sadly
voom1 said:
I can not believe everybody is giving up. The same thing happen last month.
Don't you think James is behind this. What about the board meeting April 15?
I believe Chuck still got something up his sleeve and he does not give up very easy. Do not give up yet and do not believe everything you read on these web pages.
In Apparent End to Family Showdown, Cablevision to Shut Its Voom Satellite Service
By GERALDINE FABRIKANT NY TIMES
Published: April 9, 2005
Cablevision Systems said yesterday that it had decided to shut its Voom satellite business, but that it would continue to own and sell rights to 21 high-definition television channels.
The action, noted in a government filing, appears to resolve a standoff between the Cablevision chairman, Charles F. Dolan, and his son, James L. Dolan, the chief executive, over whether to finance the satellite business.
The board, which Charles Dolan recently reconfigured to include some longtime cable executives he trusted, was in agreement that the company should no longer support the money-losing venture.
Aryeh Bourkoff, a media analyst at UBS Securities, said, "The Voom decision is meaningful because it was made by the board and seems to indicate that the friction is ebbing,"
Cablevision's decision to drop Voom was a setback for Charles Dolan, who had hoped to create a new business, even in the face of skepticism, much as he did when he created Home Box Office decades ago.
But he salvaged a slight victory because the company will continue to support the programming effort and sell it to other satellite dish and cable companies as the appetite for high-definition television is growing rapidly. At one time Mr. Dolan was considering buying the programming operation himself if the company was not willing to support it.
Wall Street was generally relieved at the news because it viewed the chances of success for the costly effort as a long shot. Shares of Cablevision rose 39 cents, to $28.23.
Christopher Marangi, who follows Cablevision for Gabelli & Company, which holds 20 million shares, said that he viewed the shutdown favorably.
"They probably won't be able to break the deal with EchoStar," said Mr. Marangi, referring to Cablevision's agreement to sell its satellite for $200 million to EchoStar. Mr. Dolan had been trying to back out of that deal and acquire the satellite privately to keep Voom alive.
"It appears that nothing will happen," Mr. Marangi said. "That means Voom will disappear as an independent distribution operation and they will try and market the content. It is a growing market, as more people upgrade to H.D. television sets."
Mr. Marangi said the move means that Voom will not "be such a cash drain on the company, but it carries a negative because it reduces Chuck Dolan's impetus to sell Cablevision to raise capital if he were determined to keep on Voom."
Voom has 40,000 customers. It mirrors Cablevision's concept for Rainbow, its package of cable program networks aimed at niche markets.
The channels, which do not carry advertising, include news, sports, music and movie channels. The fees to consumers depended on how many channels a subscriber took. And the company changed its pricing strategy over time. The Voom operation, including the satellite, lost about $1 billion over its three year life.
Voom's programming includes exclusive high-definition coverage of international soccer on World Sport HD, cartoons on Animania HD, and an inside look at exclusive live auctions on Auction HD, among other offerings.
Mr. Bourkoff added: "I am now comfortable that Voom has settled into an appropriate business model focused on content."
"That means that they can start selling it to other cable and satellite operators without the capital intensity of the initial Voom plan," he said. "Whatever it costs them, it is minimal and is generally a high free-cash-flow business."
Cablevision, meanwhile, has been trying to pursue an acquisition of cable system owned by Adelphia, but has apparently been outbid by Time Warner and Comcast, who have a tentative deal to buy the assets for $18 billion. But the Time Warner/Comcast bid for Adelphia, which is in bankruptcy protection, must be approved by the court, opening the door for other offers.
It is unclear whether Cablevision, which had offered $16.5 billion in cash for the assets, will try to contest the deal with an increased bid of its own. Several analysts said the Time Warner-Comcast bid was likely to prevail at the higher price
