iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Golden, CO | reply to hottboiinnc
Re: This could get interest
But what would happen to DOCSIS 3? |
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hottboiinnc
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH | finish the build out in that area---offer the service and leave it at that. |
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zed260
join:2007-09-30
Cleveland, TN
 ·Charter Pipeline
| reply to iansltx
well docsis 3 wont be available to charter customers in most areas for a few years
as far as charter goes in the short term if this does go chapter 7 it wont be good for charters customers but in 2 or 3 years i can see it as being a lot better then charter reorgnizaion plan would be |
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hottboiinnc
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH
·Time Warner Cable
·buckeye cable
| Charter really doesn't have a life after all this. If they can't afford to pay for their loans now they won't be able to when they come back if they're not getting rid of much debt. The court will rule they need to be sold off to other providers, Comcast, TWC, Suddenlink and Windjamer or some other small provider will start picking them up.
But then there is Cablevision's new way of expanding and competing, and a way for ATT to get into the TV business and basically have fiber already in place. |
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iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Golden, CO | reply to hottboiinnc
What service would be offered? As is all too apparent, TWC doesn't want to put any money into infrastructure, instead electing to push exaflood myths and caps with overages. They wouldn't really know what to do with a DOCSIS 3 system... |
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iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Golden, CO
·Comcast
 ·Qwest.net
 ·magicjack.com
 ·BeeCreek Communica..
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
| reply to hottboiinnc
Why would CableVision expand into Charter areas? Right now they have a monolithic footprint in a very dense area, which allows for cheap bandwidth, which in turn allows for high speeds. They don't want to expend too much or they'll lose this edge.
AT&T on the other hand got out of the coax business awhile back. They probably can't get back in in the places that they'd want to due to antitrust regs.
Also, VDSL puts fiber just asclose to the home as current cable systems do... |
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jwalk
jwalking
join:2008-02-04
Old Orchard Beach, ME |  either company time warner or comcast will be able to offer services. broadband users will be fine.
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* don't fear the penguin * |
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Lazlow
join:2006-08-07
Saint Louis, MO
| I will be really surprised if TWC buys a significant portion of Charter(assuming it is sold off). TWC is still paying off all the debt it incurred from its split from TW. Since it did not pay a dividend this year, I suspect its stockholders would balk at them getting further into debt(pushing dividends even further out). Just look at the huge drop in TWC's stock price earlier this year.
I would expect that most of Charter would go to the smaller players. Just like everything they have sold off in the last year or so. Maybe some of the bigger players would consider picking up Charter's more densely populated areas (St. Louis). There is also always the possibility that some venture capital group will take them over in entirety. Depending on how bad the creditors want out, it could be a pretty good deal.
Personally I hope Charter hangs on. They have been improving their systems (admittedly slowly, D3) and they seem to have backed off the cap issue(at least for now) after the huge backlash. If they can essentially eliminate analog cable(the direction they have been headed for the last year), it will free up enough bandwidth to give them a much wider choice of options. |
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patcat88
join:2002-04-05
Jamaica, NY
| reply to iansltx
said by iansltx  :What service would be offered? As is all too apparent, TWC doesn't want to put any money into infrastructure, instead electing to push exaflood myths and caps with overages. They wouldn't really know what to do with a DOCSIS 3 system... They would, everyone doesn't get fired when a market is sold.
It will be grandfathered, and never expanded or orderable again. When a CMTS or CMTS card breaks, the users will be forced off D3. |
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hottboiinnc
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH | reply to iansltx
Anti-trust? HA!
Cinci Bell owns a cable company here.
ATT only got out of the business when SBC took over Americast and then WOW took over the failing and cheap network. |
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hottboiinnc
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH
·Time Warner Cable
·buckeye cable
| reply to patcat88
Naa. I don't think they'd just force users off it. I think they'd support, just not expand it out any farther.
As far as Ian saying about not wanting to upgrade there are no actual facts that say they don't want to nor have plans to. That's all rumors and most of it started on here by the wonderful "reporter". Nobody really knows what they're doing in the field or what they have in store in coming months. Just because they don't come out every other week and claiming something new like ATT did when they started U-Verse doesn't mean anything.
TWC will upgrade and its only a matter of time before they announce it to the public.
TWC most likely though wouldn't pick up St. Louis as they don't have any service areas that are close. They'd be better off sold to Comcast (maybe) and especially to MediaCom who supports that area. |
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iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Golden, CO | reply to hottboiinnc
It most places, ATT Broadband (cable) is now Comcast.
As to CinBell owning a cable company, is it your only one? Charter tends to be in single-cableco markets... |
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hottboiinnc
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH
·Time Warner Cable
·buckeye cable
| Cinci bell bought the cable company to expand their offerings.
They bought it from a Muni. It was HUGE news just never put on here.
And just because charter is in single cable markets doesn't mean a telco couldn't buy them and offer services. They can move all of their services to that network and get rid of the copper plants that are way past out dated. and the best part is they wouldn't have to share this network.
They would be basically doing what they're already doing.
Also there are several Co-Ops that own the local cable company AND the Telco side. go google SherTel in Sherwood, Ohio. |
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hottboiinnc
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH
·Time Warner Cable
·buckeye cable
| reply to iansltx
The former ATT got out of the broadband business after @Home went out. Comcast took over in most of their markets and sold which ones they did not want. A few of them are in Michigan. Those went to Charter.
You can get cheap bandwidth any where if you know how to play your cards right. Any company the size of Cablevision could get bandwidth as cheap as they are now even in STL. STL is a HUGE city and home to Nestle Purina USA.
VDSL may put fiber as close to homes as HFC but you have to build out the VDSL network. with the HFC network from Charter its already done in place. Why build a system in an area where it's already built if you can just buy it and take over.
There is no law that says ATT or VZ can't buy that network and use it. It would be better than just leaving it rot or the City to try and run/manage it. |
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hottboiinnc
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH
·Time Warner Cable
·buckeye cable
| reply to Lazlow
TWC would pick them up on the auction block for pennies on the dollar the same as they did with Adelphia. But yes it would make sense for TWC to take over networks that belong to charter when they are close to the TWC network. Like the ones in Ohio. They're bordered by TWC and would make for an easy take over and move everything over to the TWC data centers. Nothing big there.
Venture Capital groups always have high prices- look at WOW they're prices are way higher than what TWC charges and the Internet side is slower for the same price of money.
MediaCom is the most likely company to take over STL though. |
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iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Golden, CO
·Comcast
·Qwest.net
·magicjack.com
·BeeCreek Communica..
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
| reply to hottboiinnc
There are co-ops that own cable companies, true. Just up the road from my hometown is GVTC territory. Fiber (up to 20/3 residential, 25/3 or so commercial) in some places, otherwise cable (up to 12 Mbps) or DSL (up to 5 Mbps). But they're a coop, and TWC is now competing with them.
As for Charter and the big telcos, the telcos can't get rid of copper plant; they'd be breaking regulations if they did so. Plus, ripping stuff out is expensive. Not to mention the fact that telcos no longer do cable generally and it would require a retraining of the work force to fix this.
Additionally, copper phone lines are unshared all the way to the DSLAM. They could mess with technology to get decent speeds out further or whatever. Case in point: extended range DSL and VDSL... |
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iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Golden, CO
·Comcast
·Qwest.net
·magicjack.com
·BeeCreek Communica..
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
| reply to hottboiinnc
There's no law against Microsoft or Google buying out other companies, right? Do they still get in trouble for it? very yes.
As for cheap bandwidth if you play your cards right, name me a big data center in STL. Seriously, look around. Cheap bandwidth is available in internet hubs. NYC is one of them...transatlantic cables and an internet exchange or two mean that Cablevision is in a major market for every provider. The providers compete for CV's money, or CV peers with the smaller ones. End of story.
The nearest big IX...and it's not the biggest one...to STL is KC. Several providers are there, but it's not as much of a major market except for budget providers. Or maybe Chicago's nearer. It has good deals on bandwidth, but it's still a ways away.
Again, see which companies offer STL as "on-net". The list is smaller than you'd think, and thus bandwidth may be more expensive. |
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Lazlow
join:2006-08-07
Saint Louis, MO
| reply to hottboiinnc
hottboiinnc
I think TWC would have to talk a really good game to get their stockholders to go along with them spending any more money. They are already looking at a considerable reinvestment in their systems (upgrading to D3) which they have already shown reluctance to do, reason for low caps. Their stockholders already got mad when they found out that there were not going to be any dividends this year(look at the massive drop in TWC stock earlier this year). I just do not see the stockholders allowing TWC to incur more debt than is absolutely necessary, no matter how good the deal could be. The other thing to consider is that credit is MUCH more expensive and harder to get now, than it was when they got Adelphia. In addition to that they were part of TW at that time and had a lot more assets to back up the purchase.
I did not say I wanted a venture capital group to buy, just that they could. Especially if they can get it for "pennies on the dollar". |
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hottboiinnc
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH | You should go look at the reason for the drop. That wasn't their problem with the payouts. |
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hottboiinnc
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH
·Time Warner Cable
·buckeye cable
| reply to iansltx
VZ is getting rid of the copper plant.
SO it's not against regulation. They're replacing with Fiber. ATT could do the same if they took over an HFC network. move everyone over and BOOM! no more sharing. Sell the network off and or close it. There wouldn't be a need for it as they could upgrade the entire HFC network cheaper than what laying full FTTH or VDSL would be.
You wouldn't have to train anyone. Cable Companies are non-union and the telcos would love that.
Plus how hard is it to train someone to hook up a cable modem? screw the coax into the cable modem...hook the ethernet cord to the modem and into the computer plug modem in. good to go. |
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