Rogers will bring 500 jobs to Calgary with a national technology center

Rogers Communications Inc. said Thursday it will bring 500 jobs to Calgary with a new national technology center it plans to establish after the company’s proposed merger with Shaw Communications Inc closes.

The center, which will be called Rogers THINKLab, will be located at Shaw’s Barlow campus in northeast Calgary, the Toronto-based telecommunications giant said.

Positions will largely be in engineering and technical delivery on networks, with a focus on areas such as 5G, fiber technology, data analytics, artificial intelligence and cybersecurity .

The center’s goal is to help promote made-in-Canada technology solutions and create a pipeline for highly skilled talent to stay and work in Canada, the company said.

The move is part of the company’s $6.5 billion commitment to invest in Western Canada first announced in March 2021 as part of Roger’s $26 billion deal to acquire Shaw. .

Jorge Fernandes, chief technology officer at Rogers and the person who will lead the center, said in an interview that the initial goal was to solidify Rogers’ presence in Western Canada and strengthen the region’s technology ecosystem. Ultimately, Fendandes hopes the center will have a national impact.

Dean Prevost, president of integration at Rogers, said in the same interview that THINKLab builds on Rogers’ nationwide investment in 5G research and development, including strategic partnerships with institutions like universities and the Communitech Innovation Center.

“It gives us a place to pull together all of this work that’s been done nationally in one place to see what we can do with it from a broader perspective through commercialization, through the use of technology,” did he declare.

He also said it would give the company the opportunity and ability to collaborate with smaller companies and businesses in the city that are doing similar work in technology.

“We can help enable what they’re trying to do and so can they,” he said.

Calgary will lose Shaw’s head office with the conclusion of this agreement, but Rogers has committed to maintaining a Western Canada head office in the city and has stated that it will be located at Shaw Court in downtown Calgary. Calgary.

“We’re not taking away, we’re actually adding quite dramatically,” Prevost said.

“Rogers’ THINKLab is a vote of confidence in Alberta and showcases our strengths as an innovative province,” Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said in a statement. “These 500 new engineering and IT jobs will build on our momentum as a global destination for investment and jobs in our thriving technology sector.”

Rogers and Shaw are awaiting regulatory approval from the Competition Bureau and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) and expect the deal to close by the end of the second quarter.

“We believe very strongly in this agreement,” Prevost said, adding that he is confident it will be completed within that timeframe.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, two consumer advocacy groups filed a petition asking the federal cabinet to “overturn” the CRTC’s decision to approve the transfer of Shaw’s broadcast services to Rogers, arguing that it will result in “increases prices” of television services.

Another variable in this saga is the sale of Freedom Mobile’s assets, which should be a regulatory requirement for the takeover.

Anthony Lacavera of Globalive Capital, which founded Freedom, formerly Wind Mobile, hopes to be the acquirer. Quebecor Inc. and Halifax-based telecommunications company Eastlink Inc. have also expressed interest in buying the wireless service provider.

This report from The Canadian Press was first published on April 28, 2022.

Companies in this story: (TSX: RCI.B, TSX: SJR.B)

Adena Ali, The Canadian Press