US cable operator Wow to buy regional rival Knology for $750 mn
19 Apr 2012
US cable operator Wow Internet, Cable & Phone yesterday agreed to buy cable TV and Internet provider Knology Inc for about $750 million, in order to expand in the southeastern US.
Wow, controlled by private equity firm Avista Capital Partners, will pay $19.75 a share in cash, a premium of 9.4 per cent to Knology's closing share price yesterday.
The total transaction value is $1.5 billion, including debt of $752 million.
Knology operates in 13 states across the Southeast and Midwest, including Alabama, Florida, Iowa, Kansas and Tennessee and has more than 275,000 broadband subscribers.
The West Point, Georgia-based company reported sales of $518.6 million last year, up 13 per cent from a year earlier.
Englewood, Colorado-based WOW, which was acquired by New York-based Avista Capital in 2006, provides cable, broadband and landline phone service to customers in Indiana, Illinois, Ohio and Michigan.
