• FTC OKs Cablevision's Bresnan buy
By Brian Santo

Cablevision Systems got the green light from the Federal Trade Commission to purchase Bresnan Communications.

Cablevision proposes to buy Bresnan for about $1.37 billion from the Quadrangle Group. Comcast is a minority investor in Bresnan.

Cablevision is currently the seventh-largest multichannel video programming distributor (MPVD) in the U.S., with more than 3 million subscribers, according to NCTA statistics. The purchase of Bresnan, with more than 300,000 customers, will help Cablevision solidify its hold on that position; no. 8 MPVD Verizon also has just over 3 million subscribers and was threatening to overtake Cablevision.

• Union says workers OK new Frontier contract
By The Associated Press

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) – The Communications Workers of America says its members have approved a new labor contract with Frontier Communications.

The union said Wednesday that the deal extends the current contract through August 2013. It includes raises of 2.75 percent in 2011 and 2.5 percent in 2012 and requires Frontier to keep at least 1,600 full-time workers in West Virginia. The CWA says 97 percent of affected members voted for the agreement.

Frontier took over 620,000 landlines in West Virginia from Verizon recently. The switch was part of a broader agreement for Verizon to sell 4.8 million landlines in 14 states to Frontier for $8.6 billion.