations.

    
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Wireless subscriber information                 3 months ended
                                                       March 31
    (unaudited)                                     2009      2008    Change
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Subscriber gross additions - total (000s)        346       345      0.3%
    Subscriber net additions - total (000s)           48        88     (46)%
    Total wireless subscribers (000s)              6,176     5,656      9.2%
    Churn, per month (%)                            1.62      1.53     9 pts
    ARPU                                         $ 58.39   $ 61.88    (5.6)%
    

    The above subscriber information is based on preliminary quarter end
results and will be reviewed through normal internal and audit committee
quarterly assurance processes in the coming weeks. TELUS plans to release
detailed first quarter financial operating results and host an investor
conference call on May 7, 2009, as previously announced.
    Year over year gross additions were stable for the first quarter of 2009.
Notwithstanding this, wireless subscriber net additions of 48,000 represented
a 46% decline year over year. Weakness in wireless net subscriber additions in
the first quarter of 2009 is primarily attributable to the combination of a
lack of customary growth in gross additions combined with an increase in
deactivations. The deactivations were due to a larger subscriber base along
with an increase in the churn rate amongst business customers impacted
adversely by the current economic environment. The growth rate of 0.3% in
wireless subscriber gross additions for the first quarter of 2009 compares to
4.8% and 17% growth, respectively, generated for the fourth quarter and year
ended December 31, 2008. The worsening trend is believed to be primarily due
to the weakening Canadian economy including: lower consumer confidence and a
resulting decrease in retail sales including customer deferral of buying
decisions; lower and more cautious business spending; and lower employment
levels.
    Similarly, TELUS has experienced a decline in ARPU. Wireless ARPU is
being impacted by: lower service revenue from our Mike line of business;
increased proportion and use of lower per minute rate plans including greater
use of in-bucket minutes; and decreased roaming revenues. This can be
attributed to the continued highly competitive market and the ongoing global
economic recession increasingly being experienced in Canada, which is
particularly acute for our Mike push-to-talk business-oriented service. Mike
is commonly used in economically sensitive business sectors such as
manufacturing, automotive, construction, transportation dispatch, and energy.

    About TELUS

    TELUS (TSX: T, T.A; NYSE: TU) is a leading national telecommunications
company in Canada, with $9.7 billion of annual revenue and 11.6 million
customer connections including 6.1 million wireless subscribers, 4.2 million
wireline network access lines and 1.2 million Internet subscribers. Led since
2000 by President and CEO, Darren Entwistle, TELUS provides a wide range of
communications products and services including data, Internet protocol (IP),
voice, entertainment and video. In support of our philosophy to give where we
live, TELUS, our team members and retirees have contributed $135 million to
charitable and not-for-profit organizations and volunteered more than 2.6
million hours of service to local communities since 2000. Nine TELUS Community
Boards across Canada lead our local philanthropic initiatives. For more
information about TELUS, please visit telus.com.

    Forward-looking statements

    This document contains statements about expected future events and
financial and operating results of TELUS Corporation that are forward-looking.
By their nature, forward-looking statements require the Company to make
assumptions and are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties. There is
significant risk that the assumptions, predictions and other forward-looking
statements will not prove to be accurate including 2009 guidance. Readers are
cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a
number of factors could cause actual future results and events to differ
materially from that expressed in the forward-looking statements. Accordingly
this news release is subject to the disclaimer and qualified by the
assumptions, qualifications and risk factors referred to in this news release
or TELUS' reports, comprehensive public disclosure documents including the
2008 Annual Report, Annual Information Form and quarterly interim reports and
in other filings with securities commissions in Canada and the United States.

For further information: For media inquiries, please contact: Jim
Johannsson, (780) 493-6197, jim.johannsson@telus.com; For investor inquiries
please contact: Robert Mitchell, (416) 279-3219, ir@telus.com; Darrell Rae,
(604) 697-8192, ir@telus.com

Print | Email