Cablevision

Cablevision Systems Corporation was an American cable television and telecommunications company built around cable systems in the New York metropolitan region. Its principal service territory covered New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and a small portion of Pennsylvania, although the company operated in substantially more states during earlier phases of its expansion. Cablevision became one of the largest cable operators in the United States, reaching approximately 3.5 million subscribers after a series of acquisitions and system exchanges in the late 1990s. The company was founded by Charles Dolan after he sold Sterling Manhattan Cable and Home Box Office to Time Life. Cablevision initially developed systems on Long Island and then expanded through construction and acquisitions across the New York metropolitan area. It subsequently entered markets around Boston, Chicago and Cleveland, reaching as many as 19 states by the mid-1990s. During the late 1990s and 2000, Cablevision reversed much of that geographic expansion, trading or selling systems outside its core New York footprint while consolidating its customer base and operating focus. Cablevision’s consumer telecommunications portfolio was marketed primarily under the Optimum name. Optimum Online provided high-speed Internet access, Optimum TV and iO Digital Cable supplied digital television, and Optimum Voice offered voice-over-IP telephone service. The company also experimented with WiFi-only mobile service through Freewheel. Cablevision’s business therefore extended beyond conventional television distribution into broadband, telephony and digital media. The company also owned or controlled significant media and entertainment assets. Rainbow Media operated cable networks that included AMC, IFC, Sundance Channel and WE tv, while Cablevision’s sports and entertainment holdings included Madison Square Garden, regional sports networks and professional sports-related properties. Rainbow Media was separated in 2011 as AMC Networks, and Madison Square Garden was spun off as The Madison Square Garden Company in 2010. Cablevision also owned Newsday for many years, acquired the electronics retailer The Wiz, and operated Clearview Cinemas before selling or separating those assets. Cablevision frequently became involved in carriage disputes over sports and entertainment channels. Conflicts concerned the pricing and packaging of MSG Network, YES Network, NFL Network, Tennis Channel and services associated with ESPN. These disputes reflected a recurring strategic issue in the cable industry: whether expensive sports programming should be distributed broadly as part of a basic or family tier, or sold as a premium offering to customers who specifically wanted it. Cablevision was acquired by Altice in 2016. The transaction received approval from the Federal Communications Commission and relevant state regulators and closed on June 21, 2016. Cablevision’s former communications operations were subsequently incorporated into Altice USA’s Optimum business. The Cablevision corporate brand therefore ceased to operate as an independent cable provider, while Optimum continued as the customer-facing service identity for much of the former network.

Cablevision’s origins trace to Charles Dolan’s activities in Manhattan’s cable television business during the 1960s. Dolan created Sterling Manhattan Cable and was involved in launching Home Box Office. After selling those interests to Time Life, he used the proceeds to establish a new cable operation on Long Island. That business became Cablevision and expanded through system construction and acquisitions in suburban New York and nearby communities. During the following decades, Cablevision built a dense regional network across Long Island, New York City, Westchester County, New Jersey and Connecticut. In the 1980s, it also expanded into markets around Boston, Chicago and Cleveland. By the middle of the 1990s, its systems reached approximately 2.9 million subscribers in 19 states. The company later pursued a consolidation strategy, exchanging or selling systems outside its strongest regional markets. A major transaction with Tele-Communications Inc. transferred New York-area systems to Cablevision while giving TCI an ownership interest. After AT&T acquired TCI, AT&T temporarily held that interest before selling it in 2001. By 2000, Cablevision had disposed of its remaining systems in Boston, Cleveland and Kalamazoo, Michigan, concentrating its operations on the New York region. The company developed a broader communications platform under the Optimum brand. Optimum Online represented its broadband Internet service, Optimum TV and iO Digital Cable represented digital television products, and Optimum Voice provided Internet-based telephone service. Cablevision later offered Freewheel, a mobile service relying on WiFi connectivity rather than a conventional nationwide cellular network. Cablevision also pursued vertical integration in content, sports and entertainment. Its Rainbow Media subsidiary operated national cable networks and the Voom high-definition satellite and channel businesses. Its Madison Square Garden interests connected the company to an arena, regional sports networks, professional sports teams and entertainment venues. In 2010, Madison Square Garden was separated into The Madison Square Garden Company. In 2011, Rainbow Media was spun off as AMC Networks, ending Cablevision’s direct corporate ownership of those networks. Cablevision retained other media interests, including Newsday, which it acquired in 2008, and operated businesses such as The Wiz electronics chain and Clearview Cinemas for periods of time. The company’s regional position produced repeated disputes with programmers and competing distributors. Cablevision’s conflicts over MSG Network, YES Network, NFL Network and other channels centered on wholesale pricing, tier placement and the allocation of sports-programming costs among subscribers. It also disputed access to digital services associated with ESPN before reaching a distribution agreement in 2012. Cablevision participated in the wider New York media and political environment as well: in 2004 and 2005, it funded advertising opposing the proposed West Side stadium in Manhattan, a project associated with the New York Jets and New York City’s unsuccessful 2012 Olympic bid. Cablevision briefly expanded again in 2010 when it agreed to purchase Bresnan Communications, whose systems served parts of Colorado, Montana, Utah and Wyoming. Those properties were rebranded Optimum West in 2011 and sold to Charter Communications in 2013. This left Cablevision once again centered on the New York metropolitan area. Altice announced its agreement to acquire Cablevision in 2015. The transaction was reviewed by the FCC and state regulators, including authorities in New York and New Jersey, and closed on June 21, 2016. Cablevision’s telecommunications assets were absorbed into Altice USA, and the Optimum operating identity continued in the market. The Cablevision company consequently became a defunct independent corporate brand, although many of its services, infrastructure and customer relationships survived under Optimum.

1. 2016Altice completes Cablevision acquisition

   Altice completed its acquisition after regulatory approvals, ending Cablevision’s existence as an independent public company.

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2. 2011Rainbow Media becomes AMC Networks

   Rainbow Media was separated from Cablevision as an independent company initially called AMC Networks.

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3. 2010Madison Square Garden is spun off

   Cablevision separated Madison Square Garden, its sports teams, venues and related media properties into The Madison Square Garden Company.

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4. 2008Cablevision acquires Newsday

   Cablevision acquired Newsday and amNewYork, adding major local newspaper assets to its media holdings.

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5. 2000Cablevision completes major geographic consolidation

   The company sold or exchanged systems outside the New York area, including operations in Boston, Cleveland and Kalamazoo.

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6. 1998Cablevision acquires The Wiz and helps establish the Lustgarten Foundation

   Cablevision acquired the New York-area electronics chain The Wiz and helped found the Lustgarten Foundation for pancreatic cancer research.

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7. 1994Cablevision acquires Madison Square Garden interests

   Cablevision and ITT acquired the Madison Square Garden properties from Viacom, with Cablevision later becoming the sole owner of ITT’s share.

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8. 1980Rainbow Media becomes part of Cablevision’s wider media portfolio

   Cablevision operated Rainbow Media alongside other cable-industry partners before eventually spinning it off as AMC Networks.

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9. 1960Charles Dolan develops early Manhattan cable operations

   Charles Dolan built Sterling Manhattan Cable and participated in the launch of Home Box Office before later founding Cablevision.

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A regional, vertically integrated cable and telecommunications operator combining subscription television, broadband, telephone service and ownership or control of local media, sports and entertainment assets.

• Optimum OnlineBroadband Internet

  Cablevision’s high-speed Internet service, marketed under the Optimum brand and delivered through its cable network. It became a core part of the company’s bundled communications proposition alongside television and voice services.

• Optimum TV / iO Digital CableDigital television

  Cablevision’s digital cable television offering, including the iO Digital Cable platform. The service combined multichannel programming with digital features and was the company’s principal residential television product in its regional markets.

• Optimum VoiceVoice-over-IP

  An Internet-based telephone service offered as part of Cablevision’s residential communications bundle. It complemented Optimum television and broadband products and helped the company compete as a triple-play provider.

• FreewheelMobile communications

  A WiFi-focused mobile phone service introduced by Cablevision. Unlike a conventional nationwide cellular proposition, Freewheel emphasized access through WiFi connectivity within the company’s broader communications ecosystem.

• VoomHigh-definition television

  A satellite and high-definition television initiative associated with Rainbow Media. The satellite service closed in 2005, while Voom HD Networks channels continued for a period on Cablevision’s digital cable platform before being discontinued.

• 2004West Side Stadium opposition campaign

  New York City

  Cablevision funded advertising opposing the proposed West Side stadium in Manhattan. The project was supported by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and was intended principally for the New York Jets, while also supporting New York’s bid for the 2012 Olympics. Cablevision had competing interests in the development site and opposed public subsidies for the proposal.

  Outcome. The stadium plan was abandoned in 2005 after the New York State Assembly declined to provide the required state support.

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• 1998Lustgarten Foundation support

  United States

  Cablevision helped establish the Lustgarten Foundation, named after former chairman Marc Lustgarten, to support pancreatic cancer research. Cablevision underwrote administrative and fundraising costs so that donations could be directed to research and grants.

  Outcome. The foundation developed into a major private pancreatic cancer research charity.

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• 2015Agree to sale to AlticeM&A

  Cablevision agreed to be acquired by European telecommunications group Altice as the U.S. cable market continued to consolidate.

  What changed. The parties announced a cash acquisition subject to federal and state regulatory approvals.

  Aftermath. The transaction closed in June 2016, and Cablevision’s operations were absorbed into Altice USA’s Optimum business.

  Transaction value including assumed debt. 17700000000 USD (2015 announcement)

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• 2012Reach ESPN digital distribution agreementOther

  Cablevision customers previously lacked access to ESPN3 and WatchESPN because the company had not reached a distribution agreement with ESPN.

  What changed. Cablevision agreed to distribute ESPN3, WatchESPN and related applications to eligible customers.

  Aftermath. ESPN3 became available to Optimum Online customers in November, followed by WatchESPN access for Optimum TV customers in December.

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• 2010Acquire Bresnan CommunicationsM&A

  Cablevision sought to expand beyond its consolidated New York-area footprint and agreed to purchase Bresnan Communications, which served customers in several Rocky Mountain states.

  What changed. Cablevision acquired Bresnan’s systems and later rebranded them as Optimum West.

  Aftermath. The western systems were sold to Charter Communications in 2013, ending the renewed expansion outside Cablevision’s core region.

  Acquisition value. 1370000000 USD (2010)

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• 2016Cablevision acquisition by Altice closes

  After federal and state regulatory approvals, Altice completed its acquisition of Cablevision.

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• 2015Altice agrees to acquire Cablevision

  Altice announced an agreement to acquire Cablevision, including the assumption of the target’s debt.

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• 2013Cablevision agrees to sell Optimum West to Charter Communications

  Cablevision agreed to divest its western cable systems to Charter Communications.

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• 2013Cablevision announces workforce reductions

  The company announced layoffs affecting approximately 400 employees.

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• 2012Cablevision reaches distribution agreement with ESPN

  The agreement gave eligible Cablevision customers access to ESPN3, WatchESPN and related digital services.

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• 2012Cablevision resolves NFL Network carriage dispute

  Cablevision announced that NFL Network would become available across its systems.

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• 2011Cablevision rebrands Bresnan systems as Optimum West

  The acquired western systems were placed under the Optimum West identity.

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• 2010Cablevision announces acquisition of Bresnan Communications

  Cablevision agreed to acquire Bresnan Communications, re-entering markets outside its traditional New York-area footprint.

  M&A
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1. Cablevision