Comcast 2007 Annual Report Download - page 17

Item 2: Properties
We believe that substantially all of our physical assets are in good
operating condition.
Cable
Our principal physical assets consist of operating plant and equip-
ment, including signal receiving, encoding and decoding devices;
headends and distribution systems; and equipment at or near
subscribers’ homes. The signal receiving apparatus typically in-
cludes a tower, antenna, ancillary electronic equipment and earth
stations for reception of satellite signals. Headends consist of elec-
tronic equipment necessary for the reception, amplification and
modulation of signals and are located near the receiving devices.
Our distribution system consists primarily of coaxial and fiber-optic
cables, lasers, routers, switches and related electronic equipment.
Our cable plants and related equipment generally are connected to
utility poles under pole rental agreements with local public utilities,
although in some areas the distribution cable is buried in under-
ground ducts or trenches. Customer premise equipment (“CPE”)
consists primarily of set-top boxes and cable modems. The phys-
ical components of cable systems require periodic maintenance
and replacement.
Our signal reception sites, primarily antenna towers and headends,
and microwave facilities, are located on owned and leased par-
cels of land, and we own or lease space on the towers on which
certain of our equipment is located. We own most of our serv-
ice vehicles.
Our high-speed Internet network consists of fiber-optic cables
owned by us and related equipment. We also operate regional data
centers with equipment that is used to provide services (such as
e-mail, news and web services) to our high-speed Internet sub-
scribers and digital phone service subscribers. In addition, we
maintain a network operations center with equipment necessary to
monitor and manage the status of our high-speed Internet network.
Throughout the country we own buildings that contain call centers,
service centers, warehouses and administrative space. We also own a
building that houses our media center. The media center contains
equipment that we own or lease, including equipment related to
network origination, global transmission via satellite and terrestrial
fiber-optics, a broadcast studio, mobile and post-production services,
interactive television services and streaming distribution services.
Programming
Television studios and business offices are the principal physi-
cal assets of our Programming operations. We own or lease the
television studios and business offices of our Programming
operations.
Other
Two large, multipurpose arenas that we own are the principal
physical assets of our other operations.
As of December 31, 2007, we leased locations for our corporate
offices in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as well as numerous business
offices, warehouses and properties housing divisional information
technology operations throughout the country.
Item 3: Legal Proceedings
At Home Cases
Litigation had been filed against us as a result of our alleged conduct
with respect to our investment in and distribution relationship with
At Home Corporation (“At Home”). At Home was a provider of high-
speed Internet services that filed for bankruptcy protection in Sep-
tember 2001. Filed actions were: (i) class action lawsuits against us,
AT&T (the former controlling shareholder of At Home and also a for-
mer distributor of the At Home service) and others in the United States
District Court for the Southern District of New York, alleging securities
law violations and common law fraud in connection with disclosures
made by At Home in 2001, and (ii) a lawsuit brought in the United
States District Court for the District of Delaware in the name of At
Home by certain At Home bondholders against us, Brian L. Roberts
(our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer and a director), Cox (Cox is
also an investor in At Home and a former distributor of the At Home
service) and others, alleging breaches of fiduciary duty relating to
March 2000 agreements (which, among other things, revised the dis-
tributor relationships) and seeking recovery of alleged short-swing
profits under Section 16(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
(purported to have arisen in connection with certain transactions relat-
ing to At Home stock effected under the March 2000 agreements).
In the Southern District of New York actions (item (i) above), the
court dismissed all claims. The plaintiffs appealed this decision, and
the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit denied the plaintiffs’
appeal and a subsequent petition for rehearing. The U.S. Supreme
Court denied plaintiffs’ petition for further appeal. The Delaware case
(item (ii) above) was transferred to the United States District Court for
the Southern District of New York. The court dismissed the Sec-
tion 16(b) claims, and the breach of fiduciary duty claim for lack of
federal jurisdiction. The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
denied the plaintiffs’ appeal from the decision dismissing the Sec-
tion 16(b) claims, and the U.S. Supreme Court denied the plaintiffs’
petition for a further appeal. Plaintiffs recommenced the breach of
fiduciary duty claim in Delaware Chancery Court. In October 2007,
15 Comcast 2007 Annual Report on Form 10-K