Mediacom Communications improved basic video customer losses in the second quarter by 33%, shedding about 12,000 basic video subscribers in the period compared to a loss of 18,000 customers in the prior year, despite losing access to some NHL Stanley Cup Finals games during a retransmission consent dispute.
Mediacom ended the second quarter with about 879,000 basic video customers. High-speed data subscribers rose by about 10,000 to 1.1 million and phone customers increased by 4,000 to 415,000 subscribers.
On June 1, Granite Broadcasting’s NBC stations in Peoria, Ill.; Duluth, Minn.; and Fort Wayne, Ind., went dark to Mediacom customers after the two parties could not reach a retransmission consent agreement. The blackout occurred just as the Stanley Cup Finals began on June 3, pitting local favorites the Chicago Blackhawks against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Mediacom customers weren’t able to watch Game One and Game Two of the Best-of-Seven Series at home, which were broadcast on NBC. Games Three and Four were aired on cable channel NBC Sports and were therefore accessible.
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