Cablefax The Magazine - July 2016 - 6

2016 Top Ops Awards
MSO OF THE YEAR
Mediacom
In Mediacom's 20-year history, 2015 is one for the scrapbook. Strong
revenue (up 3.7 percent year-over-year) combined with signifi cant PSU
gains of 70,000 units helped drive record free cash fl ow of $222.4 million.
That's up just over 10 percent from 2014. Even video was looking
up, with losses narrowed to 35,000-its best stat since 2008.
Oh, and as CEO Rocco Commisso is quick to point out-Mediacom
became the 5th largest MSO this year without a single acquisition
thanks to consolidation. Not that a shopping spree would be much of
a problem for the company, seeing as it has paid down $716 million
in debt since going private in 2011. " We have never been at this
level of leverage in my entire career, " says Commisso, who is keeping
mum on whether he has his eye on anything.
" Being able to drive our balance sheet leverage approaching 4x and
with the help of the fi nancial community and smart transactions,
we've been able to drive our cost of debt among the lowest, if not
the lowest, in the cable business, " adds CFO Mark Stephan. " That's
great bragging rights, but in dollars and cents, we can fund capital
spending and re-invest in our business. "
Mediacom is doing just that, announcing in March a $1 billion capital
investment plan that includes deployment of one-gig services to
virtually all three million homes and businesses in its footprint. The
investment also will see an expansion of the network for business
customers. " We're going to do what we did with the cable business
20 years ago. Go out and build a franchise believing we're going to
get it to X-Y-Z penetration rate. I think it's going to be a pretty solid
expansion of the commercial business services customer base in
the next three years, " Commisso says.
And that $1 billion commitment has helped to re-engage the company
with local franchises. " They're excited to be partnering with Mediacom
again, " says Tom Larsen, SVP, government and public relations.
While the company has been battered-along with many of its
brethren-in some consumer satisfaction surveys, the numbers
paint a clearer picture. " We are seeing the lowest churn levels of
our customer base and the highest sales levels of our products
going into the marketplace. For me, that's really the true indicator of
how customers feel, " says operations EVP John Pascarelli. " They're
paying their bills and continuing to keep our service. Our growth is
a combination of better management and keeping more customers
and adding new business to the network. We're seeing growth levels
we haven't seen in a very long time. "
And internally, Mediacom also take a lot of pride, whether it's assisting
employees during tragedies or staving off layoffs or providing
nearly $1 million for scholarships to the children of its employees.
" I think everyone who works for us who has been around for more
than a year or two knows we take care of them at the end of the
day, " Commisso says. EVP programming and HR Italia Commisso
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Weinand points to a recent employee survey that had a 40 percent
response rate. " I take great pride in that as what it says to me is
that people trust us as managers; they feel they can talk to upper
management, " she says. In local communities, Mediacom supports
charity initiatives, provides complimentary broadband service,
coverage of high school sports and more.
As Mediacom celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, it's worth
noting that the senior management team has been together for most
of that time, with Commisso in the captain's seat. " I should have fi red
them all a long time ago, " the CEO jokes. He knows he's a passionate
individual-whether it's lobbying the FCC, standing up for smaller
operators or defending his company's status. " There's no one out
there who has been around for as long as we have with essentially the
same people at the senior level, " Commisso said. " We have never had
a down year or quarter of revenues in the last ten years. "
FAST FACTS
uMediacom went private in 2011, with CEO Rocco
Commisso essentially owning the company.
uThe company's $1 billion capital investment plan includes
deploying one-gig service, expanding Mediacom
Business' high-capacity network, extending its deepfiber
network to pass an additional 50,000 homes and
rolling out WiFi access points throughout its footprint.
July 2016
Cablefax: The Magazine
http://www.cablefaxmag.com
Cablefax The Magazine - July 2016

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