European telecommunications and cable company Altice SA has agreed to buy New York cable operator Cablevision Systems Corp for US$17.7 billion, including debt.
Altice announced the deal yesterday morning before European financial markets opened, and Cablevision said the family-controlled company considered that “the time is right for new ownership of Cablevision.”
The move is part of Netherlands-based Altice’s aggressive expansion in the US. It announced a US$9.1 billion deal for Suddenlink Communications, a smaller cable company based in St Louis, Missouri, in May.
Photo: AFP
Shares of Cablevision jumped 16 percent to US$33.12 in after-hours trading on Wednesday.
Altice said the deal will be financed with US$14.5 billion of debt at Cablevision plus cash from both companies.
Altice said it hopes to complete the deal in the first half of next year, though it remains subject to regulatory approval.
US cable companies have been in a merger frenzy over the past few years as people increasingly drop their TV packages and watch video online from competitors like Netflix Inc, while cable companies’ costs for sports and other channels rise.
Charter Communications Inc, backed by cable pioneer John Malone, is trying to buy Time Warner Cable Inc and Bright House Networks LLC for US$67.1 billion.
That comes after Comcast Corp walked away from a combination with Time Warner Cable because of regulatory pushback. AT&T Inc recently closed on a US$48.5 billion purchase of satellite TV company DirecTV Inc.
Altice, controlled by founder Patrick Drahi, has expanded from a small regional Internet and cable provider in France’s Alsace region to making an US$18.5 billion acquisition last year of France’s No. 2 mobile phone operator, SFR.
Earlier this year, Altice bought Portugal Telecom for US$8.4 billion. It also has operations in Belgium, Switzerland, Israel and elsewhere.
Altice CEO Dexter Goei has said that the company is aiming for half of its portfolio to be US business.
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