Cincinnati Bell Inc’s Information Systems unit has agreed to buy Information Systems Development Partnership, a provider of billing and customer management systems to the cable television industry. The former claimed itself to be the leading provider of customer care and billing systems to cellular and other wireless communications companies. Information Systems Development is a privately-held partnership of Cox Communications Inc, Comcast Corp and Information Systems Development’s senior management. It serves nearly 7m homes and is the third largest cable billing firm in the US. The parties have signed a definitive purchase agreement and expect to complete the transaction near the end of this year; No details of the value and terms of the deal as yet. Cincinnati Bell recently began beta testing a Unix-based client-server customer care and billing system known as Precedent 2000. Information Systems Development’s newest system, CableMaster 2000, is based on relational database technology, enabling cable company employees in different locations to see and retrieve the same information. Cincinnati Bell Information Systems will market it worldwide and will support current clients.
