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Wide Open West sells off part of service footprint

(Logo courtesy Wide Open West, Graphic by The Desk)

Pay television operator Wide Open West inked two separate deals late last month that will result in the cable company selling off part of its service footprint.

The dual deals will see Wide Open West (stylized as “Wow!”) giving Atlantic Broadband ownership of its Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio operations. Astound Broadband will acquire the company’s Anne Arundel (Maryland), Chicago and Evansville (Indiana) service areas.

The Atlantic deal is valued at $1.125 billion, while the Astound Broadband merger will fetch $661 million, the website Fierce Video reported. When the dust settles, Wide Open West will still retain cable and broadband Internet operations in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, South Carolina and Tennessee.

“We are pleased to reach these two agreements as [Wide Open West] takes a significant step toward accelerating our broadband-first growth strategy at a pivotal time in our industry,” Teresa Elder, the company’s chief executive, said in a statement. “The substantial proceeds from these transactions reflect the attractiveness of our assets and the clear opportunity to expand our position as a trusted provider of reliable, accessible and fast broadband solutions.”

Elder said the deals will help Wide Open West reduce some of its debt load “as we continue to execute our broadband-first strategy.”

Wide Open West offered few details on how the merger will affect employees, except to say that some will remain with the company, some will transition to the newer owners, and some will exit completely.

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About the Author:

Matthew Keys

Matthew Keys is an award-winning journalist with more than 10 years of experience covering the business of television and radio broadcasting, streaming services and the overall media industry. In addition to his work as publisher of The Desk, Matthew contributes regularly to StreamTV Insider and KnowTechie, and has worked for several well-known news organizations, including Thomson Reuters, McNaughton Newspapers, Grasswire, Comstock's magazine, KTXL-TV and KGO-TV. Matthew is a member of IRE, a trade organization for investigative reporters and editors, and is based in Northern California.

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