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Telecommunications

How telecom providers use pre-mover data in Canada

Internet, TV, phone, and home security are the most address-bound consumer services in Canada. When a subscriber moves, every one of those services is up for grabs. The provider who reaches the household first — before the move, not after — wins the install. Pre-mover data is how you get there first.

This page covers the two sides of mover-driven telecom strategy: acquiring new subscribers at addresses entering the market, and retaining existing subscribers before they disconnect. Both workflows run from the same weekly pre-mover file. The difference is which side of the match you act on.

The telecom mover problem

Subscriber churn during residential moves runs between 30% and 50% for most Canadian telecom providers. That's not dissatisfaction-driven churn — it's logistics-driven churn. The customer didn't leave because the service was bad. They left because they moved and a competitor got to the new address first.

The window between a property listing and the physical move is typically 4–12 weeks. During that window, the household is making decisions about every address-bound service: internet, TV, phone, security, home automation. The provider who contacts the household inside that window has a structural advantage over every provider who waits for the move to happen.

Approximately 1.5 million Canadian households move each year. Each one is a simultaneous retention risk and acquisition opportunity. The difference between winning and losing is timing — not pricing, not packaging, not brand.

Acquisition: win the install before the competition

Every new listing in a service area is a future install opportunity. The household selling the property will move to a new address and need service there. The household buying the property will move in and need service at this address. Both are acquisition targets.

How the acquisition workflow runs

The provider who makes first contact during the listing window wins the install at a materially higher rate than providers who wait for post-move data. This is not a marginal difference — it's a structural one, because the first provider to offer a move-date install typically locks in the household.

Retention: save the subscriber before they disconnect

When an existing subscriber's property lists for sale, they are 4–12 weeks from disconnecting. Most telecom providers learn about this after the disconnect request — by which point the customer has already signed with a competitor at the new address.

How the retention workflow runs

The subscriber who receives a proactive transfer offer is materially less likely to shop competitors than the subscriber who has to call in to disconnect. The retention team's job changes from reacting to cancellation requests to proactively managing the transition. See the full retention workflow →

Both sides from one file

The same weekly pre-mover file powers both workflows. The retention match identifies your subscribers who are about to move. The acquisition filter identifies all addresses in your service area that are entering the market. Run both every week from the same data delivery.

Some providers extend the workflow further: when a retained subscriber provides their new address, the old address becomes a confirmed incoming-household acquisition target. The departing subscriber's install is transferred; the incoming household's install is sold. One listing event, two wins.

What data is available

All products are delivered via Snowflake Marketplace (live data share — SQL join against your subscriber database), MCP connector (AI agent queries for automated flagging), or flat file (weekly CSV/Parquet for campaign platforms). All 10 Canadian provinces. Weekly refresh.

Frequently asked questions

How do telecom providers use pre-mover data?

For acquisition: identify households in service areas that are about to move and contact them before competitors. For retention: match existing subscribers against the weekly listing file to flag at-risk accounts and offer proactive service transfers before the subscriber calls to disconnect.

How early can pre-mover data identify a subscriber at risk of churning?

Typically 4–12 weeks before the physical move and the associated service disconnection. This is weeks or months earlier than change-of-address records, and significantly earlier than the disconnect request itself.

What percentage of telecom churn is move-related?

Move-related disconnections account for a significant share of total subscriber churn — typically 30–50% depending on the provider and market. Unlike dissatisfaction-driven churn, move-related churn is structurally preventable with early enough intervention.

Can the same data be used for both acquisition and retention?

Yes. The same weekly pre-mover file powers both workflows. The retention match identifies your existing subscribers who are about to move. The acquisition filter identifies all addresses in your service area that are entering the market. Both run from the same delivery.

Does pre-mover data include subscriber contact information?

No. BrightCat PreMovers is property-level data: address, postal code, listing date, property attributes, lifecycle status. No names, phone numbers, or emails. The subscriber identification happens inside your own CRM on address match — inside your existing consent framework.

Telecom churn during residential moves is a timing problem, not a product problem. The provider who reaches the household first wins. Pre-mover data is how you reach them first — 4–12 weeks before the move, not 4–12 weeks after.

BrightCat Data · Telecom acquisition & retention · Weekly refresh across all 10 provinces

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