Shareholders in Liberty Broadband have approved a proposed merger with Charter Communications.
John Malone, chairman of the board of Liberty Broadband, led a 7-minute virtual meeting on Wednesday to vote on the proposed merger with Charter by shareholders. In Nov. 2024, cable TV giant Charter, led by CEO Chris Winfrey, first unveiled a deal to acquire Liberty Broadband, part of Malone’s media empire, in an all-stock transaction.
The transaction was unanimously recommended to the Charter board of directors for approval by a special committee composed of independent, disinterested directors and advised by independent financial and legal advisors.
The boards of directors of both Charter and Liberty Broadband have also approved the transaction, which includes main assets like a 26 percent interest in Charter and its subsidiary GCI held by Liberty Broadband. GCI is Alaska’s largest broadband and wireless provider, and is led by CEO Ron Duncan.
GCI is expected to be spun off post-transaction. Liberty Broadband also holds a 16.5 percent stake in Comscore, the analytics and audience measurement company.
The acquisition deal by Charter is expected to close on June 30, 2027, unless otherwise agreed by the companies. Liberty Broadband was spun off from Malone’s Liberty Media Corp. in 2014 to focus on investments in telecommunications.
Centerview Partners is serving as the financial advisor to the special committee of Charter on the deal. Citi is serving as financial advisor to Charter. Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz is the legal counsel to the special committee of Charter. J.P. Morgan is serving as financial advisor to Liberty Broadband, with O’Melveny & Myers LLP as the legal counsel.
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