Charles Stewart on content companies
From Altice USA CEO on growth, cord-cutting, competition · · CNBC Television
“We think that content companies arguably with our size should be run separately than us. There are some synergies between distribution and content but we don't think that's a good use of our cash.”
On , Charles Stewart, Special Advisor & Director at ALTICE USA INC, spoke about content companies during Altice USA CEO on growth, cord-cutting, competition on CNBC Television.
About Charles Stewart
In a September 2018 interview, Altice USA CEO Dexter Goei discussed the company's performance and strategy. He noted that while the stock had declined nearly 20% year-to-date, he attributed this to technical factors such as the company's split from Altice Europe and selling pressure from Disney's divestiture, rather than operational issues. Goei stated that the company felt good about its numbers, citing a 73% increase in free cash flow in the last quarter, and mentioned a $2 billion authorized share buyback program. He described consolidation in the industry as "inevitable" over the medium term, saying "size does matter," but emphasized that the company's current focus was on operations and delivering on projects like its Altice One product, fiber-to-the-home expansion, and a mobile launch planned for early 2019. Goei also addressed content and video trends. He stated that Altice USA did not view content companies as a good use of its cash, saying "we think that content companies arguably with our size should be run separately than us." He described retransmission fees as "the single largest cost item in our P&L" and noted that the company had seen improved video subscriber trends over the previous three quarters, with viewing minutes up about 10% year-over-year. Goei expressed cautious optimism about video trends, attributing some of the improvement to content and operational decisions.