Altice Settlement with West Virginia to Cost $44 Million in Internet Upgrades

WASHINGTON, Jan. 16, 2025 – One of West Virginia’s largest Internet Service Providers will be required to spend millions to address complaints about the poor quality of service in parts of the state.

Altice, which operates under the Optimum brand in West Virginia, will be required to make a series of payments totaling over $44 million to help resolve service issues in the state, former Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, who became the state’s governor on Monday, announced Friday.

According to Morrisey, Altice will be required to spend $40 million in additional upgrades through 2027, provide $4 million in consumer credits ($25 per qualifying customer), and pay the state $500,000. If the company does not complete these requirements by the end of 2027, it will face additional fines of up to $40 million.

The settlement came in response to thousands of complaints filed by West Virginians that involved customer care, billing, and technician issues. By entering the settlement, Altice will not have to admit that these prior practices violated West Virginia’s Consumer Credit and Protection Act.

Altice plans to spend the money to upgrade internet infrastructure so that residential customers in the state will receive Internet download speeds of 1 Gig and upload speeds of 100 Mbps.

Morrisey said reaching the agreement with Altice was time-consuming.

“This is years in the making and a big win for the consumers in West Virginia. My office worked tirelessly to resolve this to ensure consumers in the state receive the service from providers they deserve," he said.