By Adriano Marchese

BCE disclosed revenue from its Bell Business Markets division for the first time, showing the enterprise unit helped lift first-quarter revenue on the back of strong demand for its new artificial-intelligence-powered platforms.

With fiber rollouts slowing and wireless competition intensifying in Canada's communications space, BCE is leaning into higher-margin digital services and cross-border expansion to reshape its growth profile.

Bell Business Markets, which houses the company's AI-powered enterprise platforms, saw revenue rise 9.7% in the quarter, driven by a more-than-doubled jump in sales from its AI-products Ateko, Bell Cyber and Bell AI Fabric.

This is the first time BCE has disclosed revenue for the segment, the company said.

The three platforms launched last year span cloud and IT automation, cybersecurity and AI infrastructure and now form the core of BCE's enterprise AI strategy. Chief Executive Mirko Bibic said the initiative builds on Bell's network scale, digital systems and long-standing relationships with major Canadian enterprises.

"Since then, we've made big strides," he said.

The emphasis on Bell Business Markets reflects a broader shift in Canada's telecom industry, where growth in its tradition services such as television and mobile are slowing and carriers are racing to develop new revenue streams in enterprise technology, cybersecurity and digital infrastructure.

The contribution from Bell Business Markets supported a 4% rise in operating revenues in the first quarter, reaching C$6.17 billion and topping views of C$6.09 billion.

Beyond AI products, BCE also benefited from a 3.4% rise in service revenue, which includes wireless plans and internet subscriptions, and a 7.9% increase in product revenue from devices and equipment sold to business customers.

BCE also saw new additions to its fiber-to-the-home service, including from its U.S. internet provider Ziply Fiber. The company added 49,525 residential internet subscribers in the quarter, of which 43,000 were in Canada and the rest came from U.S. customers.

In total, the new additions amounted to a 3.2% increase over a year ago.

Net income fell to C$667 million, or C$0.66 a share, down from C$683 million, or C$0.68 a share, a year earlier, primarily due early debt-redemption gains in 2025, along with higher depreciation and amortization.

Adjusted earnings were C$0.63 a share, topping analyst forecasts by C$0.05 a share.

BCE maintained its guidance for the year, which includes revenue growth of 1% to 5%, and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization coming in between 0% and 4% higher.

Capital intensity is also expected to be at around 20%, including an incremental C$1.3 billion of capital expenditures to fund the construction of the Saskatchewan AI data center.

Write to Adriano Marchese at adriano.marchese@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 07, 2026 09:31 ET (13:31 GMT)

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