Dolans Succeed in Taking Cablevision Private

NEW YORK, May 2: The Dolan family has reached an agreement
to take Cablevision Systems Corporation private for $36.26 per share.

The price of $36.26 per share represents a 34 percent
premium on the Dolan Family Group's initial $27.00 per share offer on October
8, 2006; and a 21 percent premium to its $30 per share offer on January 12,
2007. The Dolan Family Group will contribute approximately $2.1 billion in
equity to the transaction through reinvestment of its Cablevision shares in the
new privately held company. Merrill Lynch & Co., Bear, Stearns & Co.
Inc., and Bank of America have committed to provide approximately $15.5 billion
in debt financing to fund the merger consideration and refinance certain bank
indebtedness of Cablevision.

Cablevision—whose assets include a New York-area cable
platform; Rainbow Media Holdings, an operator of a slate of cable networks;
Madison Square Garden; Radio City Music Hall and the New York Knicks basketball
team—was founded by Charles F. Dolan almost 35 years ago. Charles Dolan,
Cablevision’s chairman, and his son James L. Dolan, chief executive, have been
leading the charge to take the company private. They said in a joint statement:
“We are very proud of the company's track record of delivering quality service
and innovative products to our customers. We believe the best way to continue
this tradition in today's increasingly competitive environment is as a
privately held company. This new structure and an entrepreneurial perspective
will enable us to keep growing the business with our talented management team
and dedicated employees."