Drafter
Clerk 09/06/2012
Title
AN ORDINANCE approving the change of control of cable television Franchise 5602, contained in Ordinance 13637, and extending the franchise for five additional months.
Body
STATEMENT OF FACTS:
1. WAVEDIVISION I, LLC, a Washington limited liability company d/b/a/ Wave Broadband ("franchisee"), provides cable services in unincorporated King County pursuant to Ordinance 13637 ("the franchise agreement").
2. Franchisee is a wholly-owned subsidiary of WaveDivision Holdings, LLC, ("Wave Parent"), a Delaware limited liability company, which currently is majority-owned by three affiliates of Sandler Capital Management ("Sandler Capital"). Franchisee has proposed a change in the ultimate control of franchisee as part of an agreement involving the acquisition of Wave Parent from Sandler Capital and its other current owners by OH WDH Holdco, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company ("Oak Hill"), whose owners include affiliates of Oak Hill Capital Partners, a private equity firm based in San Francisco, California; an affiliate of GI Partners, a private equity firm based in Menlo Park, California; and an investment company controlled by Steve Weed, the CEO of Wave Parent.
3. The change in ownership of Wave Parent results in a transfer or change of control of franchisee under Section 4 of the franchise agreement and K.C.C. 6.27A.010.CC, and therefore requires county consent.
4. Franchisee, Wave Parent and Oak Hill have requested King County's consent to the change of control in accordance with Section 4 of the franchise agreement. On or about June 8, 2012, Wave Parent and Oak Hill filed a Federal Communications Commission ("FCC") Form 394 with King County requesting such consent.
5. The office of cable communications has retained a qualified accounting consultant experienced in the cable communications industry to conduct a thorough review and investigation into the legal, technical and financial qualifications of Oak Hill to control fr...
Click here for full text