STAMFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Frontier Communications Corporation (NASDAQ:FTR) today announced that
the Federal Trade Commission has granted early termination of the
required waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust
Improvements Act of 1976, as amended, with respect to Frontier's
proposed acquisition of Verizon’s (NYSE: VZ) wireline operations
providing services to residential, commercial and wholesale customers in
California, Florida and Texas. The definitive agreement
between Frontier and Verizon was announced February 5, 2015.
The expiration of the HSR waiting period satisfies one of the conditions
of the completion of the transaction, which remains subject to other
customary conditions, including the approval of the Federal
Communications Commission and certain governmental authorities in the
states covered. The transaction is expected to close in the first half
of 2016.
"We are pleased about the news from the Federal Trade Commission and
look forward to providing service in more areas in California and
Florida and to serving new markets in Texas," said Dan McCarthy,
president and chief executive officer of Frontier Communications.
About Frontier Communications
Frontier Communications Corporation (NASDAQ:FTR) offers broadband,
voice, video, wireless Internet data access, data security solutions,
bundled offerings, specialized bundles for residential customers, small
businesses and home offices and advanced business communications for
medium and large businesses in 28 states. Frontier's approximately
17,800 employees are based entirely in the United States. More
information is available at www.frontier.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This document contains "forward-looking statements," related to future,
not past, events. Forward-looking statements address our expected future
business and financial performance and financial condition, and contain
words such as "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "believe,"
"seek," "see," "will," "would," or "target." Forward-looking statements
by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees,
uncertain. For us, particular uncertainties that could cause our actual
results to be materially different than those expressed in our
forward-looking statements include: risks related to the pending
acquisition of properties from Verizon, including our ability to
complete the acquisition of such operations, our ability to successfully
integrate operations, our ability to realize anticipated cost savings,
sufficiency of the assets to be acquired from Verizon, our ability to
migrate Verizon’s operations from Verizon owned and operated systems and
processes to our owned and operated systems and processes successfully,
failure to enter into or obtain, or delays in entering into or
obtaining, certain agreements and consents necessary to operate the
acquired business as planned, failure to obtain, delays in obtaining or
adverse conditions contained in any required regulatory approvals for
the acquisition, and increased expenses incurred due to activities
related to the transaction; the ability of the banks that have provided
the bridge financing commitments to meet their obligations thereunder in
the event the Company is required to draw on the bridge financing; our
ability to raise, on terms reasonable and acceptable to us, all or a
portion of the financing to replace the current bridge financing
commitments with debt and equity financing to complete the Verizon
Transaction prior to the closing of such transaction, which, if the
Verizon Transaction is ultimately not consummated or is delayed, could
require us to pay significant interest expense, dividends and other
costs in connection with the financing without achieving the expected
benefits of the Verizon Transaction; risks related to the
recently-concluded Connecticut Acquisition, including our ability to
fully realize anticipated synergies; our ability to meet our debt and
debt service obligations; competition from cable, wireless and other
wireline carriers and the risk that we will not respond on a timely or
profitable basis; our ability to successfully adjust to changes in the
communications industry, including the effects of technological changes
and competition on our capital expenditures, products and service
offerings; reductions in revenue from our voice customers that we cannot
offset with increases in revenue from broadband and video subscribers
and sales of other products and services; our ability to maintain
relationships with customers, employees or suppliers; the impact of
regulation and regulatory, investigative and legal proceedings and legal
compliance risks; continued reductions in switched access revenues as a
result of regulation, competition or technology substitutions; the
effects of changes in the availability of federal and state universal
service funding or other subsidies to us and our competitors; our
ability to effectively manage service quality in our territories and
meet mandated service quality metrics; our ability to successfully
introduce new product offerings; the effects of changes in accounting
policies or practices, including potential future impairment charges
with respect to our intangible assets; our ability to effectively manage
our operations, operating expenses, capital expenditures, debt service
requirements and cash paid for income taxes and liquidity, which may
affect payment of dividends on our common shares; the effects of changes
in both general and local economic conditions on the markets that we
serve; the effects of increased medical expenses and pension and
postemployment expenses; the effects of changes in income tax rates, tax
laws, regulations or rulings, or federal or state tax assessments; our
ability to successfully renegotiate union contracts; changes in pension
plan assumptions, interest rates, regulatory rules and/or the value of
our pension plan assets, which could require us to make increased
contributions to the pension plan in 2015 and beyond; adverse changes in
the credit markets or in the ratings given to our debt securities by
nationally accredited ratings organizations, which could limit or
restrict the ability, or increase the cost, of financing to us; the
effects of state regulatory cash management practices that could limit
our ability to transfer cash among our subsidiaries or dividend funds up
to the parent company; the effects of severe weather events or other
natural or man-made disasters, which may increase our operating expenses
or adversely impact customer revenue; the impact of potential
information technology or data security breaches or other disruptions;
and the other factors that are described in our filings with the U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission, including our reports on Forms 10-K
and 10-Q. These risks and uncertainties may cause our actual future
results to be materially different than those expressed in our
forward-looking statements. We do not undertake to update or revise
these forward-looking statements.
INVESTOR
Frontier Communications Corporation
Luke
Szymczak, 203-614-5044
Vice President, Investor Relations
luke.szymczak@ftr.com
or
MEDIA
AVP,
Corp. Comm.
Brigid Smith, 203-614-5042
brigid.smith@ftr.com
Source: Frontier Communications Corporation