Charter Communications’ $34.5 billion merger with Cox officially closed on Thursday morning.
The move comes after the deal, which will create the nation’s largest Internet and video provider by subscriber base, received approval from the FCC and regulators across 45 states where the companies do business.
The combined entity will take the Cox name and use the Spectrum brand name within a year after closing. It will also remain headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, and will maintain a significant presence on Cox’s Atlanta campus.
“We look forward to welcoming Cox employees to the Spectrum team,” Charter said in a statement. “This transformative deal will benefit millions of consumers who will soon have access to greater value and opportunities to save, including our fully converged mobile-broadband bundle savings guarantee, combined with our industry-leading Customer Commitment and the 100% U.S.-based sales and service employees Spectrum is known for.”
In order to clear the deal with the FCC, Charter committed to onshore all of the job functions currently handled off-shore by Cox within 18 months, matching its own longstanding commitment to a 100% U.S.-based customer sales and service employee workforce.
It has also committed to extending its industry-leading jobs practices, including a $20 per hour minimum starting wage to Cox workers.
Additionally, Charter added new safeguards to protect against “DEI discrimination” and has reaffirmed the merged entity’s commitment to equal opportunity and nondiscrimination. Specifically, Charter committed to recruiting, hiring and promoting individuals based on skills, qualifications and experience.
In addition to its concessions to the FCC, Charter also reached a settlement with California’s Public Utilities Commission, the Public Advocates Office and the California Emerging Technology Fund (CETF).
The settlement includes a commitment to invest $30 million in digital inclusion initiatives, including broadband adoption, digital literacy training, community outreach and device access for underserved communities; at least $275 million to upgrade the company’s California network, completing symmetrical one-gigabit service capability across legacy service areas within three years; and $5 million in Community Development Financial Institutions to expand access to capital for underserved California small businesses.
The combined company also agreed to new affordable broadband offerings for low-income Californians, including multiple CaliforniaLifeLine service tiers and standalone broadband plans available for five years, as well as five years of free broadband and Wi-Fi service for 50 eligible “community anchor institutions,” such as schools, libraries and community centers.
Charter-Cox will also expand outreach and enrollment assistance to help eligible households access affordable broadband services, expand workforce development through the VetConnect program and strengthen supplier diversity commitments.
Other protections include automatic bill credits for qualifying service outages lasting two hours or longer, continued honoring of eligible residential “price for life” service agreements, elimination of equipment exchange fees when customers upgrade or downgrade qualifying residential cable television service or return rented equipment in-person, enhanced battery backup options, annual customer notices for residential wireline voice service and new reporting and accountability requirements to monitor compliance with CPUC-ordered conditions.
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