Canada's cable and specialty networks saw growth in their revenue and operating profit in 2009, according to statistics published Thursday.

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission said the country's cable, pay-for-view and specialty broadcast services posted revenue of $3.1 billion in calendar 2009, a gain of six per cent versus 2008's $2.9 billion.

Better still, in 2009, the same companies earned $655.4 million before taxes, according to the federal regulator. These results represented a gain of 7.3 per cent compared to the same period in 2008 when the sector made $610.7 million in pre-tax profits.

The figures were contained in the CRTC's annual report on the finances of the pay broadcast sector. The federal agency typically presents — but does not comment on — these statistics.

Ad drop

The measurable gain in the cable and specialty sector's financial metrics came in a year when advertising revenue fell by 2.6 per cent.

Many companies throughout the economy cut back on their marketing budgets as they grappled with a severe financial downturn in late 2008 and into 2009.

The broadcast companies — which include Rogers Communications and Shaw Communications — made up for the slumping ad cash by raking in more than $1.4 billion in subscriber charges in 2009.

The 2009 subscriber cash flow represented a gain of almost 13 per cent versus what these companies received in similar charges in 2008.

In addition, the CRTC also noted that the pay channels spent slightly more than $1 billion acquiring and producing Canadian programming in 2009, approximately the same amount these firms paid for domestic shows in 2008.

Canada's cable broadcasters have been fighting with traditional networks, such as the CBC, over whether the over-the-air channels should be allowed to charge for their signals.