Quebecor today announced changes to corporate management to take effect at the time of its annual shareholders meeting, to be held in Montréal on May 8 2013.
In view of Serge Gouin’s desire to retire after serving as Chairman of the Board of Quebecor Media Inc. (QMI) since the company’s creation in 1999, Pierre Karl Péladeau will be appointed Chairman of the Board of QMI and of TVA Group. He will also become Vice-Chairman of the Board of Quebecor Inc., which will continue to be chaired by Françoise Bertrand. Robert Dépatie, President and CEO of Videotron since 2003, will replace Mr. Péladeau as President and CEO of Quebecor Inc. and Quebecor Media Inc. Mr. Péladeau will continue overseeing the Corporation’s strategic files in his new position.
“On behalf of all the entire Board, I wish to express our deepest gratitude to Serge for his dedication and his generosity with his knowledge and his time over the years,” said Ms. Bertrand. “He played a vital role in team-building among QMI’s directors and officers.”
Pierre Karl Péladeau, who joined Quebecor as Assistant to the President in 1985 and has held the position of President and CEO of the Corporation for the past 14 years, said: “The governance committee and I are very pleased to transfer responsibility for the Corporation’s management to Robert. With his team and with all our other collaborators at QMI, he has led Videotron to industry-leading performance among Canadian telecommunications company and has built it into the most respected telecom company in Québec. Since his appointment, Videotron’s operating income has increased from $275 million to over $1.2 billion. During the same period, customers subscribed to 3 million additional services, including 400,000 subscriber connections to our new mobile phone service.”
“I congratulate Robert and his entire team on this stellar performance, which is unprecedented in Videotron’s history. I and all of Quebecor’s directors are confident that he will be equally successful in leading the growth and development of QMI and Quebecor. A particular point of pride for me is the role our achievements of recent years have played in driving Québec’s economic development and the thousands of high-tech jobs we have created. I also wish to take this opportunity to thank our 16,000 employees for their support and their contribution to our success.”
“I am extremely proud of this huge vote of confidence from Pierre Karl, the directors of Quebecor and its partner, the Caisse de dépôt et de placement du Québec,” said Robert Dépatie. “I am grateful for the trust my management colleagues have placed in me over the past ten years and I wish to thank Pierre Karl for inspiring us to realize the vision we framed when Quebecor Media began. I also feel very privileged to be able to count on Pierre Karl’s presence, support and sound advice in my new position. We want the organization to continue on the path of excellence. To fulfill this mission, I am pleased to announce the appointment of Manon Brouillette, currently Videotron’s President, Consumer Market, to the position of President and Chief Operating Officer of Videotron.” Mr. Dépatie retains his position as Videotron’s CEO.
In the wake of the November 2011 transaction between Quebecor and the Caisse de dépôt et de placement du Québec, QMI’s shareholders also agreed to appoint Normand Provost, Executive Vice-President, Private Equity at the Caisse de dépôt et de placement du Québec, and Michel Lavigne, formerly a director of QMI, to the Board of Directors of Quebecor Inc.
The changes will come into effect at the time of Quebecor’s annual shareholders meeting, to be held in Montréal on May 8, 2013.
