Time Warner Cable ( ) (formerly
Warner
Cable Communications) is an American national cable
television company that operates in 27 states and has 31 operating
divisions.
Its corporate headquarters are located in
New York,
NY
, and has other corporate offices in Cambridge,
Massachusetts
; Charlotte, North Carolina
; and Herndon, Virginia
. For its first 20 years, Time Warner Cable
was controlled by Time Warner. However, it is no longer affiliated
with Time Warner, having been
spun out to
shareholders in March 2009. Time Warner Cable is also trying to
combat higher cable costs by launching the website roll over or get
tough, an undisclosed Tv network is seeking as much as a 300%
increase from Time Warner Cable which would be passed on to Each of
their customers. Time Warner Cable is asking all customers go to
this sight and let them know what they would like to have
done.
Prior to the spin-out, Time Warner had held an 84 percent stake in
Time Warner Cable. Non-Time Warner shareholders received 0.083670
shares for each share already owned. This move made Time Warner
Cable the largest cable operator in the United States owned solely
by a single class of shareholders (without supervoting
stock).
History
Time Warner Cable was formed in 1989 through the merger of
Time Inc.'s cable television company, American
Television and Communications Corp., and Warner Cable, a division
of
Warner Communications. It
also includes the remnants of the defunct
QUBE
interactive TV service. In 1995, the company launched the
Southern Tier On-Line
Community, a
cable modem service now
known as
Road Runner High
Speed Online.
Arena
In April 2008, the
Charlotte
Bobcats reached a naming rights deal with Time Warner Cable,
the Charlotte area's only
cable
television provider.
Under this deal, Bobcats Arena will be
renamed Time Warner
Cable Arena
. In return, Time Warner agreed to tear up
the cable television deal that had limited the Bobcats' exposure
over the team's first four years. Starting with the 2008-09 season,
most Bobcats games will be seen on
FSN
South and
SportSouth in North and
South Carolina.
Acquisition of Adelphia
On July 31, 2006, Time Warner Cable and
Comcast completed a deal to purchase practically all
of
Adelphia's
assets for $17 billion . Time Warner Cable gained 3.3 million of
Adelphia's subscribers, a 29 percent increase, while Comcast gained
almost 1.7 million subscribers. Adelphia stockholders received 16%
of Time Warner Cable.
Time Warner Cable went public effective
February 13, 2007, and the company began trading on the New York Stock
Exchange
on March 1, 2007.
In addition to Adelphia's coverage being divided up, Time Warner
Cable and Comcast also agreed to exchange some of their own
subscribers in order to consolidate key regions.
An example of this is
the Los
Angeles
market, which was mostly covered by Comcast and
Adelphia (and some areas of the region already served by TWC), is
now under Time Warner Cable. Philadelphia
, previously was split between Time Warner and
Comcast, with the majority of cable subscribers belonging to
Comcast. Time Warner subscribers in Philadelphia were
swapped with Comcast in early 2007.
Similarly, the Houston
area, which
was under Time Warner, was swapped to Comcast, while the Dallas
metro area was changed to Time Warner (RR).. In the Twin
Cities, Minneapolis was Time Warner and Saint Paul was Comcast.
That whole market is now Comcast. There have also been rumors of a
Charter purchase as well,
much like how Adelphia was acquired in conjunction with
Comcast.
Advance/Newhouse and Time Warner (Bright House Networks spin
off)
Some of the regional cable system clusters operated by Time Warner
Cable are owned by the Time Warner Entertainment - Advance/Newhouse
Partnership (TWEAN). In 2002,
Advance/Newhouse Communications,
unhappy with some of the operating policies of Time Warner Cable in
the AOL Time Warner era, forced a restructuring of the TWEAN
partnership such that Advance/Newhouse would actively manage and
operate a portion of the jointly owned cable systems equal to their
percentage of equity. Under this arrangement, Advance/Newhouse
enjoys the proceeds of their actively managed systems rather than
simply a percentage of the partnership's total earnings. The
majority of the affected systems are in the Tampa and Orlando
markets under the
Bright House
Networks brand.
The value of this deal is that it allows Advance/Newhouse to more
directly control their cable investments without having to
completely unravel the TWEAN partnership, which does bring some
benefits via Time Warner's development and purchasing clout.
Sprint Nextel Venture
In late 2005, TWC and several other cable companies formed a
venture with
Sprint Nextel. This
caused TWC customers to receive a full suite of products, linking
in-home and out-of-home entertainment, information, and
communications services. All of this was included in the new
"Triple Play On The Go", similar to the Triple Play but an addition
of new services through Sprint Nextel.
Carriage controversies
Bandwidth metering
In 2008,
Time Warner Cable began testing tier-based metered data plans in
Beaumont,
Texas
. In 2009, Time Warner Cable announced that
additional cities including Rochester, New York
will become additional test sites. In
particular in Rochester groups have formed to stop TWC. Several
groups including
Stop
TWC and
Stop
The Cap are currently working to oppose these efforts. On April
7, 2009, US Congressman
Eric Massa,
called on Time Warner to eliminate its broadband internet
cap.
Local stations
- In October 2008, Time Warner Cable customers in Austin, Texas
lost NBC programming as a result of an ongoing contract dispute
between the owner of network affiliate KXAN and the cable giant.
Both sides waged a public relations war against the other, each
claiming in ads, on their Web sites, and in other mediums that they
were in the right and that the other side is letting viewers
down.
- Since
September 2008, Time Warner Cable is under a carriage dispute with
Daystar Television
Network affiliate KDTN
(Denton, Texas
). As an end result, it was replaced with a
test pattern. As of January 4, 2009; it
was pulled from its lineup.
- On September 15, 2008 LIN TV
temporarily pulled the signals of its stations from TWC and
Bright House Networks in a
total of 15 markets. Affected stations in areas served by TWC
were WIVB
/WNLO
in Buffalo, New
York
; WLUK-TV
in Green Bay, Wisconsin
; WTHI-TV
in Terre Haute, Indiana
; WDTN-TV
in Dayton,
Ohio
; WUPW-TV
in Toledo,
Ohio
; and WANE-TV
in Fort Wayne, Indiana
..
- On December 31, 2006 Sinclair Broadcast Group was
scheduled to pull stations off Time Warner Cable in markets TWC
inherited from Adelphia. Examples of such stations are WVAH
, WGME
and WCHS-TV
in Charleston, West Virginia
.. TWC eventually came to an agreement to
extend the carriage.
- On
December 15, 2006, KAYU-TV
, the Fox
affiliate serving eastern Washington
and the Idaho
panhandle,
was pulled from TWC subscribers in those areas. The reason
given was that KAYU had not been "negotiating in good faith" for
permission to carry the channel; KAYU pulled its own signal and
wants reverse compensation for
its carriage. Time Warner fears that such an agreement will result
in higher cable bills for its subscribers. Station officials are
providing free rabbit-ear antennas to access the signal. On
February 1, 2008, an agreement was finally reached between the two
parties that allows Time Warner to retransmit the station's feed
until February 1, 2013.
- On
October 15, 2006, just hours before TWC was to drop WSAZ-TV
in Huntington, West Virginia, station management
and TWC came to an agreement. The key was that TWC agreed to
add the new MyNetworkTV affiliate, which
WSAZ carries on a digital subchannel. If no agreement was reached,
WSAZ, the local NBC affiliate, would have been
dropped on December 8.
- On
October 4, 2006, TWC reached a new carriage agreement with Fox Television Stations Group-owned
stations KDFW
and
KDFI
, respective affiliates of FOX and MyNetworkTV in the Dallas–Fort Worth
Metroplex. Before that, a message was scrolling on a
leased access channel saying, "Please be advised that pending
progress of ongoing negotiations, Time Warner may be forced to
discontinue carriage of KDFW and KDFI. While we remain hopeful that
further negotiations are being made to keep KDFW and KDFI
programming in the lineup, we're letting customers know in advance
of this issue." Had the stations been pulled as threatened, most
Dallas Cowboys games would have been
unavailable to TWC subscribers.
- When The CW (which is
half-owned by Time Warner) launched on September 18, 2006, a number
of TWC systems did not carry the digital subchannels that the
CW uses as affiliates in some areas. Among the stations
whose subchannels are not carried on TWC are WCBD
, Charleston,
South Carolina
; KVIA
, El Paso,
Texas
; WLIO
, Lima,
Ohio
; and KESQ
, Palm Springs, California
.
- On May 12, 2000, ABC network owned-and-operated stations were
unavailable to TWC subscribers for 19 hours. The pullout, in the
middle of a "sweeps" period, came
because TWC could not agree with ABC's parent company, the Walt Disney Company, on whether
to carry some specialty channels, like ESPN
Classic and SOAPnet. Those tuning in to
stations like WABC
in New York City
or KABC
in Los Angeles
instead saw this static message, "Disney is taking
ABC away from you." Thousands of people bought antennas from RadioShack and other stores to view ABC programs,
and KABC-AM
in L.A. carried the audio feed of Who Wants to Be a
Millionaire, then the network's highest-rated
program. Amidst huge public outcry, and threats of Congressional action, TWC and ABC
reached a new deal to put the ABC stations back on the
systems.
Cable/on demand channels
- On August 1, 2006, Time Warner Cable removed the NFL Network from its lineup in areas it gained
from its deal with Comcast to jointly
purchase bankrupt cable company Adelphia's assets and to
swap certain areas it served with areas Comcast served. Adelphia
and Comcast had both carried the National Football League's 24-hour
network on a digital tier, however, NFL claims that Time Warner
Cable now insists on making it into a premium channel on its
systems.[195191] As a result, NFL Network lost millions of
cable households just as it is beginning a new contract to air
eight regular-season games a year. On August 3, 2006, the FCC ordered Time Warner
Cable to reinstate the NFL Network on those systems from which it
had removed the channel, upholding the complaint that they had
failed to comply with the required 30 day notice period required to
be given to customers, before removing a channel. After considering
its options, Time Warner Cable restored the channel at midnight on
August 4, 2006, with an onscreen notice warning the viewers the
channel would be removed in 30 days. Time Warner Cable issued a
petition to the FCC in an attempt to reverse the decision citing
"severe, immediate and irreparable harm" to Time Warner Cable and
its customers, and threatening legal action if the FCC did not
reach a decision by 10am on August 7, 2006. On that day, the FCC
responded to Time Warner Cable's petition by upholding the
Commission's initial ruling that the NFL Network remain on the air
for the required period. After two extensions of the deadline, TWC
finally pulled the plug on September 15, 2006. "We will continue to
negotiate and remain hopeful that an agreement will be reached that
is beneficial to all", the network said in a statement that flashed
on the screen in place of NFL Network. TWC did agree to carry a
free preview from December 24 to
December 30, primarily so that local viewers could watch the
Rutgers Scarlet Knights play
in the Texas Bowl, but no longterm
agreement has been reached.
- On November 1, 2006, Starz! On Demand became available to some
TWC subscribers. This came as a result of settlement of a long
running dispute over its carriage. Starz! required this to be free to their
subscribers, however, Time Warner Cable insisted on packaging all
Premium On Demand channels in a separate tier which would require
an additional monthly fee for Starz subscribers. The channel is
available in the "Capital Region" around Albany, New
York
, among other places.
- In another on-demand development, TWC had to modify "Dodgers on
Demand", a joint venture with the
Los Angeles Dodgers, on its
systems in the Los Angeles area. In September 2006, Major League Baseball ordered TWC to
remove the service, saying that MLB Advanced Media has
rights to all interactive content
taken from its games. TWC and the Dodgers responded by removing
most highlights, excluding those from the
team's 2006
Division Series loss to the New York
Mets, which came from a newscast on KCBS
.
However, MLB has apparently softened its stance since then; in
2009, complete Mets home
games were available on demand from SportsNet New York, owned in part by
TWC.
- Time Warner Cable was the only major cable or satellite TV
provider not to offer GOL TV (soccer channel)
until it was added on August 6, 2008 in the New York area.
- The MTV Digital Suite networks (MTV
Hits, MTV Jams, VH1 Classic and VH1
Soul) are unavailable on most Time Warner and Bright House Networks systems. Only
former Adelphia systems carry the channels under Time Warner
management, likely to fulfill the Adelphia contract; the channels
were taken off for two months and then placed on a new tier of
service when the systems were taken over.
- As of December 31, 2008, Time Warner and Viacom were unable to come to an agreement to renew
any Viacom channel beyond the end of the year. Therefore, Time
Warner and Bright House
Networks would have lost all 19 Viacom channels (including
Comedy Central and Nickelodeon) starting on January 1,
2009. This blackout was narrowly avoided when a zero-hour deal was
reached shortly after 12 Midnight ET on 1/1/2009.
- As of April 9, 2009; Time Warner and Bright House Networks have dropped
FEARnet and its on-demand services after
their 8-month deal expired on March 31.
- As of May 31, 2009; Time Warner and Bright House Networks have dropped
HDNet. HDNet Programming was originally part
of the first Premium HD programming offered. Response letters from
the President of Time Warner Cable state the reason as "HDNet would
only allow us to keep these channels if we moved HDNet to the
Digital Basic Tier. We believe that offering HDNet on a broadly
distributed tier is not the right value proposition for our
customers."
Cable Clusters
- Alabama
Cluster
- Alabama - Cullman, Dothan, Enterprise, Ft. Payne,
Hanceville/Garden City, Warrior/Blountsville
- California
Cluster (700,000 customers)
- The Carolinas Cluster (1.763
million customers)
- Colorado
Cluster
- Colorado - Gunnison, Telluride
- Florida
Cluster
- Georgia
Cluster
- Hawaii
Cluster
(401,000 customers) (Operating as Oceanic Time Warner Cable)
- Kansas
Cluster
- Kansas - Kansas City, Liberal
- Kentucky
Cluster
- Indiana - Terre Haute, Madison, Newburgh, Rockport
- Illinois - Shawneetown
- Kentucky - Dixon/Clay, Morganfield, Owensboro, Ashland
(Co-controlled by Comcast), Lexington metro (suburbs only)/Central
KY
- Ohio - Ironton
- Virginia - Richlands/Tazewell
- Mississippi
Cluster
- Missouri
Cluster
- Missouri - Chillicothe, Kansas City, Kennett, Marshall
- New England
Cluster
- Nebraska
Cluster
- Nebraska - Lincoln, Seward, York, Fremont, Nebraska City,
Auburn, Falls City, David City, Columbus, Crete, Fairbury,
Tecumseh, Humboldt, Table Rock, Pawnee City
- New
York
Cluster
- New
Jersey
- Bergen County
, Hudson County
- New
York - Albany
, Binghamton
, Buffalo
, Delaware County
, Glens Falls
, Greene County
, Mount Vernon
, New York City
(Manhattan
, Queens
, Staten Island
, most of western Brooklyn
), Orange County
, Poughkeepsie
, Rochester
, Sullivan County
, Syracuse
, Ulster County
- Massachusetts
- Athol
, North Adams
, Orange
, Pittsfield
and Williamstown
- Northwest Cluster
- Idaho - Bonners Ferry, Coeur d'Alene, Moscow, Mountainhome
- Montana - Libby, Troy
- Washington - Friday Harbor, Pullman
- Ohio
Cluster
(1.476 million customers)
- Oklahoma
Cluster
- Texas
Cluster
(2,076,000)
- Texas
- Arlington
, Austin
, Beaumont/Port Arthur
, Corpus Christi
, Dallas
, El
Paso
, Harlingen
, Killeen
/Temple
, Laredo
, Rio Grande
Valley, San
Antonio
, Waco
, and
Wichita
Falls
- West Virginia
Cluster
- West Virginia - Clarksburg
- West Virginia - Huntington (Co-controlled by Comcast)
- Wisconsin
Cluster (566,000 customers)
- Wyoming
Cluster
Divisions
Time Warner Cable's 22 Divisions, from
Time Warner's 2007 Corporate Profile and from
official website.
- Oceanic Time Warner Cable (Hawaii)
- Time Warner Cable Albany
- Time Warner Cable Austin
- Time Warner Cable Charlotte
- Time Warner Cable Eastern Carolina (Wilmington)
- Time Warner Cable Greensboro
- Time Warner Cable Kansas City
- Time Warner Cable Los Angeles
- Time Warner Cable Mid-Ohio (Columbus)
- Time Warner Cable National (non-clustered systems)
- Time Warner Cable New England (Portland, ME and Berlin and
Keene, NH)
- Time Warner Cable New York and New Jersey
- Time Warner Cable North Texas (Dallas-Fort Worth) (formerly
Comcast)
- Time Warner Cable Northeast Ohio (Akron & Youngstown)
- Time Warner Cable Chosica
- Time Warner Cable San Antonio
- Time Warner Cable San Diego
- Time Warner Cable South Carolina (Columbia)
- Time Warner Cable Southwest (El Paso, Wichita Falls, Corpus
Christi, Laredo, Border Corridor, Golden Triangle, Kerrville, Rio
Grande Valley, and South Central)
- Time Warner Cable Southwest Ohio (Miami Valley &
Cincinnati)
- Time Warner Cable Syracuse
- Time Warner Cable Western New York (Formerly Buffalo/Niagara
and Rochester Divisions)
- Time Warner Cable Wisconsin (Milwaukee & Green Bay)
+ In August 2006, Time Warner Cable merged Dayton & Cincinnati
into "Southwest Ohio" and moved much of the former Dayton customers
in Northwest Ohio north of a line running from Mercer &
Auglaize counties to the Mid-Ohio (Columbus) division.
Former divisions sold to Comcast
- Time Warner Cable Houma (Now Comcast)
- Time Warner Cable Houston (Now Comcast)
- Time Warner Cable Lake City/Live Oak (Now Comcast)
- Time Warner Cable Mid-South (Memphis, TN, AR, and MS) (Now
Comcast)
- Time Warner Cable Minnesota (Now Comcast)
- Time Warner Cable Shreveport (Now Comcast)
- Time Warner Cable St. Augustine/Palatka (Now Comcast)
- Time Warner Cable Cape Coral/Naples (Now Comcast)
Awards
The company was honored at the 2008
Technology &
Engineering Emmy Awards for development of interactive
Video-on-Demand infrastructure and signaling, leading to large
scale
VOD implementations.
The company was honored by Institutional Investor as America's Best
Investor Relations for sell side in the Media sector for Cable
& Satellite in 2009.
Statistics
As of second quarter 2009, there were 14.6 million basic cable
subscribers, 8.8 million
Digital cable
subscribers, 8.7 million
Road Runner residential
subscribers, 2.5 million
DVR
subscribers, and 4 million residential
Digital Phone
subscribers.
References
External links