CFO: Charter Has Won Over $700M in Broadband Funding Since RDOF

Charter has now won $700 million in broadband funding since its big win in the 2018 Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) auction, said Jessica Fischer, the company’s chief financial officer. The funding will go toward buildouts to 300,000 locations, Fischer said. The gross cost of the buildouts for which Charter has won funding will be $1.7 billion, which suggests that Charter will contribute matching funds of about $1 billion for the builds. The buildout cost per passing to Charter will be $3,200, Fischer said. The company completed 68,000 subsidized rural passings this quarter, she noted. Charter likely will be winning more funding moving forward, as many states have American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding they have not yet awarded, and as the states are expected to begin making awards in the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program in 2024.