Patrick Dolan Acquires Majority Stake in Newsday From Altice

(Bloomberg) -- An entity led by Patrick Dolan, whose family owned Newsday for almost a decade, acquired a 75 percent stake in the daily Long Island newspaper from Altice USA, the cable company that inherited the publication with its purchase of Cablevision Systems Corp.

Altice will keep a 25 percent interest in Newsday Media Group, which also owns the free newspaper amNewYork, according to a statement Thursday. Terms weren't given.

The agreement keeps the newspaper in the hands of a New York media family whose interests also include AMC Networks Inc., Madison Square Garden Co. and MSG Networks Inc. Dolan, president of News 12 Networks, will become president and majority owner of Newsday Media Group. His father, former Cablevision Chairman Charles Dolan, will hold a small financial interest in the group and serve on its board.

As part of the agreement, Altice USA's Optimum Online customers will continue
to receive access to Newsday.com and the Newsday mobile apps. Newsday will also continue to collaborate with Altice's News 12 Networks.

Bethpage, New York-based Cablevision purchased Newsday from Tribune Co. in July 2008 for $650 million. Last month, Altice won approval from New York regulators for its $17.7 billion takeover of Cablevision, which was controlled by the Dolan family. Altice, controlled by billionaire Patrick Drahi, recently formed a new entity called Altice USA to focus on its growing U.S. business after it acquired Cablevision and another cable company, Suddenlink Communications.

To contact the reporter on this story: Gerry Smith in New York at gsmith233@bloomberg.net. To contact the editors responsible for this story: Crayton Harrison at tharrison5@bloomberg.net, Rob Golum