While growth in the overall wireless mobile area has leveled off a bit, there are still many opportunities in the business field as they seek to expand into fiber-optic connectivity services. Videotron just acquired in whole, Fibrenoire for $125 million. They provide service in the Qu©bec business market with fiber optic solutions. Manon Brouillette, President and CEO of Videotron said, “This transaction will strengthen Videotron’s leadership in the business telecom market. Combining our expertise and our distinct but complementary facilities will equip us to continue our growth in the Qu©bec business market.”
Videotron acquired all shares, even those held by majority shareholder, Novacap TMT, a buyout company that specializes in tech, media and telecom, making Fibrenoire an independent subsidiary of Videotron. Founded in 2007, Fibrenoire’s sixty employees, including the three founding owners are part of the deal and they will remain in Montr©al’s Park Extension area. Pierre Dion, President and CEO of Quebecor said, “Like other recent acquisitions by Quebecor and its subsidiaries, such as Mel’s Studios and Postproduction (formerly Global Vision), the addition of Fibrenoire will increase our presence in growing market segments and further diversify our revenue streams. Videotron Business Solutions is thereby continuing its development while ensuring that the assets and expertise of a fast-growing company remain in Qu©bec hands.”
Fibrenoire looks like a great match up to help Videotron grow its presence in the Montr©al, Qu©bec City, Ottawa and Toronto areas where they provide services to more than a thousand customers with a fiber optic network that spans more than 4,500 km (close to 2,800 miles). In 2014, they were ranked as number one on the PROFIT 500 list as Qu©bec’s fastest growing company and ninth overall in Canada. Benjamin Desmarais, President of Fibrenoire is excited by the new deal and said, “Our connection with Videotron will give us access to financial resources, technological depth and a fibre-optic network of more than 30,000 km available across Qu©bec. Those assets will enable us to better serve business customers. The deal is a win-win that combines our strengths and gives us the means to achieve our ambitions.”
Videotron Business Solutions provides business with internet access, network solutions, business and mobile telephone services and data hosting…serving about 125,000 business. Manon Brouillette says, “We are confident that Fibrenoire will be a good fit, as its highly entrepreneurial culture is very close to our own corporate values. This acquisition follows the takeover of 4Degrees in 2015, positioning us to meet growing business needs for cloud computing and connectivity, two highly complementary market segments.”