Attachment Exhibits E&F

This document pretains to SES-T/C-20151014-00693 for Transfer of Control on a Satellite Earth Station filing.

IBFS_SESTC2015101400693_1107779

                                                                               Altice/Cablevision
                                                                                  FCC Form 312
                                                                                       Exhibit E

                                          FCC Form 312
                                     Schedule A, Question A20
                                            Exhibit E

                                     Ownership of Transferee

The ten percent or greater shareholders of transferee Altice N.V. are as follows:

               Name:                   Next Alt Sàrl
               Address:                3, Boulevard Royal, L-2449 Luxembourg
               Citizenship:            Luxembourg
               Percentage Owned:       60.45%
               Principal Business:     Telecommunications and Cable Television

               Name:                   Next Limited Partnership Incorporated
               Address:                11 New Street, St Peter Port, Guernsey, GY1 2PF
               Citizenship:            Guernsey
               Percentage Owned:       60.45% (indirectly via ownership of Next Alt Sàrl)
               Principal Business:     Telecommunications and Cable Television

               Name:                   UpperNext Limited Partnership Incorporated
               Address:                11 New Street, St Peter Port, Guernsey, GY1 2PF
               Citizenship:            Guernsey
               Percentage Owned:       60.45% (indirectly via ownership of Next L.P.)
               Principal Business:     Telecommunications and Cable Television

               Name:                   Patrick Drahi
               Address:                Seilerwiesenstrasse 3920 Zermatt, Switzerland
               Citizenship:            Israel
               Percentage Owned:       60.45% (indirectly via ownership of UpperNext L.P.)
               Principal Business:     Telecommunications and Cable Television


                                                                              Altice/Cablevision
                                                                                 FCC Form 312
                                                                                       Exhibit F
                                        FCC Form 312
                                   Schedule A, Question A21
                                         EXHIBIT F

                   Transaction Description and Public Interest Statement

                         DESCRIPTION OF THE TRANSACTION

       On September 16, 2015, Cablevision and Altice entered into an Agreement and Plan of

Merger (“Agreement”), pursuant to which Altice will acquire 100 percent of the share capital of

Cablevision (the “Transaction”). Altice has formed a chain of three wholly owned Dutch

subsidiaries, with each subsidiary wholly owning the next and the lowest-level entity wholly

owning a newly formed Delaware corporation, Neptune Holding US Corp. In turn, Neptune

Holding US Corp. wholly owns Neptune Merger Sub Corp., also a Delaware corporation

(“Merger Sub”). Merger Sub will be merged with and into Cablevision, after which point

Merger Sub will no longer exist as a separate corporate entity. Cablevision will be the surviving

corporation; it will be 100 percent directly owned by Neptune Holding US Corp. and 100 percent

indirectly owned by Altice.

       CPP Investment Board, a Canada-organized investment management organization that

invests the assets of the Canada Pension Plan (“CPPIB”), and a group of limited partnerships

formed under the laws of Guernsey, U.K., and associated with BC Partners Holdings Limited

(“BC Partners”) have the option to indirectly purchase a combined total of up to 30 percent of

Merger Sub’s shares. Should CPPIB and BC Partners Holdings choose to exercise this option,

they will own an indirect non-controlling share of up to 30 percent of Cablevision upon

completion of the Transaction.


                                                                                 Altice/Cablevision
                                                                                    FCC Form 312
                                                                                  Exhibit F, Page 2

                              PUBLIC INTEREST STATEMENT

       A.      Introduction

       Approval of the proposed Transaction will enable Altice to build on Cablevision’s legacy

of network investment, consumer-focused products and services, and innovative approaches to

video pricing and packaging, broadband connectivity, WiFi service deployment, and enthusiastic

embrace of over-the-top video services. Cablevision subscribers, in turn, will benefit from

Altice’s global scale, access to capital, and fresh perspective, all of which will be brought to bear

in Cablevision’s already fierce daily contest against much larger rivals such as Verizon,

AT&T/DIRECTV and DISH in the New York Metro area, the nation’s most competitive market.

The Transaction not only will fortify Cablevision to better serve consumers, but also will reduce

vertical integration in distribution and programming, while posing no horizontal harms. It

therefore serves the public interest and should be approved.

       The proposed Transaction will enhance competition and spur pro-consumer innovation

by enabling Cablevision to build on its position as an innovative and dynamic participant in the

marketplace for wired and wireless broadband, video and voice services. Indeed, the proposed

Transaction — and the roughly 35 million subscribers served by Altice abroad — will provide

Cablevision with additional scale by spreading the fixed cost of developing additional innovative

and competitive service offerings across a larger subscriber base that to date has not been

available to Cablevision. The proposed Transaction will afford Cablevision access to Altice’s

scale as well as its unique global perspective and technical expertise developed in some of the

most competitive communications markets. These resources, in turn, will help ensure that

Cablevision’s service remains on the cutting edge of available bandwidth, network reliability and

consumer value.


                                                                               Altice/Cablevision
                                                                                  FCC Form 312
                                                                                Exhibit F, Page 3

       The Transaction also will reduce vertical integration in the U.S. cable distribution and

programming markets by separating common control over Cablevision’s cable systems and the

News 12 Networks’ local news operations, which Altice will acquire, from AMC Networks —

including AMC, SundanceTV, IFC and WEtv — and MSG Networks’ regional sports networks,

which Altice will not acquire. Altice intends to maintain its historical focus on creating value by

providing world-class broadband Internet connectivity, video and voice service, and accordingly

it is fully committed to investing in the Cablevision network, and to offering New York Metro

area consumers the best quality and value in broadband connectivity and video programming

choices.

       Finally, the Transaction will not cause any competitive harms. It will not create any

overlap between competing cable providers, and thus will not affect consumer choice. To the

contrary, the Transaction will facilitate additional competition and innovation in what is already

a highly innovative and competitive market. 1

       A.      Cablevision’s Innovative Service and Product Offerings Will Benefit From
               Altice’s Global Expertise.

       Cablevision has a long history of service and innovation in the New York Metro area, one

of the most competitive broadband, voice and video markets in the United States. Cablevision

faces vigorous facilities-based competition from Verizon’s FiOS network, which has overbuilt

fiber-to-the-home over more than 50 percent of Cablevision’s footprint. Cablevision’s response


1
  Pending before the Commission is Altice’s proposed acquisition of Cequel Corporation and its
subsidiaries, doing business as Suddenlink. Suddenlink’s geographically dispersed and primarily
rural service territory has no overlap with — and is not even adjacent to — Cablevision’s service
territory, which is limited to the New York Metro area. Accordingly, the Transaction and the
pending Suddenlink transaction pose no competitive issues, separately or in combination, and
each transaction should be assessed on its own merits.


                                                                                 Altice/Cablevision
                                                                                    FCC Form 312
                                                                                  Exhibit F, Page 4

to this competitive challenge — unique in the U.S. broadband and video marketplace — has

been to focus on providing best-in-class connectivity to all types of customers, whatever their

preferred platform, and investing heavily in customer service. For instance, Cablevision has

deployed a network of more than 1.3 million WiFi hotspots throughout the New York Metro

area, which give its broadband subscribers access to unlimited wireless broadband at no extra

charge. Moreover, these hotspots form the backbone of other innovative product offerings such

as Cablevision’s Freewheel service, which provides users with a dedicated phone number and

unlimited data, talk, and text when connected to WiFi.

       In a departure from entrenched industry practices, Cablevision leveraged these

investments to become one of the first cable operators in the country to introduce a variety of

affordable service offerings targeted specifically at the needs and interests of “cord-cutters” and

“cord-nevers.” For instance, Cablevision was the first cable operator to partner with and offer

HBO Now and Hulu as over-the-top services to its broadband customers, and Cablevision

recently announced a similar deal to sell CBS “All Access” and SHOWTIME Internet video

services. In another pioneering offer, Cablevision offers “cord-cutters” a package of broadband

Internet, Freewheel, access to all 1.3 million Optimum WiFi hotspots, and a free digital antenna

for receiving over-the-air broadcast television stations for under $35 a month, with an option to

add HBO NOW and Hulu at those services’ standard rates.

       Altice is driven by the same competitive philosophy and the conviction that the

convergence of broadband, video and voice services will continue to drive competition.

Accordingly, Altice focuses on building, upgrading and operating advanced networks that offer

best-in-class connectivity for all types of services to compete on the basis of the best fixed

network in the market. Altice — led by its founder and controlling shareholder, Patrick Drahi —


                                                                                  Altice/Cablevision
                                                                                     FCC Form 312
                                                                                   Exhibit F, Page 5

is a long-term strategic enterprise with a strong track record of implementing pro-consumer

network improvements and efficiencies and reinvesting in the networks it acquires. If the

Transaction is approved, Altice would bring to Cablevision its considerable experience in

upgrading and managing Cablevision’s network. Furthermore, Altice intends to continue

investing in and upgrading Cablevision’s IT systems, including customer care, service

provisioning and billing systems, to improve processes and be in an even better position to serve

customers.

       Altice’s fundamental operating philosophy is to deploy fiber deeply and ubiquitously into

the network. In Cablevision’s case, one expected result of doing so would be the removal or

reduction from the network of coaxial RF amplifiers, which consume substantial electricity and

can be the cause of difficult-to-detect service outages (RF amplifier failures). Deeper fiber

deployment would enable Cablevision to reduce its power costs and to further improve network

reliability, resulting, in turn, in a greater ability to invest further in the network and improved

service delivery to subscribers. By upgrading Cablevision’s network with wider and deeper fiber

deployment and other operational efficiencies, Altice will position Cablevision to compete more

effectively with Verizon FiOS and improve the service offerings available to consumers

throughout Cablevision’s footprint, including in areas not overbuilt by FiOS.

       Altice also shares Cablevision’s view that WiFi can hold significant promise, particularly

for mobile communications, when deployed in regions with significant population density such

as Cablevision’s service territory. Altice anticipates continuing to invest in WiFi services to

complement its fixed wireline investment. Altice also believes that other elements of video

delivery service, such as set-top boxes, can benefit from fresh thinking intended to reduce costs

to consumers and simplify and enhance customer solutions on premises. Indeed, adding the


                                                                                Altice/Cablevision
                                                                                   FCC Form 312
                                                                                 Exhibit F, Page 6

resources and scale of Altice to Cablevision’s existing operations will enable Cablevision to

invest even more in innovative products and services, as it will do so with greater scale and with

an expectation that successful deployments will be able to be replicated across other Altice

service providers. In these and other ways, the Transaction will bolster Cablevision’s ability to

continue to creatively meet consumers’ changing needs in a market undergoing rapid and

disruptive transformation.

       B.      The Transaction Will Enhance Cablevision’s Competitiveness by Expanding
               its Access to Managerial, Operational and Capital Resources.

       Maintaining a world-class network while developing innovative services and business

models is expensive. Cablevision is a far smaller company than rivals such as Verizon,

AT&T/DIRECTV and DISH, and accordingly, it is at a disadvantage in making major

competitive investments. Cablevision’s smaller customer base limits its ability to spread the

costs of research, development, and deployment, and to drive innovation through its relationships

with equipment manufacturers and other providers of network and service inputs. In fact, a

number of U.S. cable providers have opted for technology developed by larger cable operators to

ensure what is perceived to be a more viable and robust technology path going forward in light

of increasing capital commitments. Projects that are prohibitively expensive or risky when

undertaken by a company with 3.1 million subscribers, however, can become far more feasible

when undertaken by a company like Altice, with nearly 35 million subscribers worldwide. The

Transaction thus would help level the playing field by giving Cablevision the ability to invest

with the backing of Altice’s global scale and access to capital, as well as its considerable

technical and operational expertise.


                                                                                 Altice/Cablevision
                                                                                    FCC Form 312
                                                                                  Exhibit F, Page 7

       Altice’s senior management team, including its controlling shareholder, Patrick Drahi,

has been active in the cable industry for nearly 30 years. Altice itself is a public company with

global scale. It is a leading provider of communications services to nearly 35 million subscribers

in diverse regions around the world, including in Western Europe, Israel, the French Caribbean

and Indian Ocean regions, and the Dominican Republic. Thus, as a new entrant into the U.S.

market, Altice would bring a fresh perspective based on its experience in diverse markets around

the world, including a strong commitment to investment in fixed broadband (particularly fiber) at

a time when some of the largest industry players seem to be focused primarily on mobile.

       Altice, as a long-term strategic enterprise, believes that the achievement of efficiencies

and cost savings create opportunities to invest further in its networks, as demonstrated by

Altice’s history of investing in its other broadband, video, and voice service provider affiliates.

One key investment metric is the Altice companies’ ratio of capital expenditures to sales. Under

this measure, a higher capital expenditure to sales ratio demonstrates increased capital

investment relative to sales generated by the company. Notably, after each key network

investment or acquisition that Altice has made, the operating unit’s ratio of capital expenditures

to sales has increased. For example:

              •   Altice-owned Numericable’s ratio of capital expenditures to
                  sales has increased from 11 to 26 percent in Belgium and
                  Luxembourg since 2011.

              •   Numericable’s ratio of capital expenditures to sales has
                  increased from 14 to 15 percent in France since 2014.

              •   In Israel, Altice’s CapEx-to-Sales ratio for Hot Cable has
                  increased from 21 to 34 percent since 2011.

              •   In Portugal, Altice’s CapEx-to-Sales ratio for Cabovisão has
                  increased from 14 to 17 percent since 2011.


                                                                                    Altice/Cablevision
                                                                                       FCC Form 312
                                                                                     Exhibit F, Page 8

        In each of these jurisdictions, Altice’s capital expenditures surpassed those of the

incumbents with which it competes. These figures demonstrate that Altice not only has access to

the capital necessary to operate on a large scale, but also that it strategically invests in its service

provider affiliates in order to improve their service offerings and enhance their competitive

position in the market.

        Altice’s historical level of investment in its service provider portfolio companies has

brought substantial benefits to their subscribers. For instance, when Altice acquired control of

Numericable in France in 2013, Numericable’s network had not been upgraded to DOCSIS 3.0

and it was capable of delivering download speeds of only 1 Mbps. Today, less than three years

later, approximately 98 percent of Numericable’s network has been upgraded to DOCSIS 3.0,

and its network is capable of delivering download speeds to subscribers of between 100-200

Mbps. Likewise in Belgium and Luxembourg, where the entire network has been upgraded to

DOCSIS 3.0 and today can offer speeds that are 10 to 200 times faster — from 4 Mbps in 2013

to 50-200 Mbps today — than when Altice acquired control of Numericable in 2013.

        Altice’s network investment philosophy has led to similar outcomes in the other

jurisdictions in which it operates. For instance, when Altice acquired cable provider Hot in

Israel in 2011, Hot’s network had not been upgraded to DOCSIS 3.0 and was capable of

delivering download speeds of only 3-7 Mbps. Today, 100 percent of Hot’s network has been

upgraded to DOCSIS 3.0 and it is capable of delivering download speeds of between 30-200

Mbps. And in Portugal, where Cabovisão’s network had not been digitized when Altice acquired

it in 2012, Cabovisão subscribers today have access to a network that is 94 percent upgraded to

DOCSIS 3.0 and affords download speeds of up to 360 Mbps.


                                                                               Altice/Cablevision
                                                                                  FCC Form 312
                                                                                Exhibit F, Page 9

          C.        The Transaction Will Enhance Competition By Reducing Vertical
                    Integration.

          Beyond strengthening Cablevision’s ability to remain an innovative and competitive

broadband provider, the Transaction will enhance competition by reducing vertical integration in

the cable distribution and programming markets. In the AT&T/DIRECTV Order, the

Commission noted that in certain prior transactions, “the Commission found that competitive

harm would likely result from the vertical integration of significant programming interests

(including RSNs or other programming) that could not be addressed by the Commission’s

program access rules.” 2 Like the AT&T/DIRECTV transaction itself, however, the proposed

Transaction does not raise any such concerns because Cablevision does not have “a significant

amount of vertically integrated programming.” 3 Indeed, although post-Transaction, Cablevision

will retain the News 12 networks in the New York Metro area, there will be no increase in

market concentration in that (or any other) market; to the contrary, the Transaction will reduce

vertical integration by eliminating any common control between Cablevision’s cable operations

and cable programmers AMC Networks — including AMC, SundanceTV, IFC and WEtv — and

MSG Networks, which offers regional sports networks.

          D.        The Transaction Will Not Result In Any Competitive Harms.

          Finally, the Transaction does not implicate any competitive harms. The Transaction will

not result in any horizontal consolidation among overlapping cable providers, and thus customers

will not experience any reduction in their choice of providers. As noted above, Cablevision will

benefit from the global scale it would achieve under Altice’s ownership — without resulting in
2
 Applications of AT&T Inc. and DIRECTV, MB Docket No. 14-90, FCC 15-94, at ¶ 176 (July
28, 2015) (“AT&T-DIRECTV Order”).
3
    Id. at ¶ 181.


                                                                                 Altice/Cablevision
                                                                                    FCC Form 312
                                                                                 Exhibit F, Page 10

any consolidation within the U.S. market. Even when considered in combination with Altice’s

pending acquisition of Suddenlink, the combined company — which would have a total of about

4.6 million total subscribers in the United States — would still have fewer subscribers than either

of AT&T’s broadband or video services, before its recently approved merger with DIRECTV; 4

would have more than 2 million fewer subscribers than Verizon FiOS, which competes

aggressively with Cablevision; 5 and would have fewer than a quarter of Comcast’s

approximately 22 million subscribers. 6 Thus, although the Transaction will give Cablevision

sufficient scale to compete effectively in an increasingly consolidated cable market, it will not

pose any of the competitive risks raised by mergers among larger providers. 7

                                          *       *       *

         For all the reasons stated above, the Transaction serves the public interest by ensuring

Cablevision is able to remain a robust and innovative competitor capable of providing consumers

with world-class voice, video, and broadband Internet connectivity.




4
    See AT&T-DIRECTV Order at ¶ 12.
5
 See Verizon Communications Inc. Form 10-Q, at 39 (July 28, 2015) (showing subscribers as of
June 30, 2015).
6
 See Comcast Corporation Form 10-K, at 46 (Feb. 27, 2015) (reporting subscribers as of Dec.
31, 2014). Cablevision currently serves approximately 3.1 million residential and business
customers in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, while Suddenlink serves approximately
1.5 million customers in seventeen southern and western states.
7
  See Remarks of Jon Sallet, Federal Communications Comm. General Counsel at
Telecommunications Policy Research Conference, “The Federal Communications Commission
and Lessons of Recent Mergers & Acquisitions Reviews,” September 25, 2015.


                                                                   Altice/Cablevision
                                                                      FCC Form 312
                                                                   Exhibit F, Page 11

                   News 12 Company
         Pre-Transaction Ownership Information


              Cablevision Systems Corporation




                      CSC Holdings, LLC




                         N12N LLC




                  News 12 Networks LLC




News 12 Holding LLC                       News 12 II Holding LLC


 50%                                      50%


                      News 12 Company


                                                                                 Altice/Cablevision
                                                                                    FCC Form 312
                                                                                 Exhibit F, Page 12


                 News 12 Company
       Post-Transaction Ownership Information

                              Patrick Drahi



           UpperNext Limited Partnership Incorporated


                Next Limited Partnership Incorporated


                                                                                       Other Holders
                             Next Alt S.à r.l.                                         (None >= 10%)
                                                                        39.55%
                            60.45 %

                               Altice N.V.


                               CVC 1 B.V.


                               CVC 2 B.V.


                              CVC 3 B.V.


                       Neptune Holding US Corp.


                 Cablevision Systems Corporation


                          CSC Holdings, LLC




                                N12N LLC




                          News 12 Networks LLC




 News 12 Holding LLC                               News 12 II Holding LLC



50%                                                50%



                          News 12 Company



Document Created: 2015-10-14 11:25:10
Document Modified: 2015-10-14 11:25:10

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