RCN sells N.J. system for $245 mil

TV deal is valued at roughly $3,100 per subscriber

By MEREDITH AMDUR

Alternative TV and telecoms service provider RCN Corp. provided a spark of encouraging news for cable industry dealmakers Tuesday, announcing it has sold a central New Jersey cable system for $245 million in cash to a private equity firm.

The deal, valued at roughly $3,100 per subscriber, is considered a healthy valuation.

RCN was established to provide bundled phone, cable TV and high-speed Internet access over fiber-optic local networks in dense urban markets such as New York, L.A., Boston, Philadelphia and Washington. It had acquired the New Jersey system via a 1997 deal with the former C-TEC Corp. but had been negotiating to sell the system to focus on its core urban market profile.

RCN said it averages $71 per subscriber per month from its customers in its seven markets.

The buyer, Spectrum Equity Investors, intends to spend about $44 million to continue the upgrading of the 80,000-home network and rename the company Patriot Media & Communications.