Cable company to offer Net service by upgrading Newton Falls system

A cable company serving Newton Falls plans to upgrade its system in the next two weeks so it can provide high-speed Internet service.
Cebridge Communications has been looking to improve services since taking over cable systems that used to be operated by Classic Communications, said Pete Abel, a spokesman for St. Louis-based Cebridge.
Cebridge serves about 1,100 customers in the Newton Falls area.
Cebridge operates other systems in the area, but none of them are scheduled for equipment upgrades. These systems are in Berlin Center, Coitsville, Vernon and Kinsman.
Abel said, however, that Cebridge has been working on improving customer service in all areas.
Jerald Kent, former chief executive of Charter Communications, formed a management team that bought the assets of Classic last year while it was operating under bankruptcy court protection.
After the company emerged from bankruptcy, the name was changed to Cebridge.
Cebridge recently has been buying cable systems, mostly in rural areas. It operates 700 systems in 23 states.
Abel said Kent thinks he can create a successful company that serves rural areas and smaller communities that have been ignored by large cable companies.
Other companies have failed in similar attempts, but Kent thinks he can succeed because purchase prices for rural systems are more reasonable and equipment costs have fallen, Abel said.