Cincinnati Bell, Hawaiian Telcom Merger Approved in Hawaii

The Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs’ (DCCA) Cable Television Division (CATV) has conditionally approved the transfer of control of Hawaiian Telcom’s cable franchise to Cincinnati Bell Inc.

 “We are pleased that our merger approval process is moving forward expeditiously and thank the DCCA for their leadership,” Leigh Fox, President and Chief Executive Officer of Cincinnati Bell, said. “The DCCA’s approval is a significant step forward in the combination of Cincinnati Bell and Hawaiian Telcom, a merger that will accelerate our overarching strategy to create a diversified and balanced revenue mix by expanding our high-speed, high-bandwidth fiber optic network while building a complementary IT solutions and cloud services business in Cincinnati and Hawaii.”

As outlined in the DCCA’s Decision & Order No. 370, which can be viewed at http://cca.hawaii.gov/catv, Cincinnati Bell has committed to:

• investing $20 million dollars to improve and build out Hawaiian Telcom’s Next Generation Fiber Network statewide within four years of the close of the merger
• Continuing local management of Hawaiian Telcom in Hawai’i, and honoring its union labor agreements
• Adhering to laws and rules regarding customer privacy as well as open Internet.

Last month, the merger cleared the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act review period and Hawaiian Telcom shareholders overwhelmingly approved the combination. Regulatory review processes are currently ongoing with the Federal Communications Commission and the Public Utilities Commission of the State of Hawai’i.