Rogers Communications Inc., which yesterday posted a $138 million fourth-quarter loss, is again raising rates for residential cable and high-speed Internet services as customers scale back spending.

The cable and telecommunications giant recently mailed customers a card detailing residential rates, effective March 1.

Rates will rise between 3 and 9 per cent for Rogers' high-speed Internet services, with the exception of its $99.95 per month "Extreme Plus" tier. Several cable TV packages will also see prices increase, including a 5 per cent hike for basic cable services to $29.99 per month.

Prices for Rogers home phone, raised last year through a 30 per cent increase to a "system access " fee charged to subscribers, will remain unchanged.

The latest increases are necessary to "ensure continued investment in our network and programming" and to address "increased costs like those from programming providers, " Rogers spokesperson Nancy Cottenden said.

The changes come as Rogers feels the impact of a slowing Ontario economy on its Internet and home phone businesses.

Rogers added just 40,000 new home phone customers in the fourth quarter compared with 65,000 net additions in the same period last year. Executives blamed a slowing economy and increased efforts by Bell Canada Inc. to win back customers with special promotions and competitive rates.

Nadir Mohamed, chief operating officer of Rogers' communications division and a leading candidate to replace the late Ted Rogers as the company's chief executive, said sales were also affected by a slowdown in Ontario's housing sector.

"Consumers are generally much more cautious," Mohamed told analysts during a conference call yesterday. "People are moving residences less and those are important sales points for us."

Rogers posted a fourth-quarter loss of $138 million, or 22 cents a share, on revenue of $2.9 billion. That included a $294 million charge related to the company's conventional television business, which has been hurt by steep declines in spending by advertisers.

By contrast, Rogers earned $254 million, or 40 cents a share, in the year-earlier period when sales totalled $2.7 billion. Rogers nevertheless increased its annual dividend yesterday to $1.16 from $1.

Rogers' key wireless business, which accounts for more than half the company's revenue, added 199,000 new subscribers in the fourth quarter.

The average cost of a postpaid user's monthly bill grew just 2 per cent to $74.71, driven mainly by a 36 per cent jump in network data revenue, Rogers said.

But operating costs were also higher in the wireless division as the company sold a greater proportion of high-end smartphones such as Apple Inc.'s iPhone and Research In Motion Ltd.'s various BlackBerry models. The devices carry a higher upfront cost for Rogers, which subsidizes the purchase price and attempts to recoup its money through three-year subscriber contracts.

Greg MacDonald, an analyst at National Bank Financial, said in a note to clients he expects average bills to grow 5 per cent.

Investors also appear concerned that Rogers' smartphone strategy – it sold about 400,000 iPhones and BlackBerrys in the quarter – may not be as profitable as the company has suggested.

Rogers shares fell nearly 8 per cent, or $2.65, to close at $31.70 on the Toronto Stock Exchange.