JUNE 14, 2010 -- Cablevision Systems Corp. (NYSE: CVC) and Bresnan Communications, which is majority owned by Providence Equity Partners, have announced a definitive agreement under which a newly formed subsidiary of Cablevision will acquire Bresnan in a transaction valued at $1.365 billion. Bresnan is the nation’s 13th largest MSO with cable operating systems in Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, and Utah that pass more than 630,000 homes and serve more than 300,000 basic subscribers.
Cablevision President and CEO James L. Dolan said, “We believe the acquisition of Bresnan is an excellent opportunity to leverage Cablevision’s strong management team and build shareholder value. Bill Bresnan was a cable legend and was close to so many in the industry, including the Dolan family. The Bresnan team has built an impressive cable business that performs well financially, and we look forward to working to enhance those systems further.”
Cablevision’s COO Tom Rutledge will oversee the Bresnan properties. Rutledge commented, “Bresnan is a well-managed company that has invested wisely in its operations and has pursued a strategy which is aligned and quite similar to Cablevision’s. We look forward to building on Bresnan’s record by pursuing among other things: broader deployment of digital voice; the addition of more high-definition television offerings; the expansion of our groundbreaking triple-play offer; and, the rollout of new services that have already shown great promise.”
Upon completion of the Bresnan transaction, Cablevision will gain advanced cable systems serving more than 300,000 basic subscribers across what the company described as “an upgraded fiber-optic coaxial network.”
Financially, Cablevision expects that Bresnan will be acquired by a newly formed, unrestricted subsidiary of Cablevision with standalone financing. The subsidiary is expected to be financed using non-recourse debt of approximately $1 billion and an equity investment by Cablevision of less than $400 million.
BofA Merrill Lynch and Citi have provided commitments for debt financing for this transaction.
The completion of this transaction, which the company expects to happen in late 2010 or early 2011, is subject to certain customary closing conditions, including regulatory approval.
Citi acted as lead financial advisor to Cablevision. BofA Merrill Lynch and Guggenheim Securities, LLC also provided financial advice to Cablevision. Sullivan & Cromwell LLP acted as legal counsel to Cablevision. For Providence and Bresnan, UBS Investment Bank and Credit Suisse Group served as financial advisors and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP and Holland & Hart LLP served as legal advisors.
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