Brexit is a big inflection point for the cable industry – not something Liberty Global supported but a decision the company respects and will work with. That was the verdict from Mike Fries, President & CEO at the pan-European cable operator, which includes Virgin Media in the UK. Speaking at Cable Congress in Warsaw on Tuesday, he said: “For us, it is business as usual, selling services and building networks and nothing changes overnight.
“It will take time to build the political process and get the priorities straight but we can expect that anticipation and anxiety could result in some disruption to the economy, so we would be concerned about recession and regulatory change, but meantime we are focusing on our business. There are probably one or two chapters of this story to unfold.”
Fries was on stage with Josh Sapan, President & CEO at AMC Networks, both being interviewed by David Bond, European Media Correspondent for the Financial Times. Sapan was more relaxed about the UK’s referendum result. “It does seem to change a great constant in our business, but I would focus on the delivery of what people really want, and try to move beyond what is occurring and what appears to be threatening.”
Bond asked if everyone needs to calm down and be optimistic about the outcome. “Eventually,” Fries replied. He said the stock market and currency reactions were typical for big change and we need to wait for everything to settle. “We are relaxed and consumers should stay relaxed,” he suggested.
Photo: Mike Fries (right) being interviewed by David Bond of the Financial Times at Cable Congress 2016
