Cable One said it will launch a new IPTV offering early this year, dubbed Sparklight TV, which will provide cloud-based video programming to customers and eventually eliminate the need for set-top boxes while freeing up more bandwidth for faster high-speed internet services. 

Phoenix, Arizona-based Cable One will use technology provided by Silicon Valley video company MobiTV to deploy its new service. MobiTV's IPTV solution, called Connect, was recently deployed by Ohio's MCTV and is now used by more than 120 cable operators. 

Also Read: MobiTV Connect Selected by Ohio Cable Operator MCTV

The move from linear video to IPTV has been a long time coming. Cable One, which rebranded to Sparklight in 2019, has focused mainly on growing its broadband customers over the years. In Q3, it had 263,000 traditional video subscribers and 784,000 high-speed data customers. The switch to IPTV will allow the company to reclaim enough spectrum to expand its current Gigabit broadband offerings, paving the way, it said, to a 10G technology platform.  

“Our transition to IP-based TV service will enable us to reclaim spectrum in our network needed to continue to expand the capabilities and speeds of our core high speed data product and provide the communities we serve with the fastest and most reliable internet service,” Sparklight senior VP of technology services Ken Johnson said in a press release. “This is even more critical now, with the tremendous increase in customers working and learning from home.”

Sparklight TV will deliver advanced cable TV features in an app designed to run on streaming devices like Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, and Apple TV. Running on the Mobi TV Connect platform, Sparklight TV will include video on demand, program restart, and DVR capabilities.

The company expects to launch Sparklight TV in select markets in early 2021 and plans to make it available across its footprint by the end of the year. Cable One said that the IPTV service will eventually replace its traditional set top box-based video service. 

According to the company, more than 97% of the homes passed by Sparklight’ s network currently have access to Gigabit broadband speeds. Over the past three years it has spent more than $600 million on infrastructure upgrades and began installing modems capable of 10 Gigabit per second speeds, which Sparklight expects to deploy broadly in the coming years.

“We continue to make significant investments in deploying fiber deeper and closer to our customers to not only enhance reliability, speed and performance, but lay the groundwork for the increased speeds of the future,” Johnson said in the release. “The digital needs of our residential and business customers are advancing rapidly, and we are actively working to not only meet but exceed those needs by creating a fast and reliable network that will support next generation technology.”

Cable One/Sparklight said its customers in the Springfield/Urbana, Illinois area lost access to three GoCom Media stations on Dec. 31 after retransmission consent talks broke down, adding that it is still in talks regarding two other nearby stations owned by Block Communications and Sinclair Broadcast Group.

GoCom owns Fox affiliate WSRP/WCCU in Springfield, as well as WBUI (The CW) in the same area. The stations are managed by Sinclair Broadcast Group, through a joint services/shared services agreement. The stations serve Cable One/Sparklight customers in Argenta, Auburn, Hoopeston, Moweaqua, Paris, Taylorville, Westville and surrounding communities.

Cable One rebranded as Sparklight in 2019 although it continues to operate under the Cable One corporate name.  

"For the past several weeks we have been in negotiations with GoCom Media over programming fees and we have made every effort to reach a fair deal in order to keep rates reasonable for our customers,” Sparklight Division vice president Gary McDonald said in a press release, adding that the broadcaster demanded a nearly 100% rate increase and rejected its counter offer to pay a rate consistent with what Cable One is paying other stations.  

“We share our customers’ frustration with GoCom Media for blocking access to their programming,” McDonald said. “We’re disappointed that GoCom has not accepted our proposal, which we consider more than fair. Sparklight has successfully negotiated for the carriage of hundreds of broadcast stations and we hope to do so with GoCom Media very soon.”

While the GoCom dispute rages, Cable One also has two other retrans deals in Illinois looming with Block Communications and Sinclair. The retrans agreement for the Block station -- WAND (NBC, Cozi TV) in Decatur -- expires on Jan. 7, while its deal to carry Sinclair’s Champaign/Urbana ABC affiliate (WICD/WICS) ends on Jan. 11. Cable One said on its website that it is in talks with both stations.

Cable operators across the south and southwest are currently assessing the damage to their systems caused by Hurricane Laura, the storm that raged through parts of Louisiana and south Texas earlier this week.

According to reports, Laura made landfall on Aug. 27 at about 1 a.m. near Cameron, La., 35 miles from the Texas border, leaving a path of destruction with winds of up to 150 mph, heavy rains and flooding. At least six lives were lost in Louisiana. Cities and towns in the path of the storm -- one of the strongest hurricanes ever to hit the area -- are still assessing the damage. Some reports have as many as one million residents in Texas and Louisiana are without power. 

While it could have been worse  -- initial predictions called for storm surges of more than 20 feet and flooding as far as 40 miles inland, which didn’t happen  -- cable operators and municipalities continue to dig out of the damage from the storm.

At Sparklight, formerly Cable One, systems in Jasper and Sour Lake, Texas and in Shreveport and Monroe, Louisiana were affected by the storm. Sparklight said it is still in the process of assessing the damage. “Thankfully, and most importantly – all of our associates are accounted for and safe,” the company said in an email message.

Altice USA’s Suddenlink Communications has operations in Louisiana and Texas -- including the heavily hit Lake Charles, La. area -- and CEO Dexter Goei told employees in a memo that the company is currently assessing the damage. He added that Altice USA began making preparations for the storm early, ensuring that employees had the resources necessary to stay safe and ready themselves for restoration efforts. That included encouraging local employees to heed mandatory evacuation warnings, closing down and boarding up its local retail stores and other buildings, fueling generators and vehicles, placing out-of-state field teams on standby to assist, and more.

“While we are still waiting to gain access to many of the hardest hit areas, we know that hurricane-force winds have caused extreme damage and there will likely be a long road of recovery ahead for many of the communities we serve,” Goei said in the memo.

Altice USA added that it has dispatched resources to ensure customers are educated on its restoration efforts, and is in close coordination with local utilities and authorities so it can address any issues with its network when the power comes back. 

For its employees who have been displaced, experienced destruction of property or are facing hardship resulting from the storm, Goei noted the Altice USA Employee Disaster Relief Fund is available to provide financial assistance to employees who have been impacted by natural disasters. The program is funded by employee contributions, which are matched by Altice USA up to $50,000 annually.

Cox Communications said the storm represented a significant power outage in its Acadiana, La., system where its retail stores remain closed, adding that it too is assessing damage.  

“Once power is restored and it is safe for our employees, we’ll be working in neighborhoods as needed to reconnect customers,” Cox said in an email.

Comcast also is assessing the damage from the storm, adding that so far it has had power outages in areas like Shreveport and Monroe, La. and Little Rock, Ark. 

“Our teams are out today assessing plant and drop damage today where it’s safe to do so,” Comcast said. 

Sparklight (Cable One), said it has donated $300,000 to help in COVID-19 relief efforts across its 21-state footprint.

According to the company, it has donated $150,000 to the Meals on Wheels America COVID-19 Response Fund and $150,000 to local food banks in markets the company serves.

“Sparklight has set an example for others by helping us to ensure America’s vulnerable seniors will continue to receive the meals they desperately need amid this national crisis,” said Meals on Wheels America chief development officer Kristine Templin in a press release. “This generous donation will go a long way in providing certainty during these uncertain times, and I speak on behalf of the nationwide Meals on Wheels network in expressing our deep appreciation.”

Meals on Wheels America supports more than 5,000 community-based programs across the country that are dedicated to addressing senior isolation and hunger. This network serves virtually every community in America and, along with more than two million staff and volunteers, delivers the nutritious meals, friendly visits and safety checks that enable America’s seniors to live nourished lives with independence and dignity.

Related: CenturyLink Supplies Ship-to-Shore Connection to Mercy 

“Meals on Wheels and local food banks are fulfilling the critical need of feeding at-risk community members who might otherwise go hungry due to impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic,” Cable One CEO Julie Laulis said in a press release. “We are proud to support their mission through donations that will help provide immediate aid to individuals who have been hit hardest during this unprecedented crisis.”

Related: NCTA: Industry Donating $100M of COVID-19 PSA Ad Time Space 

Cable One has joined other cable operators in opening up its WiFi hotspots for public use during the pandemic. Company employees also are making masks for first responders, sending gift baskets and hot meals from local restaurants to hospitals and police and fire stations for first responders, and donating books to senior centers.

Related: Sling TV to Donate Movie Rental Profits to COVID-19 Group 

Pay TV providers have donated and raised millions of dollars for COVID-19 relief, including Comcast chairman and CEO Brian Roberts, whose family donated $5 million to buy laptops for Philadelphia schoolchildren and who along with other Comcast execs pledged his 2020 salary to COVID-19 causes. On March 17, Mediacom chairman and CEO Rocco Commisso started a Go Fund Me project to raise €500,000 for hospitals in Florence, Italy, the home of his soccer team, ACF Fiorentina and seeded the effort with €250,000 of his own money. To date the project has raised more than €800,000. 

Sparklight said it will extend unlimited data access on all its internet plans through May 12 in an effort to provide continued connectivity for its customers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sparklight (formerly Cable One) initially made unlimited data available on all its plans for 30 days starting March 13. The company said it continues to evaluate and assess all measures taken to assist customers based on the evolving nature of the coronavirus.

Related: Small Cable Operator Beef Up Broadband To Battle Coronavirus 

Previously, Sparklight said it would waive late fees and would not disconnect customers unable to pay their bills because of disruptions due to the pandemic; and opened free WiFi hotspots in local office parking lots for public use during the outbreak. On March 19 it began offering a low-cost 15 Megabit per second residential internet plan for $10 per month for 60 days to help low-income families, seniors and college students in its footprint.

“Being a local connectivity provider means we are there for our communities in difficult times like these, and we remain committed to keeping our customers connected and supporting them through this crisis,” Sparklight CEO Julie Laulis said in a press release. The company operates in 21 states and said it has more than 900,000 homes and business customers.

Cable One continued to expand margins and revenue in the third quarter.

The Phoenix, Arizona-based mid-sized cable operator reported a 6.2% surge in overall revenue to $285 million, driven by its April acquisition of Fidelity Communications, as well as surging residential broadband and business services sales.

Residential high speed internet revenue increased 8.2% to $134.3 million, with subscribers increasing 3.5% year over year to 618,983. Average revenue per residential broadband user came in at an industry-leading $72.09, up 4.7% over Q3 2018.

Business services revenue increased 28% to $50.6 million, with the customer base swelling by 8.7% to 114,913 since the end of the third quarter of 2018.

Video revenue dropped another 4.2% to $81 million. Residential video users declined 9.4% to 283,303 year over year.

According to MoffettNathanson principal analyst Craig Moffett, Cable One’s margins stand at nearly 50%.

“Cable One still has one of the industry’s lowest broadband penetration [rates] of homes passed at just 32.2%,” Moffett wrote in a note to investors, once again kicking the tires on Cable One’s super-high 16x stock valuation. “And with limited fiber-based competition, their ceiling is arguably one of the highest in the country. They are at least growing the broadband business at a rate fast enough to drive meaningfully higher penetration.”

With the business plan seemingly solid, Cable One CEO Julie Laulis doesn’t seem to be interested in exploring new business opportunities beyond expanding the company’s broadband footprint through M&A.

Asked about establishing an MVNO deal similar to what the larger U.S. cable companies have done, she responded, “I don’t think that the MVNO model right now is something that we find a large interest in giving the margins and the amount of work and growth and opportunities that we have with our existing business right now.”

Cable One continues to position itself as a tier 2 model for cable operators looking to move away from video and emphasize high-speed internet services.

The Phoenix-based MSO lost another 30,277 video customers in the second quarter and only has 293,237 left.

But total Q2 revenue was up 6.4% year over year to $285.7 million. (The figure is a still-impressive 3.9% increase when the acquisition of Clearwave is factored out.) Residential broadband revenue increased by 8.5% to $132.82 million, amid customer additions of 20,393.

With Cable One up-selling more than half of its customers to take more than the 100 Mbps base-tier speed, average revenue per user was up 4.9% year over year to $71.80.

Meanwhile, revenue from business services increased to $49.8 million.

MoffettNathanon analyst Craig Moffett noted that almost 50%, Cable One margins are the highest in the cable industry. “We suspect they will keep climbing higher,” he said.

As for video, Cable One, which now operates under the consumer-facing brand Sparklight, is mulling a partnership with a virtual MVPD, according to Light Reading. 

Phoenix-based cable operator Cable One said it will rebrand as Sparklight, beginning in the summer of 2019, further evidence of its commitment to focus on residential and business high-speed data service.

“We are very excited for this evolution to our new brand and the next chapter in our story,” Cable One chair and CEO Julie Laulis said in a statement. “Over the past several years we have evolved and our new brand will better convey who we are and what we stand for – a company committed to providing our communities with connectivity that enriches their world. While we are introducing a new brand, our corporate name will remain Cable One, Inc.”

According to Cable One, the new name reflects its transformation from a traditional cable company to one that focuses on connectivity. The company continued that the name Sparklight illustrates that speed and connectivity, “while at the same time symbolizing its new brand promise – connecting people to what matters.”

Cable One had about 801,179 residential and business customers -- nearly 60% of those non-video subscribers -- in 21 states in the third quarter. The company was one of the first cable operators to focus almost exclusively on broadband customer growth.

As part of the rebrand Cable One said it will be streamlining its residential service plans and pricing in 2019, offering faster speeds and the ability to include unlimited data on any plan.

“This is not simply about rebranding our products under a new name and a new look,” Laulis said in the statement. “We are changing the way we do business so that our customers feel like every interaction with us is effortless, our communities know we are here for the long term and the towns and cities we serve are proud to call us a neighbor.”

Sparklight will also expand customer self-service options through improved residential and business portals and creating a more personalized experience in updated and refreshed local offices.

“As consumer data consumption continues to increase, multi-device households become the norm, and businesses expect a broad suite of services, Sparklight will continue to evolve with our customers by offering innovative options to fit their needs, while providing helpful, proactive and personal local service,” Laulis said in her statement.