Canadian Telecom Company Distributel Acquires Primus Telecom

Distributel is a Canadian telecommunications company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. The 32-year old company provides Canadians with long-distance phone service as well as a variety of high-speed Internet plans to residents in Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia and Alberta. It also offers a VoIP digital home phone service across Canada. This week, the company took a major step toward expansion with the announcement that it has acquired Primus Telecommunications, one of Canada's largest independent telecom providers.

Primus Telecommunications, Inc. offers communications services, including international and domestic voice, voice-over-Internet protocol internet access, wireless, data and hosting services to business, wholesale and residential customers in the U.S., Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Western Europe.

Distributel’s investment is expected to bring together the strength of two prominent Canadian telecom companies to build an even stronger brand, offering residential, business and wholesale telecommunications services across the country, according to the companies. Adding Primus to its portfolio solidifies Distributel's position as one of Canada's leading independent telecommunications service providers. The combination brings extensive benefits to the customers of both organizations through greater network reach, with an expanded portfolio of complementary products and services available from coast to coast. The company’s CEO noted that the newly merged organization will be “greater than the sum of its parts.”

"Bringing Primus into the Distributel family will mean more options, increased innovation and better value for Canadians and ultimately a better alternative for our country," says Matt Stein, CEO of Distributel, in a statement. "We are thrilled to bring Primus under Canadian ownership and accelerate the pace of growth for both companies."

The acquisition is accretive for both companies and was supported by PricewaterhouseCoopers Corporate Finance Inc. serving as financial advisors on the transaction. For its part, Distributel said it is excited to enhance its product range with Primus' offerings, which include a substantial cable footprint, an advanced cloud-based business phone system, an extensive portfolio of access services, and Telemarketing Guard, a popular call-screening technology.