Altice USA said it will proceed as planned with its five-year scheme to deploy fiber-to-the-home across its Optimum footprint, despite its European parent’s decision to walk back FTTH plans in France.
“Nothing has changed in the U.S. with our fiber network plans and investment and we are incredibly pleased with the progress we are making,” Altice USA spokesperson Lisa Anselmo said in an email to FierceCable this morning.
Last week, Altice N.V. confirmed that it would not proceed with a plan announced over the summer to festoon its entire French network with fiber. The company said it’s working with French authorities to figure out an alternative plan to upgrade its network.
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The decision, announced by Altice’s SFR Group, comes as debt-strapped Altice works to win back investor confidence, its stock having notably fallen 41% in recent months. SFR Group chief Alain Weill said the decision is a direct result of company founder Patrick Drahi retaking the reigns of the company following the departure of CEO Michael Combs last month.
For its part, Altice USA is already well underway with its FTTH deployment, Anselmo noted.
And Altice USA CEO Dexter Goei has insisted the project isn’t impacting the company’s debt.
"We're going to maintain the same CAPEX budget envelope that we're spending today," Goei said last year, announcing the FTTH deployment. "We don't think we need to increase that."