Sandy-related disruptions to cable service probably won’t hurt cable operators’...
Sandy-related disruptions to cable service probably won’t hurt cable operators’ long-term customer relations, Standard & Poor’s analyst Richard Siderman said. “We believe that customers for the most part will understand that restoration of cable services … relies on restoration of…
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electric power and will be more likely to direct any criticism toward the electric utilities.” Cable operators will probably adopt flexible billing policies to help customers affected by the storm, he said. Among operators, Cablevision, Time Warner Cable and Comcast have the most subscribers in areas the storm hit, S&P said. Cablevision for instance has been giving customers without power refunds on their monthly bills (CD Nov 5 p18). Carriers may also have to adjust customers’ bills, either offering credits or discounting excess minutes for some customers, Siderman said. The storm could cause some wireless customers to consider adding landline phone service, he said. Repairing storm damage could affect operators’ cash positions depending on how fast insurance companies pay out, he said. “From a liquidity perspective, the timing of cash flows could be critical."