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Charter Communications Chief Says He Also May Axe Cable Channels: UBS Confab

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor | Monday December 3, 2012 @ 1:41pm PSTTags: Charter Communications, Tom Rutledge

Charter’s Tom Rutledge didn’t make the point as forcefully as Time Warner Cable CEO Glenn Britt did this morning. But asked whether he might follow his colleague who vowed to cut underperforming cable channels Rutledge told the UBS Global Media and Communications Conference that “we’re looking at similar kinds of savings.” The current system that requires viewers to pay for channels that they don’t watch “is perfection if you’re a content company.” Yet Rutledge says that Charter is “in the same position” as Time Warner Cable — and other pay TV providers — grappling with rising outlays for programming. It’s “a real issue” that “puts pressure on the business and pressure on more unique kinds of content,” Rutledge says. Beyond that, the Charter chief says he’s eager to bring digital efficiency to a company that’s been “abused” by financial problems. It briefly filed for bankruptcy protection in 2009. Speaking of the quality of his systems, Rutledge says that “in some places its Taj Mahal and in other places it’s not.” Satellite companies have more customers than Charter does in its territories. The CEO hopes to change that by going all digital, and storing program guide and other data in a server instead of set-top boxes. That would save money, and enable Charter to easily update information and software. “When you look at an iPad and watch television on it, it’s [in effect] a set top box and a TV.”

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Charter Communications To Open Big Apple Office For Top Brass

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor | Monday June 4, 2012 @ 4:02pm PDTTags: Charter Communications, Tom Rutledge

Most companies help newly hired top execs to relocate themselves and their families to live near the company headquarters. But it looks like Charter Communications CEO Tom Rutledge would prefer to relocate the top echelon of the St. Louis-based company … Read More »

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Cablevision’s “Dramatic And Rapid” Executive Exodus Continues

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor | Tuesday March 20, 2012 @ 2:53pm PDTTags: Big Deals TV, Cablevision, James Dolan, Tom Rutledge

“Cablevision is witnessing one of the most dramatic and rapid management turnovers we have ever witnessed in our coverage of the media universe,” says BTIG analyst Rich Greenfield — Wall Street’s fiercest critic of the company and its strong-willed CEO Jim Dolan. Greenfield commented after the Long Island-based cable operator announced that David Klein is leaving as head of Cablevision Media Sales, to be replaced by Gregory McCastle, who was with AT&T. The move follows the exit of COO Tom Rutledge (now CEO of Charter), CFO Mike Huseby (who just became CFO of Barnes & Noble), President of Cable Operations John Bickham, CMO Jon Hargis, Corporate Engineering EVP Jim Blackley, and Consumer Operations EVP Kip Mayo. Greenflield says that Dolan is taking control of operations because he blames the old guard for allowing the company to lose ”both its technology and marketing edge.” The problem? “We simply do not have enough confidence in Jim Dolan to drive free cash flow  growth in 2013 and beyond,” Greenfield says. Cablevision has lost 58.1% of its market value over the last 12 months.

Here’s today’s announcement. Read More »

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Another Cablevision Exec Leaves As Analysts Question Jim Dolan’s Game Plan

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor | Thursday March 8, 2012 @ 5:15am PSTTags: Cablevision, James Dolan, Tom Rutledge

UPDATE, 5:15 AM: Cablevision provided this description of Kristin Dolan’s background and her responsibilities as Senior SVP of of Product Management and Marketing following the departure of Marketing EVP John Hargis: “She is currently focused on brand identity and new product initiatives, and has been with the company for more than 20 years. This includes many years working directly in the Cablevision product group, during which she took a leadership role in the development, launch and continued development of our iO TV digital cable service. For the last three years, she has been running our Strategic Product Development Group, focused on long-range development across all of our services. She is well known and highly regarded in the industry.”

PREVIOUS, WEDNESDAY  8 PM: Marketing EVP Jonathan Hargis, who has been with the company since 2000, is the latest high level exec to bolt — and that’s sure to leave investors even more baffled than they were before about CEO Jim Dolan’s plans for Cablevision. The official word is that Hargis will resign this month “to pursue other opportunities.” But the company release didn’t name a replacement, which suggests that Jim’s wife Kristin — who’s senior executive vice president of  product management and marketing, and a member of the Cablevision board– will play a bigger role. Analysts who have tried to determine how broad a mandate she has, and how Jim plans to manage things, say that they’ve yet to hear satisfying answers. Prior to Hargis’ departure, BTIG’s Rich Greenfield urged management explain

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Charter Nabs Former Cablevision COO Tom Rutledge To Be CEO

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor | Monday December 19, 2011 @ 2:39pm PSTTags: Cablevision, Charter Communications, Michael Lovett, Tom Rutledge

Cablevision Shares Plummet After COO’s Surprise Resignation

That was quick. Just days after Tom Rutledge shocked the cable industry by leaving Cablevision, he has emerged as CEO of Charter. The No. 4 cable operator is still struggling to regain its momentum since 2009 when it emerged from bankruptcy protection. That’s been tough because many of Charter’s systems are in rural areas where satellite companies are popular. But Charter’s focused effort to build its broadband business, and make needed upgrades to its systems, has enabled it to outperform many of its cable industry peers. Charter shares are up 3.4% in after hours trading, recovering from the 3.3% drop during the day. Here’s the company’s release:

ST. LOUIS, Dec. 19, 2011  — Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: CHTR) (“Charter” or the “Company”) today announced that its Board of Directors has concluded its previously announced CEO search process and appointed Thomas M. Rutledge as President and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Rutledge joins Charter immediately and will become the President and Chief Executive Officer effective February 13, 2012. Mr. Rutledge will also become a member of the Charter Board of Directors at that time.

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Cablevision Shares Plummet After COO’s Surprise Resignation

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor | Friday December 16, 2011 @ 6:44am PSTTags: Cablevision, James Dolan, Tom Rutledge

You can have your pick of rumors this morning about why COO Tom Rutledge suddenly decided to leave — and what it means for Cablevision’s future. Maybe he had a falling out with Charles and Jim Dolan, who control the No. 7 cable operator (including Verizon and AT&T in the pack). Maybe Rutledge got a better offer to run Charter. Maybe the Dolans decided to try again to take Cablevision private — or to sell the company, logically to Time Warner Cable considering how many adjoining systems the companies have in the New York area. But since nobody really knows, investors are left to fear that the departure of one of the industry’s most respected operators means there’s trouble ahead: Cablevision shares opened down 13%. If that holds, then it would shave about $506M from the company’s market value and take the stock to its lowest point in more than two years. Miller Tabak analyst David Joyce lowered his stock recommendation to “hold” from “buy” — and lowered his short-term price target to $15 from $22 –saying that the news “puts a question mark over Read More »

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Cablevision COO Tom Rutledge Resigns; Dolan Family Begins Search For Successor

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor | Thursday December 15, 2011 @ 2:39pm PSTTags: Cablevision, James Dolan, Tom Rutledge

This is a big, big deal for Cablevision. Tom Rutledge is considered one of the best operators in the cable business — a level-headed guy and fierce competitor who’s equally comfortable handling questions about technology, finance, and marketing. Bernstein … Read More »

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UPDATE: Cablevision Shares Fall Sharply After 3Q Earnings Miss

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor | Friday October 28, 2011 @ 5:44am PDTTags: Cablevision, Cablevision Earnings, James Dolan, Tom Rutledge

UPDATE, 8:05 AM: The stock is down more than 13% in early trading, with the decline accelerating after the company’s conference call with analysts. CEO Jim Dolan acknowledged that “not all of our results in the quarter are where we want” — which he says is due in part to the decline in housing growth. But COO Tom Rutledge also said that programming is “the single biggest cost item that we have,” and the company is grappling with new retransmission consent payments to TV stations. “We’re absorbing the collapse of the broadcast industry business model,” he says. For now, the company is waiting to see whether the FCC will do something to help tame those rising costs. It’s also promoting a higher-priced video-phone-broadband package that features faster-than-average Internet speeds. Read More »

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