The Ledger
Every statement that passed quotation and attribution checks. Mix any filter with any other: certainty 1/5, debate potential 5/5, or both at once.
why aren't all 16 resolved? a statement only gets an assessment when the public record can support or contradict it. opinions and what-ifs never can, and 0 checkable ones are still open, waiting for their date. predictions held up or didn't; assertions are supported or contradicted. on every card: ▮▮▮▮▮ certainty · ▮▮▮▮▮ debate potential. speakers are clickable
Bragg refuses to grant company equity to non-family employees
“Family companies are great to work for, and we're going to pay you well, and you're going to feel very comfortable here, but there's no equity available, and too complicated with the finance structures if you start giving it away, and then if they want out, an…”
Bragg: Bell's massive spending on media programming has not worked out well
“They were paying a lot for this programming, and do you think Bell are happy that they spent a lot of money buying programming now? I don't think so. It really hasn't worked out well.”
Eastlink Won 85% Spectrum Coverage at Fraction of Major Telecoms' Cost
“When the government auctioned wireless spectrum in 2008, the big telecoms brought their consultants and committees. Eastlink brought a simple strategy, run mock auctions, develop fake-out tactics, and know exactly what you need. And they won licenses that cove…”
Parrish: Eastlink was first in North America to offer a triple-play bundle
“Eastlink became the first cable company in Canada to offer telephone service over cable. First in North America to bundle internet, phone, and TV into one package. The first to let customers add or drop channels in real time.”
Bragg: Private firms can absorb premium acquisition prices via longer payback horizons
“If you paid a little too much and you're a private company, You just have to live a little longer to make it work. My brother used to say about buying a woodlot, well, maybe we're paying too much, but if we live long enough, it'll be a good deal. So this is th…”
Bragg: Eastlink won cable acquisitions by paying top price without overnegotiating
“There's six buyers, but you always get them, and it was basically, we became easy to deal with, and we always lived by our word, and we always paid top price, and so we just kept picking them off one at a time, And made it easy and didn't over, over negotiate.”
Bragg: Eastlink is doing business with Starlink for fiber backhaul
“In fact, we're doing business with Starlink because when they get down, they want to have fiber that they can feed to people.”
Bragg: Eastlink and Oxford Frozen Foods have no obvious next big step
“We just gradually bought them, but there's nothing to buy anymore. I think about this. We have both our cable and food business that were both quite rapid growth businesses from really small cottage industries to professional companies. We've played that game,…”
Bragg: Capital allocation is the single biggest factor in cable telecommunications
“And I would say in cable, you know, you always have to look at costs, but capital is probably the biggest thing in the cable business, because you can make big mistakes, and, you know, spending, let's say a billion dollars to get into programming, and that jus…”
Bragg: Eastlink is the largest private telecom company in North America
“I think it's the largest private, yes, by far.”
Bragg: Businesses historically operated almost fully levered to fund growth
“We haven't shied away from using debt, although today our balance sheets are in great shape, but through the years we've always been, what I would say, almost fully levered,”
Eastlink Operates With Four Management Layers Versus Seven in Big Telecom
“The entire company has four management levels. CEO, vice presidents, directors, managers. That's it. Government has 12. But big telecoms have seven or eight.”
Parrish: Over 75% of Eastlink Earnings Come From Organic Growth
“Today, over 75% of Eastlink's earnings come from organic growth, systems Bragg bought and then made better.”
John Bragg: Eastlink held most debt due to consistent cable cash flows
“The real debt load was in cable where the cash flow was quite consistent.”
Bragg: Eastlink owns fiber connecting Ireland, Bermuda, and across North America
“If you look at our map, we have fiber from Ireland to Bermuda to the east coast, and then we have fiber going west through, through Chicago and Detroit, through Toronto and up north, and all the way to British Columbia, and a lot of this we own.”
Bragg: Eastlink originally bused taped US TV broadcasts across the border
“We built a tower down at Mount Shamcook on the U.S. Border, and we received the Bangor channels there, taped them, put them on the bus, and of course Halifax got them first. By the time we got them in Amherst, they were two weeks old”