Charter, Bright House Networks say merger on track

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Charter, the No. 4 U.S. cable operator, clinched the deal with Bright House in March contingent on completion of Comcast Corp's (CMCSA.O) $45.2 billion merger with Time Warner Cable Inc (TWC.N).

Charter had previously lost out to Comcast in a bid to acquire Time Warner Cable.

Comcast eventually walked away from the Time Warner Cable deal last month because of antitrust hurdles.

The collapse of the deal opens the door for other possible offers for Time Warner Cable, which has been rapidly consolidating in the face of competition from satellite TV and Web-based services.

Reuters had reported this month that Bright House, the sixth largest U.S. cable operator, is preparing to abandon a $10.4 billion deal to be acquired by Charter.

Charter and Advance Newhouse have extended their "good faith" negotiating period for an additional 30 days under the previously announced deal, the companies said on Monday.

(Reporting by Devika Krishna Kumar and Sai Sachin R in Bengaluru; Editing by Don Sebastian)