Adelphia

NEW YORK -- Adelphia Communications Corp.'s plan to end more than four years of bankruptcy protection and distribute $15 billion in cash and stock to creditors was officially confirmed yesterday by a judge in New York. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert E. Gerber signed a confirmation order ratifying the exit plan in one of the biggest bankruptcies in U.S. history. Gerber said Wednesday that he would confirm the plan, which is to take effect in 10 business days, barring an appeal. "The plan is hereby confirmed," his 53-page order said.

Colleges Bulls sets assist mark as UMBC tops Mount, 1-0 UMBC senior midfielder Andrew Bulls (McDonogh) set a school record for assists as the host Retrievers edged Mount St. Mary's, 1-0, in the opening game for both teams Saturday. In the 59th minute, Bulls' free kick from 27 yards floated into the six-yard area, where freshman forward Jordan Becker eventually knocked it into an unguarded net from three yards away. The assist was the 29th of Bulls' career, surpassing James Hamilton , who recorded 28 from 1998 to 2001.

NEW YORK -A bankruptcy judge in Manhattan agreed yesterday to block preferred shareholders from adding their own directors to the board of cable-television operator Adelphia Communications Corp. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert E. Gerber barred shareholders from acting until a later hearing on the matter. Adelphia, the fifth-largest cable-television operator, had asked Gerber to halt preferred shareholders from trying to expand the company's nine-member board by as many as six directors before it emerges from bankruptcy.

NEW YORK -- Adelphia Communications Corp.'s plan to end more than four years of bankruptcy protection and distribute $15 billion in cash and stock to creditors was officially confirmed yesterday by a judge in New York. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert E. Gerber signed a confirmation order ratifying the exit plan in one of the biggest bankruptcies in U.S. history. Gerber said Wednesday that he would confirm the plan, which is to take effect in 10 business days, barring an appeal. "The plan is hereby confirmed," his 53-page order said.

Adelphia Cable's customer service in Carroll County has improved drastically since the county's cable commission filed sanctions against the company three months ago, commission members say. The company's Internet service, however, is experiencing "growing pains," said the county's new cable coordinator, Carol Shawver. "Yes, amazingly enough, the pressure we've exerted on them actually seems to have had some effect," said Hampstead Town Manager Ken Decker, chairman of the cable commission.

Adelphia Communications Corp., the No. 5 U.S. cable operator, won court approval yesterday for an asset auction to raise money for creditors seeking more than $3 trillion. Adelphia, which is based in Greenwood Village, Colo., plans to sell its assets in seven regional cable groups averaging about 750,000 subscribers each. Comcast Corp. and Time Warner Inc. have said they might make a joint bid for the assets, which have an estimated value of $17 billion to $20 billion. Carl Vogel, chief executive of Charter Communications Corp.

The heat generated by Adelphia Communication Corp.'s decision to air hard-core pornography apparently was too much for Southern California's largest cable operator. In a quick about-face, Adelphia has stopped offering customers the chance to buy triple-X programming after receiving tens of thousands of complaints from anti-porn activists and expressions of concern in investment circles that the hard-core fare could complicate the company's pending sale. "This has always been a political hot potato for cable operators because it's a high-margin business, but you can also drive away customers if you're not careful," said senior analyst Derek Baine of Kagan Research.

The myriad woes of cable TV operator Adelphia Communications Corp. continued to mount yesterday as its chief financial officer resigned, the company missed an interest payment and it disclosed more details of a sweeping internal probe into its financial dealings. Timothy J. Rigas' resignation as CFO came a day after his father, John J. Rigas, quit under pressure as head of the cable TV company he founded in 1952. The resignations came amid Adelphia's plunging stock price, deteriorating financial condition and a federal investigation into accounting and loan practices.

Adelphia Communications overstated both the number of its cable subscribers and its cash flow for 2001, people close to the company said yesterday. The number of cable subscribers has been overstated by at least 4.3 percent and perhaps as much as 10 percent, these people said, although the exact figure is still being determined. The company inflated its estimated $1.55 billion in 2001 cash flow by tens of millions of dollars and possibly by more, they said. The company also overstated its estimated 2001 cash flow - or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization - by tens of millions through a complex swap transaction on the purchase of digital set-top boxes from Motorola Inc. and Scientific Atlanta Inc., these people said.

Carroll County cable television customers will get a one-time rebate on their monthly bills - probably about $33 each - if a proposed $1 million settlement between Adelphia Communications Corp. and the Carroll Cable Regulatory Commission goes through, the commission's chairman said. The county group has been negotiating for years with the now-bankrupt cable company, which is being acquired by Comcast Corp., said Ken Decker, town manager of Hampstead and commission chairman since 2001. Last year, the commission threatened to go to court over unresolved issues in the franchise agreement.

Century boys basketball coach George Wunder knew it was only a matter of time before senior Bennett Foelber heated up from the field. Even Wunder, however, couldn't have envisioned his guard's recent torrid streak. Through the weekend, Foelber had averaged 27.3 points over his past three games - about 10 points over his previous scoring average. Included in the surge was a school-record 38-point effort against Thomas Johnson, in which he hit 16 of 31 shots from the field, including four three-pointers.

As part of an agreement signed yesterday that transfers Carroll County's cable franchise from the bankrupt Adelphia Communications Corp. to Comcast Corp., more than 30,000 local subscribers will receive about $33 in credit on their bills as early as next month, officials said. The credit is a disbursal of the county's $1 million settlement with Adelphia. "We are not creating revenue, but using this money to benefit those using the system," said Ted Zaleski, county director of management and budget.

NEW YORK -- Former Adelphia Communications Corp. operations chief Michael Rigas, whose father and brother were sentenced to prison for an accounting scandal that drove the company into bankruptcy, pleaded guilty yesterday to falsifying records. Rigas, 51, averted a retrial on 15 securities fraud charges by pleading guilty to a lesser count. He could received up to three years in prison. He admitted he falsely stated that he made a "reasonable inquiry" to verify that family members had supplied money to buy company stock in 1999.

Carroll County cable television customers will get a one-time rebate on their monthly bills - probably about $33 each - if a proposed $1 million settlement between Adelphia Communications Corp. and the Carroll Cable Regulatory Commission goes through, the commission's chairman said. The county group has been negotiating for years with the now-bankrupt cable company, which is being acquired by Comcast Corp., said Ken Decker, town manager of Hampstead and commission chairman since 2001. Last year, the commission threatened to go to court over unresolved issues in the franchise agreement.

Any company that broadcasts such shows as Jackass and Beavis and Butt-Head can't get overly worried about controversy. But Viacom - the corporate giant behind CBS, MTV, Nickelodeon and numerous other networks and media properties - might be taking its biggest TV programming gamble yet with Logo, the long-awaited gay cable channel. Today, the media giant will roll out the network in roughly 10 million U.S. homes, making it the first widely available, advertiser-supported channel for the community known by the acronym LGBT - lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender.

NEW YORK - Adelphia Communications Corp. founder John Rigas was sentenced yesterday to 15 years in prison and his son, Timothy, the firm's chief financial officer, was sentenced to a 20-year term for what the sentencing judge called "one of the largest frauds in corporate history," stealing some $100 million from the company for their personal use and deceiving investors. U.S. District Judge Leonard Sand noted that both men could have faced life in prison under federal sentencing guidelines, but said John Rigas' age and ill health warranted a lesser term.

NEW YORK -- Former Adelphia Communications Corp. operations chief Michael Rigas, whose father and brother were sentenced to prison for an accounting scandal that drove the company into bankruptcy, pleaded guilty yesterday to falsifying records. Rigas, 51, averted a retrial on 15 securities fraud charges by pleading guilty to a lesser count. He could received up to three years in prison. He admitted he falsely stated that he made a "reasonable inquiry" to verify that family members had supplied money to buy company stock in 1999.

The accounting firm of Deloitte & Touche will pay $50 million to federal regulators to resolve civil and administrative proceedings against it, the firm announced yesterday. The civil charges brought against the firm were a result of its work at Adelphia Communications, the cable operator that Deloitte audited. The firm will pay $25 million to resolve a civil lawsuit filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday and another $25 million administrative penalty - the largest fine ever paid by an accounting firm.