Cablevision 2014 Annual Report Download - page 23

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affect our ability to retain our existing customer base and obtain new customers, which would adversely affect our future operating
results, cash flows and financial position.
Disruptions in the capital and credit markets can also result in higher interest rates on publicly issued debt securities and increased
costs under credit facilities. Such disruptions would increase our interest expense, adversely affecting our results of operations
and financial position.
Our access to funds under our revolving credit facility is dependent on the ability of the financial institutions that are parties to
those facilities to meet their funding commitments. Those financial institutions may not be able to meet their funding commitments
if they experience shortages of capital and liquidity or if they experience excessive volumes of borrowing requests within a short
period of time. Moreover, the obligations of the financial institutions under our revolving credit facilities are several and not joint
and, as a result, a funding default by one or more institutions does not need to be made up by the others.
Longer term, volatility and disruptions in the capital and credit markets as a result of uncertainty, changing or increased regulation
of financial institutions, reduced alternatives or failures of significant financial institutions could adversely affect our access to
the liquidity needed for our businesses. Such disruptions could require us to take measures to conserve cash until the markets
stabilize or until alternative credit arrangements or other funding for our business needs can be arranged.
We have substantial indebtedness and we are highly leveraged, which reduces our capability to withstand adverse developments
or business conditions.
We have incurred substantial amounts of indebtedness to finance operations, upgrade our cable plant and acquire other cable
systems, sources of programming and other businesses. We have also incurred substantial indebtedness in order to offer new or
upgraded services to our current and potential customers and to pursue activities outside our core businesses, such as our acquisitions
of Clearview Cinemas (substantially all of whose assets were sold in 2013), Newsday, an electronics retailer, and our development
of Rainbow DBS. In 2006, CSC Holdings incurred $3.5 billion of debt, approximately $3.0 billion of which was distributed to
Cablevision to fund a $10 per share dividend on its common stock and approximately $414 million of which was used to repay
existing indebtedness, including interest, fees and expenses. In December 2010, we incurred approximately $1.4 billion of
indebtedness to finance our acquisition of Bresnan Cable, which was sold in 2013. We may continue to incur substantial amounts
of debt in the future. At December 31, 2014, our total aggregate indebtedness was approximately $9.7 billion. Because of our
substantial indebtedness, we are highly leveraged and we will continue to be highly leveraged. This means that our payments on
our borrowings are significant in relation to our revenues and cash flow. This leverage exposes us to significant risk in the event
of downturns in our businesses (whether through competitive pressures or otherwise), in our industries or in the economy generally,
because although our cash flows would decrease in this scenario, our required payments in respect of indebtedness would not.
We have in past periods incurred substantial losses from continuing operations, we have a significant stockholders' deficiency,
and we may in the future incur losses from continuing operations which could be substantial, which may reduce our ability to
raise needed capital.
We have in the past reported losses from continuing operations and we may do so in the future. Significant losses from continuing
operations could adversely affect our ability to comply with the covenants and restrictions in our debt agreements and could limit
our ability to raise needed financing, or to do so on favorable terms, as such losses could be taken into account by potential investors,
lenders and the organizations that issue investment ratings on our indebtedness.
A lowering or withdrawal of the ratings assigned to our debt securities by ratings agencies may further increase our future
borrowing costs and reduce our access to capital.
The debt ratings for our debt securities are below the "investment grade" category, which results in higher borrowing costs as well
as a reduced pool of potential purchasers of our debt as some investors will not purchase debt securities that are not rated in an
investment grade rating category. In addition, there can be no assurance that any rating assigned will remain for any given period
of time or that a rating will not be lowered or withdrawn entirely by a rating agency, if in that rating agency's judgment, future
circumstances relating to the basis of the rating, such as adverse changes, so warrant. A lowering or withdrawal of a rating may
further increase our future borrowing costs and reduce our access to capital.