mers. Keeping it together In February 2004, Cox agreed to a multi-year deal with sports network ESPN that will keep ESPN's channels on Cox systems. The agreement finally put to rest a very public battle between the two sides. The acrimony first bubbled up when Cox claimed that ESPN was boosting the fee Cox was required to pay for the right to carry the sports network's programming by as much as 20 percent over the previous year's fee. The tensions increased when ESPN denied that the rate increases were as high as Cox claimed and said that the rates Cox passes on to its subscribers have more to do with its own overhead expenses than programming costs. Cox's then-existing contract with ESPN was to have expired in the spring of 2004, but under the new deal, the Walt Disney-owned ESPN and ESPN2 will stay on Cox's expanded basic cable tier of channels. Originally, Cox wanted to either pay a lower fee for the rights to ESPN or have the right to put the networks on a premium pay tier, where it could then charge customers a higher fee for access to the channels. VAULT CAREER LIBRARY 2005 Vault Inc. Vault Guide to the Top Telecom Employers Cox Communications Inc. Although all the terms of the deal weren't released, it seems that the deal also allows Cox to launch the Spanish-language service ESPN Deportes in markets where it offers a Spanish-language service, and continues the Cox distribution of ESPNEWS, ESPN Classic and ESPN HD. In a related sports programming vein, in December 2003, Cox inked a six-year deal with Fox Sports Net's regional networks that reportedly called for a lower fee to the to Fox owner, News Corp., than Fox had originally demanded. New deal in the works? Tongues began to wag in March 2004 when word leaked out that Cox was interested in acquiring some or all of the assets of Adelphia Communications, the beleaguered cable TV system operator. Adelphia founder John Rigas and his two sons are currently on trial on conspiracy and fraud charges, accused of taking company assets and money for personal use. 