HAMPTON ROADS — Cox customers are still using their existing plans and equipment nearly two months after Charter Communications completed its $34.5 billion acquisition of Cox, but Spectrum says changes could come as the companies continue consolidating operations.
“There are no forced changes that will occur with the customers,” Doug Davis, Spectrum’s regional vice president of field operations for the Carolinas-Virginia region, said. “For now, they can keep their current service, the current equipment plan, with no action required.”
Charter, Cox’s parent company completed the acquisition on Aug. 20. Since then, Spectrum has begun transitioning Cox operations while allowing existing customers to continue using their current services.
Davis said there are no immediate plans to discontinue Cox packages or services, but that
could change as the two operations merge.
William & Mary Assistant Professor of Law, Lev Breydo, who specializes in corporate and commercial law, said these types of acquisitions are referred to as “low friction.”
At the Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference on Sept. 9, Charter President and CEO Chris Winfrey said the acquisition would lead to “over $1 billion” of everyday operating expense savings due to Spectrum’s larger size, the elimination of duplicated resources and expenses, and the company’s “larger scale … and the different vendor contracts” they already have.
Breydo noted that while customers technically have one less option, they’re not necessarily “losing choices” with the transition; Spectrum is simply expanding it offering. He did express skepticism about whether the company’s projected $1 billion in synergies will reach customers, saying he’s “not super optimistic.”
Former Cox customers can upgrade or downgrade their plans if they want the option of Spectrum packages. Davis said existing Cox products and packages could change as the companies consolidate operations, but there are no immediate plans to discontinue existing services.
New customers – those who were not Cox or Spectrum users before – may see introductory offers for bundles and individual services.
Breydo advised both new customers and those switching from their Cox plans to Spectrum to read the fine print on any promotional deals, saying that prices often increase after one or two years.
Spectrum also says eligible customers – those who don’t already have Cox Mobile – can receive a Spectrum Mobile line for free for one year.
Like Cox, Spectrum also offers low-income internet plans starting at $15 per month for up to 50 Mbps download speeds or $30 per month for up to 100 Mbps download speeds. The latter says it’s only a 12-month pricing offer.
The transition is also expected to bring new jobs to the area.
Spectrum announced plans in September to hire more than 1,000 service and sales employees across its former Cox markets, with starting wages of at least $20 an hour. This includes Hampton Roads, which Davis said he expects to have job postings later this year.
He emphasized that the acquisition wouldn’t mean replacing the pre-existing local Cox teams.
“Those local teams, they know the community, they know the customers,” Davis said. “They will continue to support … the customers.”
