NEW YORK, Aug. 7, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- A class action Complaint has been filed in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, civil action number 02 cv 6004, on behalf of all persons or entities who purchased or otherwise acquired securities of Charter Communications, Inc. ("Charter" or the "Company") (Nasdaq:CHTR) between November 9, 1999 and July 17, 2002, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"). Charter Communications, Inc., Carl E. Vogel, and Kent Kalkwarf, are named as defendants in the Complaint.
To discuss this action, this announcement, or your rights or interests, please contact plaintiff's counsel, Eric J. Belfi or Sharon Lee, Rabin & Peckel LLP, 275 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016, by telephone at (800) 497-8076 or (212) 682-1818, by facsimile at (212) 682-1892, or by e-mail at email@rabinlaw.com.
The Complaint charges Charter and certain of its officers and directors with violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Among other things, plaintiff claims that defendants' material omissions and the dissemination of materially false and misleading statements regarding the nature of Charter's revenue and earnings caused Charter's stock price to become artificially inflated, inflicting damages on investors. The Complaint alleges that defendants overstated Charter's revenue, failed to appropriately account for installation costs and artificially inflated the number of subscribers for the Company's basic cable services. On July 18, 2002, when a Merrill Lynch analyst expressed concerns about potentially misleading accounting practices, Charter's stock fell more than 13%. Additionally, a subsequent article in Forbes discusses a Credit Suisse First Boston report that further amplifies these concerns and describes how Charter handles the impact of "churn" -- labor and advertising costs -- on the Company's balance sheet, by improperly capitalizing approximately 30% of its installation labor costs over an extended time period.
Plaintiff is represented by the law firm of Rabin & Peckel LLP. Rabin & Peckel LLP and its predecessor firms have devoted its practice to shareholder class actions and complex commercial litigation for more than thirty years and have recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for shareholders in class actions throughout the United States. You can learn more information about Rabin & Peckel LLP at www.rabinlaw.com.
If you purchased Charter securities during the Class Period described above, you may, no later than September 30, 2002, move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff. To serve as lead plaintiff, however, you must meet certain legal requirements. You can join this action as a lead plaintiff online at www.rabinlaw.com. Contact plaintiffs' counsel Eric J. Belfi or Sharon Lee of Rabin & Peckel LLP to further discuss this action, this announcement, or your rights or interests.
More information on this and other class actions can be found on the Class Action Newsline at http://www.primezone.com/ca.