Cablevision 3Q

The originator of the $90 triple-play bundle continues to see success, with more than half of all Cablevision’s 3Q new connects taking the package. The MSO’s solid results included the 10th consecutive Q of basic customer gains, with nearly 10K adds. Digital added 93K customers, putting CVC at 76% penetration of basic subs. That industry leading digital penetration has helped in Cablevision’s launch of switched digital. It’s spent $8mln this year to launch 60 intl channels using the tech. The high penetration has also allowed it to move several analog channels to digital, with all pay TV now digital. Cablevision’s voice subs grew by 113K and HSD adds totaled 72K, with 56% of those customers also taking voice. No surprise that Cablevision didn’t comment on the Dolans’ proposal to take the company private or pending litigation over its remote storage DVR. Tom Rutledge did tackle a question about whether CVC’s impressive penetration rates have more to do with its demos. "Our penetration in the Bronx is better than any MSO’s national penetrations in every service category," he said. "Even in our weakest performing areas from a financial perspective, in other words the poorest communities we serve, we exceed the avg natl penetration in every product category of all the publicly traded MSOs." Overall, Cablevision’s consolidated revenue rose 13% to $1.4bln. Rev for cable climbed 18.7% to $1bln.