In another positive sign for the Charter-Time Warner Cable deal, the City of New York's franchise review committee has approved the transfer of the TWC franchises to Charter.
The Franchise Concession and Review Committee met March 7 and have signed off on the transfer of the franchises, according to a draft copy provided to Multichannel News.
At issue were five franchises in Queens, Northern and Southern Manhattan, Brooklyn and Staten Island.
Basically, the review committee concluded that Charter would have "the technical, managerial and financial ability to comply with the provisions of the existing franchise agreement."
“We thank Mayor [Bill] de Blasio, his administration and staff for their support," Charter said in a statement. "We also thank city comptroller Scott Stringer and the borough presidents from each of the four boroughs where TWC currently provides service for also supporting this transaction through the FCRC vote today. We look forward to successfully completing this transaction and bringing its many benefits to customers in New York City.”
The FCC and Department of Justice are currently reviewing the deal and if the FCC holds to its own unofficial merger review shot clock timetable, should be circulating a decision before month's end.
