Among AT&T's New Moves: Cable TV Swap With Charter.(A)(Internet & Technology)

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (Reuters) - AT&T Broadband, the No. 1 U.S. cable television company, said on Wednesday it will swap cable TV systems with Charter Communications Inc. in a $1.79 billion deal designed to cut its $46 billion debt load and cluster its cable services in larger markets.

Under the agreement, AT&T Broadband will get two cable systems valued at $249 million and serving 62,000 customers in Miami Beach and Sebastian, Fla. It willalso re

ceive $1.04 billion in cash and $500 million in Charter stock.

Charter, meanwhile, will get AT&T cable systems serving about 574,000 customersin the St. Louis area and parts of Alabama, Nevada and California. The St. Louis company, which is controlled by Microsoft Corp. co-founder Paul Allen, will see a net gain of about 512,000 customers.

The swaps are expected to close in the second or third quarter, pending certainclosing conditions and regulatory review.

AT&T and Charter in July scrapped a plan to swap cable systems in areas such asSt. Louis and Fort Worth, Texas, because they ...