Adelphia Scandal free essay sample

Adelphia was founded in 1952 by John Rigas and his brother Gus Rigas in Coudersport, Pennsylvania with the purchase of their first cable franchise for $300. After 20 years, the Rigas brothers incorporated their company under the name Adelphia which derived its name from a Greek word which means brothers, an apt corporate title for a business that would employ generations of the Rigas family. Adelphia was a cable television company and built its success on a strong commitment to customer care; and because of this commitment, a glorious growth spree would follow. By 1998, Adelphia passed the two million-customer milestone and served approximately 5.6 million cable television customers nationwide. The company made significant strides in product development and the implementation of fiber optic technology and expanded their home and business offerings to include digital cable, local and long distance telephone services, messaging, enhanced data, high-speed Internet and video services . John Rigas managed Adelphia from its corporate headquarters in Coudersport, PA. We will write a custom essay sample on Adelphia Scandal or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page His brother Gus sold his interest in Adelphia in 1983. And after some time, Johns sons Michael, Timothy and James, serve as executive vice presidents, directors and principal stockholders. John built Adelphia on a strong commitment to family, community, quality service and customer care which became the core values and culture of the company. The Evolution of Adelphia In August of 1986, Adelphia Communications went public. Its first three years were focused on generating revenue by increasing its customer base through mergers and acquisitions. Although the companys profitability had suffered as a result of the ambitious expansion, its revenue-generating capabilities had not. From the $30 million generated in sales during its first year, annual sales shot up to $131 million in 1988. Adelphia continued to make its presence known by making several important acquisitions of other cable systems such as the Suburban Buffalo System from Comax Telcom Corp., the South Dade System from Americable Associates, Ltd., New Castle System from Cablentertainment, Inc., and Jones Intercable which was the third largest cable system operator in New York during that time. Moreover, Adelphia entered into a partnership with unaffiliated parties to form Olympus Communications in southeast Florida which became a powerful money-making business as it served roughly 250,000 subscribers in West Palm Beach area. Adelphia was performing admirably and continued to expand by making other acquisitions and consolidation maneuvers through 1999 and 2000, bringing its subscriber base up to an impressive 5.5 million. Though the company was heavily indebted after the succession of major purchases of other cable companies, equipment, and infrastructures, analysts were looking favorably on Adelphia as late as January 2002, noting that the company was well positioned for acquisition or merger with another major cable company. The Discovery of the Fraud Oren Cohen, a high-yield-bond analyst for Merrill Lynch had followed Adelphia for a decade and thought there was something about the familys spending that didnt add up. Hed noticed that the Rigases were buying their own stock aggressively, but he couldnt figure out how they were paying for it. They didnt appear to have the cash themselves. John Rigas made $1.4 million in 2000. Michael, Tim, and James each took home $237,000. The Rigases didnt have any sources of income outside Adelphia. They never sold their stock, and it didnt pay a dividend. Cohen was pretty sure their private cable systems werent throwing off cash. But every time Cohen tried to get an explanation, Adelphia rebuffed him. On March 27, 2002, however, Adelphia officials disclosed $2.3 billion in previously unrecorded debt incurred through co-borrowings between Adelphia and other Rigas family entities under the umbrella of the familys private trust, Highland Holdings. Under these loan agreements, the Rigas entities were responsible for repaying the debt, but if they were unable to do so, Adelphia would be liable. Cohen was astounded to see the footnote disclosure and pressed Tim Rigas for details at the end of a conference call that day. Things in Coudersport quickly spun out of control as shareholders asked for clarity and transparency. The revelations and the investigation that followed sent the company spiraling deeper and deeper into a scandal that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) eventually called, one of the most extensive financial frauds ever to take place at a public company . The stock continued to fall and on May 15, 2002 John Rigas resigned as chairman and CEO.

Impearlism essays

Impearlism essays Prior to the arrival of the United States in China, most of the Chinese populations were farmers who farmed rice fields in the countryside. Production was good, children respected their elders, and the Chinese culture was maintained. But as the century passed, their native society was either destroyed or replaced. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the United States pursued an aggressive policy of expansionism, extending its political and economic influence around the globe. The U.S attempted to gain influence in China, but were not entirely successful. The purpose of this paper is to inform about imperialism and how the United States took correct action in becoming an imperialistic nation. During the actual century of Western Imperialism, the Chinese economy was crushed; but when the wars were over, a new and better economy had formed. The wars China fought with foreign countries were costly and left the Chinese government in dept, especially since nearly all the wars and battles, including the Boxer Rebellion, fought were defeats for the Chinese. Following each defeat, China was forced to sign an agreement, such as the Peace of Peking following the Boxer Rebellion, which usually led to the Chinese paying large sums of money to foreign countries, or China being cheated in trades. But as tension and conflicts diminished, the U.S style economy was brought to China, which was generally quite successful. China was introduced to a better banking system, an export market, trade with the rest of the world, and new innovations that allowed better production of crops and other things. So in spite of the economic disaster during the 19th century, Imperialism actually significan tly improved the Chinese economy. The social ideas and religious practices of the Chinese were replaced with Christianity, brought by the U.S. But despite these loses, we also did a favor or two for China. We introduced unseen innovations to the...