Comcast, Charter Announce Head of Spinoff
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowComcast Corp. (Nasdaq: CMCSA) and Charter Communications Inc. (NYSE: CHTR) have announced the leader of a proposed spinoff that will serve cable subscribers in Indiana. Michael Willner will be president and chief executive officer of the new company. The merger and spinoff involving Comcast and Charter is still awaiting key approvals. May 15, 2014
News Release
STAMFORD, Conn. and PHILADELPHIA, Penn. – Charter Communications, Inc. and Comcast Corporation today announced that former Insight Communications, Inc. co-founder and CEO and 40-year cable industry veteran Michael S. Willner has agreed to serve as President and Chief Executive Officer of “SpinCo,” the new cable company that will be spun off from Comcast upon completion of the Comcast – Time Warner Cable merger and the Comcast – Charter transactions. Willner will oversee the operations of SpinCo, which will serve approximately 2.5 million customers in Alabama, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Tennessee and Wisconsin.
SpinCo will have a nine-member board of directors, three of whom will be appointed by Charter, including Charter President and CEO, Tom Rutledge, who will serve as the non-executive Chairman of the Board. Comcast will appoint three of the remaining six members of the board and will select three more from a list provided by Charter. These six board members will be independent of both Charter and Comcast. In addition, Charter will have a services agreement with SpinCo, which will help both companies achieve greater scale and regional efficiencies.
“A skilled operator with an impressive track record of success, Michael has been a pillar of leadership and an active ambassador for the Industry,” said Tom Rutledge, President and CEO of Charter. “Michael's expertise, strategic vision, and knowledge from his years at Insight will be invaluable to the customers, employees and shareholders of SpinCo. Having him on board now – and leading the new business post-transaction – will be extremely advantageous.”
“Michael is an excellent leader and the perfect choice to be at the helm of this new company,” said Brian L. Roberts, Chairman and CEO of Comcast. “His deep knowledge of the cable business, combined with his experience and focus on technology, will enable him to drive growth and product innovation for customers and position SpinCo as a competitor in the industry.”
“I am excited to assemble and lead a new team of executives who will be exclusively focused on creating a great company with terrific products and excellent customer service,” said Willner. “I am honored to take on this task and look forward to working with Tom and his team at Charter, as well as the strong teams in place within these systems and the other MSOs and suppliers in the industry.”
Willner was a co-founder and CEO of Insight Communications from 1985 through 2012, when Insight was sold to Time Warner Cable. Under Willner's leadership, Insight Communications became one of the most highly regarded operating companies in the industry. He began his career in 1974 at Vision Cable Communications, a division of Advanced Publications and a part of the Newhouse family's media investments, where he rose to become the Chief Operating Officer. Willner currently serves as President and CEO of privately-held Penthera Partners, a software licensing company focused on cloud-to-mobile technology. He will remain involved with that company as a member of its board.
Willner twice served as Chairman of the National Cable and Telecommunications Association (NCTA), the industry's principal trade association. In addition, he was Chairman of the NCTA's political action committee (CablePAC) from 2000 until 2012, Chairman of the Board of the Cable Center from 2007 through 2011, was on the executive committee of CableLabs, and the boards of C-SPAN and the Walter Kaitz Foundation. Willner is a recipient of the NCTA's 2004 Vanguard Award for Distinguished Leadership and a member of both the Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame and the Cable Hall of Fame.
Willner graduated from Boston University's College of Communications in 1974.
About Charter Communications Charter is a leading broadband communications company and the fourth-largest cable operator in the United States. Charter provides a full range of advanced broadband services, including advanced Charter TV video entertainment programming, Charter Internet access, and Charter Phone. Charter Business similarly provides scalable, tailored, and cost-effective broadband communications solutions to business organizations, such as business-to-business Internet access, data networking, business telephone, video and music entertainment services, and wireless backhaul. Charter's advertising sales and production services are sold under the Charter Media brand. More information about Charter can be found at charter.com.
About Comcast Corporation Comcast Corporation is a global media and technology company with two primary businesses, Comcast Cable and NBCUniversal. Comcast Cable is the nation's largest video, high-speed Internet and phone provider to residential customers under the XFINITY brand and also provides these services to businesses. NBCUniversal operates 30 news, entertainment and sports cable networks, the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, television production operations, television station groups, Universal Pictures and Universal Parks and Resorts. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more information.
Important Information For Investors And Shareholders
This communication does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities or a solicitation of any vote or approval. In connection with the proposed transaction between Comcast Corporation (“Comcast”) and Charter Communications, Inc. (“Charter”), Charter will file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) a registration statement on Form S-4 that will include a proxy statement of Charter that also constitutes a prospectus of Charter, and a definitive proxy statement/prospectus will be mailed to shareholders of Charter. INVESTORS AND SECURITY HOLDERS OF COMCAST AND CHARTER ARE URGED TO READ THE PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS AND OTHER DOCUMENTS THAT WILL BE FILED WITH THE SEC CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. Investors and security holders will be able to obtain free copies of the registration statement and the proxy statement/prospectus (when available) and other documents filed with the SEC by Comcast or Charter through the website maintained by the SEC at http://www.sec.gov . Copies of the documents filed with the SEC by Comcast are available free of charge on Comcast's website at http://cmcsa.com or by contacting Comcast's Investor Relations Department at 866-281-2100. Copies of the documents filed with the SEC by Charter will be available free of charge on Charter's website at charter.com, in the “Investor and News Center” near the bottom of the page, or by contacting Charter's Investor Relations Department at 203-905-7955.
In addition, in connection with the proposed transaction between Comcast and Time Warner Cable Inc. (“Time Warner Cable”), on March 20, 2014, Comcast filed with the SEC a registration statement on Form S-4 containing a preliminary joint proxy statement of Comcast and Time Warner Cable that also constitutes a preliminary prospectus of Comcast. The registration statement has not yet become effective. After the registration statement is declared effective by the SEC, a definitive joint proxy statement/prospectus will be mailed to shareholders of Comcast and Time Warner Cable. INVESTORS AND SECURITY HOLDERS OF COMCAST AND TIME WARNER CABLE ARE URGED TO READ THE JOINT PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS AND OTHER DOCUMENTS FILED OR THAT WILL BE FILED WITH THE SEC CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY BECAUSE THEY CONTAIN OR WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. Investors and sec