Rutledge: Charter Will Overbuild Telcos, Not Cable

Charter Communications chairman and CEO Tom Rutledge set some cable hearts back on their regular beats, claiming that the third largest pay-TV company in the country has no intention of overbuilding cable operators as part of the conditions of its just-completed merger with Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks, but instead will focus on telco broadband providers.

Among the conditions imposed by the Federal Communications Commission regarding its purchases of TWC and Bright House, Charter agreed to overbuild 2 million homes over a period of five years in markets outside its footprint. At the MoffettNathanson Media & Communications Summit, Rutledge said the plan is to focus on telephone companies in its overbuilding strategy, not cable companies.