v3.26.1
DEBT
 6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2026
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]  
DEBT DEBT AND REDEEMABLE PREFERRED UNITS
The following table provides details of our outstanding debt:
Interest Rate at June 30, 2026
June 30, 2026December 31, 2025
Date IssuedMaturity DatePrincipal AmountCarrying Amount (a)Principal AmountCarrying Amount (a)
CSC Holdings Senior Notes:
October 18, 2018April 1, 20287.500 %$4,118 $4,116 $4,118 $4,116 
November 27, 2018April 1, 20287.500 %1,045,882 1,045,453 1,045,882 1,045,342 
July 10 and October 7, 2019January 15, 20305.750 %2,250,000 2,266,163 2,250,000 2,268,198 
June 16 and August 17, 2020December 1, 20304.625 %2,325,000 2,348,140 2,325,000 2,350,423 
May 13, 2021November 15, 20315.000 %500,000 498,931 500,000 498,846 
6,125,000 6,162,803 6,125,000 6,166,925 
CSC Holdings Senior Guaranteed Notes:
September 23, 2016April 15, 20275.500 %1,310,000 1,309,410 1,310,000 1,309,053 
January 29, 2018February 1, 20285.375 %1,000,000 998,311 1,000,000 997,814 
January 31, 2019February 1, 20296.500 %1,750,000 1,748,951 1,750,000 1,748,770 
June 16, 2020December 1, 20304.125 %1,100,000 1,097,634 1,100,000 1,097,399 
August 17, 2020February 15, 20313.375 %1,000,000 998,345 1,000,000 998,183 
May 13, 2021November 15, 20314.500 %1,500,000 1,496,828 1,500,000 1,496,573 
April 25, 2023May 15, 202811.250 %1,000,000 997,071 1,000,000 996,406 
January 25, 2024January 31, 202911.750 %2,050,000 2,038,825 2,050,000 2,037,054 
10,710,000 10,685,375 10,710,000 10,681,252 
CSC Holdings Restricted Group Credit Facility:
Revolving Credit Facility (b)July 13, 20275.975 %2,225,000 2,223,984 2,125,000 2,123,506 
Incremental Term Loan B-5 (c)April 15, 20278.250 %2,812,500 2,809,643 2,827,500 2,822,895 
5,037,500 5,033,627 4,952,500 4,946,401 
UnSub Group Credit Facility:
November 25, 2025November 25, 20289.000 %3,100,000 2,923,712 2,000,000 1,898,893 
NYC ABS Receivables Facility Loan:
July 16, 2025January 16, 2031— — 980,091 881,175 
Lightpath Secured Fiber Network Revenue Notes (d):
March 3, 2026March 25, 20315.597 %1,527,000 1,504,956 — — 
March 3, 2026March 25, 20315.890 %130,000 128,123 — — 
1,657,000 1,633,079 — — 
Lightpath Senior Notes (e):
September 29, 2020September 15, 2028— — 415,000 411,428 
Lightpath Senior Secured Notes (e):
September 29, 2020September 15, 2027— — 450,000 447,320 
Lightpath Term Loan(e)November 30, 2027— — 669,183 667,201 
1,657,000 1,633,079 1,534,183 1,525,949 
Finance lease obligations112,169 112,169 105,619 105,619 
26,741,669 26,550,765 26,407,393 26,206,214 
Less: current maturities(4,151,284)(4,147,837)(60,842)(60,842)
Long-term debt$22,590,385 $22,402,928 $26,346,551 $26,145,372 
(a)The carrying amount is net of the unamortized deferred financing costs and discounts/premiums, as applicable.
(b)At June 30, 2026, $174,799 of the revolving credit facility was restricted for certain letters of credit issued on our behalf and $75,201 of the $2,475,000 facility was undrawn and available, subject to covenant limitations. The revolving credit facility bears interest at a rate of Secured Overnight Financing Rate ("SOFR") (plus a credit adjustment spread of 0.10%) plus 2.25% per annum.
(c)Incremental Term Loan B-5 requires quarterly installments of $7,500 and bore interest at a rate equal to Synthetic USD London Interbank Offered Rate ("LIBOR") plus 2.50% per annum through March 31, 2025. Thereafter, we are required to pay interest at a rate equal to the alternate base rate (“ABR”), plus the applicable margin, where the ABR is the greater of (x) prime rate or (y) the federal funds effective rate plus 50 basis points, and the applicable margin for any ABR loan is 1.50% per annum.
(d)At June 30, 2026, $6,288 of a $100,000 Variable Funding Note available to Lightpath was restricted for certain letters of credit issued on its behalf. The remaining $93,712 was undrawn, subject to covenant limitations.
(e)Repaid with proceeds from the Lightpath Secured Fiber Network Revenue Notes (see discussion below).
For financing purposes, we have three debt silos: CSC Holdings, the UnSub Group (defined below) and Lightpath. The CSC Holdings silo is structured as a restricted group (the "CSC Holdings Restricted Group") and an unrestricted group, which includes Cablevision Litchfield, LLC ("Cablevision Litchfield"), CSC Optimum Holdings, LLC ("CSC Optimum") and certain subsidiaries of CSC Holdings designated as "unrestricted subsidiaries" for the purposes of the CSC Holdings silo (collectively, the "UnSub Group"). The CSC Holdings Restricted Group is comprised of CSC Holdings and its wholly-owned operating subsidiaries, excluding Lightpath and the UnSub Group). The CSC Holdings Restricted Group is subject to the covenants and restrictions of CSC Holdings' credit facility and indentures governing the notes issued by CSC Holdings. The Lightpath silo includes substantially all of Lightpath's operating subsidiaries which are subject to the covenants and restrictions of the secured fiber network revenue notes issued by Lightpath. The UnSub Group is subject to the covenants and restrictions of the UnSub Group Facility.
UnSub Group Credit Facility
On November 25, 2025, Cablevision Litchfield and CSC Optimum, each an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, entered into a Credit Agreement (the "Initial UnSub Group Credit Facility"), by and among Cablevision Litchfield and CSC Optimum, each as a borrower, the guarantors party thereto, the lenders party thereto and JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as administrative agent and collateral agent. The Initial UnSub Group Credit Facility provided for, among other things, initial term loans in an aggregate principal amount of $2,000,000 (the "Initial UnSub Group Credit Facility Loans"). The Initial UnSub Group Credit Facility Loans were used to repay in full the Incremental Term Loan B-7 under the CSC Credit Facilities.
On January 12, 2026, Cablevision Litchfield and CSC Optimum entered into an Amended and Restated Credit Agreement (the "A&R UnSub Credit Agreement"), by and among Cablevision Litchfield and CSC Optimum, each as a borrower, the guarantors party thereto, the lenders party thereto and JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as administrative agent and collateral agent. The A&R UnSub Credit Agreement provided for, among other things, incremental term loans in an aggregate principal amount of $1,100,000 (the "Incremental UnSub Credit Facility Loans" and, together with the Initial UnSub Group Credit Facility Loans, the "Credit Facility Loans"). Effective February 11, 2026, Cablevision Funding joined the A&R UnSub Credit Agreement as borrower under solely the Incremental UnSub Credit Facility Loans. The A&R UnSub Credit Agreement amended and restated the Initial UnSub Group Credit Facility in its entirety (as so amended and restated, the "UnSub Group Credit Facility"). The Incremental UnSub Credit Facility Loans were used to repay Receivables Facility Loan and Security Agreement, dated as of July 16, 2025 (the “NYC ABS Loan and Security Agreement”), by and among Cablevision Funding LLC, Cablevision SPE Guarantor LLC, the other loan parties party thereto from time to time, each of the financial institutions from time to time party thereto as lenders, Alter Domus (US) LLC, as administrative agent, Citibank, N.A., as Account Bank (as defined therein), Citibank, N.A., as collateral agent, and Goldman Sachs Bank USA and TPG Angelo Gordon, as structuring agents, and pay certain costs associated with the transactions. The remaining proceeds were used for other general corporate purposes. The UnSub Group Credit Facility Loans will (i) mature on November 25, 2028, (ii) accrue interest at a fixed rate per annum equal to 9.0%, and (iii) not amortize.
The Unsub Group entered into a Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement, dated as of July 6, 2026 (the “Second A&R UnSub Credit Agreement”). The Second A&R UnSub Credit Agreement provides for, among other things, an incremental term loan commitment in an aggregate principal amount of $250,000. The loans made pursuant to such incremental term loan commitment on July 6, 2026 (the “UnSub Incremental Term Loan”) have substantially similar terms as the term loans that have been outstanding under the A&R UnSub Credit Agreement,
which term loans will remain outstanding under the Second A&R UnSub Credit Agreement, and will (i) mature on November 25, 2028, (ii) accrue interest at a fixed rate per annum equal to 9.0% and (iii) not amortize. In connection with this transaction, we incurred additional deferred financing costs of $13,760. The proceeds are expected to be used for general corporate purposes.
Lightpath Secured Fiber Network Revenue Notes
On March 3, 2026, Cablevision Lightpath LLC ("Lightpath") refinanced all of its outstanding indebtedness through an asset‑backed securitization ("ABS") transaction. In connection with the refinancing, Lightpath repaid in full and terminated all prior debt facilities, including its senior notes due 2028, senior secured notes due 2027 and its term loan facility balance previously outstanding. Upon repayment, all liens and guarantees associated with this indebtedness were released and all commitments were terminated.
The refinancing was executed through the issuance by Lightpath Fiber Issuer LLC (the “Issuer”) of Secured Fiber Network Revenue Notes, Series 2026‑1 (the "Series 2026‑1 Notes"). The Issuer is a newly formed, wholly owned and bankruptcy-remote indirect subsidiary of Lightpath.
The notes consist of $1,527,000 in aggregate principal amount of Series 2026-1, Class A-2 Notes (the "Class A-2 Notes") and $130,000 in aggregate principal amount of Series 2026-1, Class B Notes (the "Class B Notes"). The Class A-2 Notes bear interest at a rate of 5.597%, and the Class B Notes bear interest at a rate of 5.890%. Deferred financing costs incurred with the issuance of these notes amounted to $25,281.
In addition to the Series 2026-1 Notes, the Issuer also entered into a Variable Funding Note ("VFN") facility with a revolving commitment of up to $100,000 (expandable to $300,000 subject to conditions), and a Liquidity Funding Note facility of up to $45,000, designed to support working capital and liquidity needs within the ABS structure.
Proceeds from the issuance of the Series 2026-1 Notes were used to repay all outstanding Lightpath indebtedness existing prior to the refinancing, fund required reserve accounts, including a liquidity reserve account, pay transaction fees, expenses, and other costs associated with the ABS issuance and general corporate purposes.
The Series 2026‑1 Term Notes are secured by substantially all of the fiber network assets and related customer agreements of Lightpath's asset‑owning securitized subsidiaries, which collectively serve as collateral for the securitization. The Notes are non‑recourse to Lightpath and its non‑securitized subsidiaries, other than through the guarantees provided within the ABS structure by the asset‑owning entities and Lightpath Fiber Guarantor LLC.
Interest on the Series 2026-1 Notes is fixed, payable monthly in arrears, beginning April 2026, and mature in March 2031. The securitization includes customary cash‑flow waterfalls, reserve accounts, financial covenants—including a senior debt service coverage ratio—and provisions for optional and mandatory prepayments.
Following this refinancing, Lightpath's revolving credit facility is no longer available, and borrowings will occur within the ABS structure through the Variable Funding Notes, subject to meeting required borrowing conditions. As of June 30, 2026, $6,288 of the available VFN facility was restricted for certain letters of credit issued on Lightpath's behalf.
Debt Compliance
As of June 30, 2026, CSC Holdings was in compliance with applicable financial covenants under its credit facility. Lightpath Fiber Issuer LLC was in compliance with applicable covenants under the Secured Fiber Network Revenue Notes. The UnSub Group Credit Facility and the respective indentures by which the senior guaranteed notes and senior notes were issued do not provide for any financial covenants.
Loss on Extinguishment of Debt and the Write-off of Deferred Financing Costs
The following table provides a summary of the loss on extinguishment of debt and the write-off of deferred financing costs recorded:
Six Months Ended June 30, 2026
Repayment of NYC ABS receivables facility loan
$98,407 
Repayment of Lightpath's 5.625% Senior Notes, 3.875% Senior Secured Notes and Term Loan Facility7,638 
$106,045 
Summary of Debt Maturities
The future principal payments under our various debt obligations outstanding as of June 30, 2026, excluding finance lease obligations, are as follows:
2026$15,000 
20276,332,500 
20286,150,000 
20293,800,000 
20305,675,000 
Thereafter4,657,000 
Redeemable Preferred Unit Transactions
Private Placement of Redeemable Preferred Units
On May 29, 2026, CSC Investments II LLC ("CSC II"), an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Optimum Communications, sold to certain institutional accredited investors newly issued Series A Preferred Units of CSC II (the “Preferred Units”) having an initial stated value of $300,000 for an aggregate purchase price of $300,000 (the “Private Placement Transaction”).
CSC II is an unrestricted subsidiary of CSC Holdings and a holding company for certain of CSC Holdings’ designated unrestricted subsidiaries, including Cablevision Litchfield, LLC, CSC Optimum Holdings, LLC, certain other subsidiaries of CSC Holdings designated as “unrestricted subsidiaries” for the purposes of the debt agreements of CSC Holdings and CSC Holdings’ interest in Cablevision Lightpath LLC.
Proceeds from the Private Placement Transaction were used for general corporate purposes, including to finance the Tender Offer (as defined below) and pay transaction expenses.
The Preferred Units are perpetual preferred interests in CSC II. Dividends are payable in cash or by compounding, at CSC II’s option. Cumulative dividends accrue on the stated value of the Preferred Units and are payable quarterly at a rate of 13.0% per annum if paid in cash or 15.0% if compounded. The dividend rate may increase by 2.0% per annum upon the occurrence and during the continuance of certain triggering events.
The Preferred Units are redeemable by CSC II at any time at a redemption price (the “Redemption Price”) equal to the greater of (i) 100% of the then-current stated value and (ii) the amount necessary to result in an Applicable Minimum MOIC (as defined in the preferred unit agreement), in each case, plus the aggregate amount of accumulated and unpaid dividends that have not yet been paid in cash or compounded up to, but excluding, the redemption date.
The Preferred Units are subject to mandatory redemption upon the occurrence of (i) a sale of all or substantially all of CSC II and its subsidiaries, (ii) any insolvency, liquidation, dissolution or winding up of CSC II or its material subsidiaries (but not a change of control or insolvency, liquidation, dissolution or winding up of Optimum Communications or its subsidiaries (other than CSC II and its subsidiaries)) or (iii) a failure by CSC II to comply with the requirements of a sale demand made by holders of a majority of any Preferred Units that remain outstanding following the eighth anniversary of the issue date.
The terms of the Preferred Units permit CSC II and its subsidiaries to incur indebtedness, subject to compliance with a consolidated total net debt ratio (excluding the Preferred Units or any senior equity) of 4.50x on a pro forma basis, and to incur senior or pari preferred equity subject to a consolidated total net debt and preferred equity ratio of 4.75x on a pro forma basis (which ratios decrease to 4.00x upon the occurrence of certain events) and certain other exceptions. In addition, upon the occurrence of certain triggering events, restrictions on specified payments or affiliate transactions will also apply.
Due to the existence of contingent redemption features that are not solely within the Company’s control, the Preferred Units are classified as temporary equity in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets. The carrying value is accreted to the redemption value, including the impact of compounding distributions, through charges to retained earnings (or, in the absence of retained earnings, additional paid-in capital).
Accretion of the Preferred Units’ redemption value and distributions reduce income available to common equity holders for purposes of earnings per share.
Private Exchange Transaction
On May 29, 2026, CSC II entered into an exchange transaction (the “Private Exchange Transaction”) with Next Alt and its affiliate, Next Partner, L.P. (“Next Partner” and, together with Next Alt, the “Next Entities”), certain members of Optimum Communications' board of directors and executive management. In the Private Exchange Transaction, CSC II issued additional Preferred Units having an initial stated value of $200,000 to Next Partner in exchange for 5,846,652 shares of Optimum Class A common stock, par value $0.01 per share (“Class A shares”) owned by Next Alt, and 74,153,348 shares of Optimum Class B common stock, par value $0.01 per share (“Class B shares”) owned by Next Alt, implying a price of $2.50 per common share, and Preferred Units having an aggregate initial stated value of $12,503 to such members of Optimum Communications' board of directors and executive management in exchange for 5.0 million Class A shares. Such exchanged common shares are held by CSC II and were not canceled.
As required by GAAP, the Company recognized an expense of $156,555 based on the closing price of the Company's common stock on the transaction date. The expense is included in restructuring, impairments and other operating items in the accompanying consolidated statement of operations. The shares held by CSC II are reflected as treasury shares on the consolidated balance sheet of Optimum Communications.
Next Alt is a personal holding company of Patrick Drahi, who is its controlling shareholder and a member of Optimum Communications’ board of directors. As of May 27, 2026, Next Alt beneficially owned approximately 39.6% of the Company’s outstanding Class A shares and approximately 99.9% of the Company’s outstanding Class B shares, representing in the aggregate approximately 94.0% of the voting power of the Company. After giving effect to the Private Exchange Transaction, Next Alt beneficially owned approximately 27.8% of the Company’s outstanding Class A shares and approximately 99.9% of the Company’s outstanding Class B shares, representing in the aggregate approximately 90.5% of the voting power of the Company.