Canadian cable and media giant, Rogers Communications, reported a decline in first-quarter profit yesterday, despite strong wireless subscriber growth.

The company earned a total of C$309 million in the first three months of 2009, down 10% from the corresponding period last year. Quarterly revenue, however, was up 5% to $2.7-billion, primarily due to the strong performance of Rogers Wireless, which accounted for 55% of the company’s overall sales.

Rogers added a total of 104,000 new wireless subscribers in the first quarter, beating the 67,000 estimated by National Bank Financial analyst, Greg MacDonald. Rogers Wireless has exclusive contracts to sell a number of high-end smartphones, most notably the Apple iPhone and BlackBerry Bold devices.

Other businesses such as Rogers Retail and Rogers Media had a more difficult time in recent months, with sales and profit slipping substantially as consumers and advertisers spend less due to the ongoing recession.