Cable One to buy Hargray just months after Anniston exchange

Mar. 23—Cable One is buying Hargray Communications, just months after transferring Anniston-area cable equipment and accounts to the South Carolina-based company.

Cable One, which rebranded many of its cable communications products under the name Sparklight in 2019, last year gave Hargray its Anniston offices, equipment and customers in exchange for 15 percent equity in the company. According to its 2020 year-end results announcement released in late February, Cable One will buy the remaining 85 percent of Hargray in a deal totaling about $2.2 billion. According to broadbandnow.com, Hargray serves about 177,000 customers in the South, though that figure doesn't account for recent Alabama and Florida acquisitions.

According to Trish Niemann, Cable One's senior director of corporate communications, the company expects the transaction to complete during its second quarter, which begins next month.

"Their commitment to providing fast and reliable internet service and outstanding customer service to small cities in towns is similar to our own, making them a great fit for Cable One," Niemann wrote.

The pending sale has no current impact on Hargray accounts, services or billing, Niemann wrote. Any future changes that might be felt at the customer level will be communicated via service statements, at retail stores and online.

Attempts to reach Hargray were not successful Monday. Michael Gottdenker, Hargray chairman and CEO, was quoted in a Cable One press release praising the sale.

"I am excited about this transaction and am confident that our colleagues, customers, and communities will continue to thrive under Cable One's ownership," Gottdenker was quoted as saying.

Assistant Metro Editor Ben Nunnally: 256-235-3560.