The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) signed off on Charter Communications and Cox’s $34.5 billion merger on Thursday after the companies agreed to make concessions.
In order to clear the deal, Charter-Cox committed 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.
The approval follows an extensive public review process and incorporates two settlement agreements negotiated with the Public Advocates Office and the California Emerging Technology Fund (CETF), together with additional mitigation measures adopted by CPUC.
Those additional 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.
“This decision secures significant commitments that will benefit Californians through expanded affordable broadband options, major infrastructure investments, improved customer protections, and meaningful support for digital inclusion,” CPUC Commissioner Matthew Baker said in a statement. “The CPUC’s approval reflects a careful review of the proposed transaction and ensures public interest benefits are backed by enforceable conditions.”
California was the final regulatory hurdle after the other 44 states where the companies do business approved the deal. The deal, which will create the nation’s largest Internet and video provider by subscriber base, also received approval from the FCC in February.
“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,” Charter said in a statement.
The Charter-Cox deal is expected to close later this month. The combined entity will take the Cox name and use the Spectrum brand name within a year after closing.
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