Time Warner adds to spinoff trend with plans for cable unit

0 Comments | USA TODAY, May, 2008 | by Matt Krantz

Time Warner investors Wednesday no longer had to wait around for the cable guy.

Ending months of speculation over how it would be done, Time Warner said it will spin off its cable unit, Time Warner Cable, by the end of 2008 in a series of transactions.

Specifically, Time Warner Cable, which is 85.2% owned by Time Warner, plans to pay a $10.9 billion dividend to its shareholders, including $9.3 billion to Time Warner. Time Warner will then give its ownership of Time Warner Cable to Time Warner shareholders.

The spinoff creates the largest entirely publicly held cable company, an anomaly in an industry dominated by companies controlled by families and insiders.

Time Warner's move is also the latest example of a growing number of companies...