Ted was dreaming of convergence before anyone knew how to spell it. — Brian Mulroney, former Prime Minister of Canada (1984-1993) Ted Rogers is indisputably Canadas most daring entrepreneur of our age. Rogers, hailed as a visionary by some and loathed as an opportunist by others, clawed his way to the top of the three industries: radio, cable television and cellular telephones. Every victory along the way has been hard-fought and each defeat nearly bankrupted him. His battle with longtime nemesis Ma Bell has only intensified as the last regulatory barriers between the cable and phone companies crumble. The specter of Ted Rogers is now so large he influences deals even when hes not at the negotiating table. He began making waves in 1960 when, as a mere law student, he bought Canadas first FM radio station: CHFI. Ever since, Ted Rogers has challenged, cajoled and threatened Canadas staid corporate business elite with his insatiable appetite for risk in industries that defied prediction. A pioneer in cable TV, the ultimate Cable Guy outlasted his rivals in Canada and competed against the likes of Americas best, John Malone, Gustave Hauser and Charles Dolan, to win more U.S. city franchises than any other Canadian cable baron. A perpetual underdog, Rogers brazenly went after giants, buying such companies as the esteemed publisher Maclean-Hunter. In 2005, he snared Fido to leapfrog over BCE as the nations biggest wireless phone carrier. After close to 50 years in business, Rogers has at long last earned the respect he so badly craved from his boyhood. The name Rogers is now inescapable on the airwaves, on TV, in the written word, and in the gigantic red letters on the corners of the stadium everyone knew as the SkyDome. Click. Surf. Dial. Love him or despise him, Rogers did take Canada into new frontiers of telecommunication.
Book Details:
- Author: Caroline Van Hasselt
- ISBN: 9780470158722
- Year Published: 2007
- Pages: 530
- BISAC: BUS000000, BUSINESS & ECONOMICS/General
About the Book and Topic:
Ted was dreaming of convergence before anyone knew how to spell it. — Brian Mulroney, former Prime Minister of Canada (1984-1993) Ted Rogers is indisputably Canadas most daring entrepreneur of our age. Rogers, hailed as a visionary by some and loathed as an opportunist by others, clawed his way to the top of the three industries: radio, cable television and cellular telephones. Every victory along the way has been hard-fought and each defeat nearly bankrupted him. His battle with longtime nemesis Ma Bell has only intensified as the last regulatory barriers between the cable and phone companies crumble. The specter of Ted Rogers is now so large he influences deals even when hes not at the negotiating table. He began making waves in 1960 when, as a mere law student, he bought Canadas first FM radio station: CHFI. Ever since, Ted Rogers has challenged, cajoled and threatened Canadas staid corporate business elite with his insatiable appetite for risk in industries that defied prediction. A pioneer in cable TV, the ultimate Cable Guy outlasted his rivals in Canada and competed against the likes of Americas best, John Malone, Gustave Hauser and Charles Dolan, to win more U.S. city franchises than any other Canadian cable baron. A perpetual underdog, Rogers brazenly went after giants, buying such companies as the esteemed publisher Maclean-Hunter. In 2005, he snared Fido to leapfrog over BCE as the nations biggest wireless phone carrier. After close to 50 years in business, Rogers has at long last earned the respect he so badly craved from his boyhood. The name Rogers is now inescapable on the airwaves, on TV, in the written word, and in the gigantic red letters on the corners of the stadium everyone knew as the SkyDome. Click. Surf. Dial. Love him or despise him, Rogers did take Canada into new frontiers of telecommunication.
Rogers Media, comprised of 25,000 employees across the country, has a market-cap of $3.4 billion. We will promote the book to this group. This is the first comprehensive biography of Ted Rogers. The author has had access to Ted, his family, past and present managers, friends, and detractors. This is not an authorized biography; the author has artistic control and will exercise it. In telling the story of Rogers, the book will tell the story of radio and TV’s birth in Canada, the convergence of telephone and cable, and how he saw the future in wireless technology.
About the Author
Caroline Van Hasselt is an award-winning reporter. She was Boston Bureau Chief for New York-based Bloomberg News and has appeared regularly on Bloomberg Radio. She has worked for the Financial Times of Canada and forensic accountants Lindquist Avey Macdonald Baskerville Inc. Over an almost 20-year career in journalism, and five-year hiatus as a senior investigator with Canadas foremost forensic accounting firm, the author has covered oil and gas, entertainment, mergers and acquisitions and financial services industries. She was first to break the news of two of Canadas biggest-ever takeovers: Amoco Canadas 1988 acquisition of Dome Petroleum, and Royal Bank of Canadas ultimately failed merger with Bank of Montreal. She chronicled entertainment giant MCAs battle with Cineplex Odeons Garth Drabinsky in a feature Financial Times of Canada inside story titled On the Cutting Room Floor.