Altice USA

Altice USA
Name	Altice USA
Type	Public
Industry	Telecommunications
Founded	2016
Founder	Patrick Drahi
Headquarters	Long Island City, New York
Area served	United States
Key people	Dexter Goei, Michael Fries, Jeff Kalis, John Bickham

Altice USA is an American telecommunications and media company providing broadband, video, telephony, and advertising services across urban and suburban markets. It grew rapidly through the acquisition of regional cable operators and media assets, competing with major providers in the United States telecommunications market. The company has been involved in significant corporate transactions and regulatory scrutiny while operating a portfolio of consumer and business services.

History

Altice USA traces its corporate lineage to expansion by the private equity and telecom investor Patrick Drahi after acquisitions of companies such as Cablevision and Suddenlink Communications. The firm's formation followed cross-border investment activity linked to holdings in Altice NV and subsequent listings on the New York Stock Exchange. Major historical milestones include acquisition of Cablevision Systems Corporation assets, the integration of Suddenlink Communications, and the purchase of media assets including regional sports networks from The Walt Disney Company divestitures linked to the Disney–21st Century Fox acquisition. The company navigated regulatory reviews by the Federal Communications Commission and state public utility commissions, while participating in industry associations such as the National Cable & Telecommunications Association. Key events also intersect with mergers and buyouts involving firms like Cox Communications and dealings with investment banks including Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley.

Corporate structure and leadership

Corporate governance has featured executives with backgrounds from large media and cable firms, including former executives associated with Altice NV leadership and U.S. cable veterans from Time Warner Cable, Comcast, and Charter Communications. The board has included members with ties to investment firms such as Apollo Global Management and corporate law advisors from Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. Senior management has engaged with regulatory stakeholders at the Federal Trade Commission and participated in policy dialogues at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. The company’s shareholder base has included institutional investors like BlackRock, Vanguard Group, and State Street Corporation, and it has interacted with proxy advisory firms including Institutional Shareholder Services and Glass, Lewis & Co..

Services and products

The company offers consumer products such as high-speed broadband, digital video, and home telephone services across regional footprints formerly operated by Suddenlink Communications and Cablevision satellite competitors like DirecTV are market comparators. It provides business services including enterprise networking, managed Wi-Fi, and cloud solutions with partnerships referencing vendors such as Cisco Systems, Juniper Networks, and Microsoft Azure. In advertising, the company operates targeted digital platforms competing with entities like Comcast Advertising and Google Ads. Media holdings have included regional sports networks formerly tied to agreements with leagues and organizations such as Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, and National Hockey League, as well as carriage negotiations involving programmers like Disney General Entertainment Content and Warner Bros. Discovery.

Financial performance

Financial reporting has been influenced by capital expenditures, customer growth metrics, and integration costs from major purchases including the Suddenlink transaction. The company reports results on a quarterly basis to the Securities and Exchange Commission and is tracked by equity analysts at firms such as J.P. Morgan, Credit Suisse, and UBS. Key performance indicators include revenue, adjusted EBITDA, churn rates, and average revenue per user, with balance sheet considerations involving debt instruments underwritten by banks including Bank of America and Citigroup. The firm’s credit ratings have been issued by agencies such as Moody's Investors Service and S&P Global Ratings, influencing refinancing activity and bond issuances in the corporate debt markets.

Mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures

Significant transactions include the acquisition of Suddenlink Communications and purchase of cable systems formerly operated by Cablevision Systems Corporation. The company has negotiated asset sales and regional network divestitures to comply with regulatory conditions similar to remedies seen in other telecom mergers, referencing precedents involving AT&T and DirecTV and the breakup terms from the Comcast–NBCUniversal transactions. Strategic moves have involved working with advisors from Lazard and Evercore to evaluate bids and dispositions, and settlements with stakeholders such as regional municipalities and utility companies over franchise agreements.

Controversies and legal issues

The company has faced disputes over carriage agreements, customer service practices, and billing issues, invoking regulatory oversight from the Federal Communications Commission and state attorneys general such as those in New York (state) and Texas. Litigation has included lawsuits by consumer advocacy groups and class actions managed by firms like Skadden and Latham & Watkins in matters akin to disputes that have affected other cable operators including Comcast and Charter Communications. Antitrust considerations arose in merger reviews reminiscent of scrutiny in the T-Mobile–Sprint and AT&T–Time Warner cases. The company has also been involved in labor negotiations with unions such as the Communications Workers of America and faced municipal franchise fee disputes with cities including New York City and Los Angeles.

Category:Telecommunications companies based in the United States