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News
March 02, 1999 12:23
Cox, MediaOne Agree to System Trade
ATLANTA and ENGLEWOOD, Colo., March 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Cox Communications, Inc., and MediaOne(R), the broadband services arm of MediaOne(R) Group, have signed a definitive agreement to trade selected cable television systems in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut representing a total of 105,000 customers. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of this year, pending legal and regulatory review, the companies announced today.
Under the terms of the agreement, Cox would trade its cable television systems in Taunton, North Attleboro, Franklin, Millis, Norton, Plainville, Somerset, Swansea and Blackstone, Mass., serving approximately 54,000 customers, for MediaOne properties in Enfield, Conn., and Westerly, R.I., serving 51,000 customers, and an undisclosed amount of cash.
The transaction furthers each company's strategy to consolidate operations into large clusters to better enable the launch and marketing of new services such as digital video, telephone and high-speed Internet access.
"We're pleased that we can continue to strengthen our presence in Rhode Island and Connecticut, which together comprise our third largest cluster in the country, serving more than 428,000 customers," said Jimmy Hayes, Senior Vice President, Finance and Administration, and Chief Financial Officer. "Our clustering strategy continues to pay off in our ability to offer new services more efficiently to a larger number of consumers."
"This transaction, our trade with Time Warner announced earlier this year, and last year's swap with TCI, which will increase our presence in South Florida, are part of our strategy to increase our strength in the areas we already serve," said Jan Peters, President and CEO of MediaOne. "Our Massachusetts footprint currently covers 860,000 customers, many of whom can receive video entertainment, MediaOne Express high-speed Internet access, and MediaOne Digital Telephone Service. We're looking forward to the opportunity to further extend the provision of these services in the Bay State."
MediaOne is Massachusetts' largest Broadband services provider. The company arranged to add an additional 212,000 customers in a trade with Time Warner announced February 2. That deal is expected to close later this year.
Financial details of the MediaOne/Cox transaction were not disclosed.
Cox Communications, Inc. (NYSE: COX) is among the nation's largest broadband communications companies, serving 3.8 million customers. As a full service provider of telecommunications products, Cox offers an array of services, including cable television under the Cox Cable brand; local and long distance telephone services under the Cox Digital Telephone brand; high speed Internet access via Cox@Home; advanced digital video programming services under the Cox Digital TV brand; and commercial voice and data services via Cox Business Services. Cox is an equity owner of Sprint PCS, the nation's first national wireless personal communications service (PCS); and also is an investor in numerous programming networks, including Discovery Channel. More information about Cox Communications can be accessed on the Internet at www.cox.com.
MediaOne, the nation's leading Broadband services company, provides entertainment, information, and communications services to about 5 million customers. MediaOne Group (NYSE: UMG) is one of the world's largest broadband communications companies, bringing the power of broadband and the Internet to subscribers in the United States, Europe and Asia. The company also has interests in some of the fastest-growing wireless communications businesses outside the U.S. For 1998, the businesses that comprise MediaOne Group produced $7.1 billion in proportionate revenue.
A list of the communities involved in the transaction follows.
COMMUNITIES WHERE MEDIAONE SYSTEMS WILL BE TRADED TO COX COMMUNICATIONS
CONNECTICUT
East Windsor
Enfield
Somers
Stafford
Union
East Granby
Granby
Hartland
Suffield
Windsor Locks
MASSACHUSETTS
Holland
RHODE ISLAND
Charlestown
Hopkinton
Richmond
Westerly
COMMUNITIES WHERE MEDIAONE WILL RECEIVE SYSTEMS FROM COX COMMUNICATIONS
MASSACHUSETTS
North Attleboro
Franklin
Millis
Norton
Taunton
Swansea
Somerset
SOURCE MediaOne; Cox Communications
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