Midcontinent Closes US Cable Deal
Midcontinent Communications said Tuesday that it has completed the acquisition of certain U.S. Cable franchises in Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Midcontinent announced the U.S. Cable deal in June, involving about 33,000 subscribers and passing 86,000 homes in the two states. While terms of the transaction were not disclosed, sources in the financial community estimate the price to be about $120 million, or $3,600 per subscriber.
US Cable has been on the block since last year, when Comcast, which owns a 48% stake in the company, expressed a desire to exit the partnership. Earlier this year U.S. Cable agreed to sell about 50,000 subscribers in Missouri, Texas and Colorado in two separate deals to Baja Broadband and Charter Communications for undisclosed sums.
"We are looking forward to serving our new customers and becoming involved in these new communities," said Midcontinent CEO Pat McAdaragh in a statement.
Construction has already begun on interconnecting the two networks and work should be completed this fall. Midcontinent has also added staff and opened another call center in West Fargo, N.D., in addition to existing call centers in Sioux Falls and Aberdeen, S.D.
Midcontinent has more than 275,000 residential and business customers in North and South Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Waller Capital Partners, LLC acted as exclusive financial adviser to US Cable Corporation and RBC Daniels acted as exclusive financial adviser to Midcontinent Communications.
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