MONROE – Rocco Commisso, founder, chairman, and CEO of Orange County headquartered Mediacom Communications Corporation, has died. He was 76.
Mediacom announced Commisso’s passing on its website. He was one of the most successful Italian immigrant entrepreneurs in the country’s history. A member of the prestigious Forbes 400, Commisso’s career in the cable television industry spanned nearly 50 years.
“Rocco’s incredible contributions to the Hudson Valley business community and his visionary leadership at Mediacom have left a lasting legacy,” said Mike Oates, president and CEO of the Hudson Valley Economic Development Corporation. “His passion for innovation, commitment to job creation, and unwavering support for regional economic development strengthened this community in countless ways. We honor his memory and the remarkable impact he had on our region and the business world.”
Commisso founded Mediacom in 1995 to acquire and reinvigorate cable systems in the nation’s underserved smaller communities. In 2000, he directed a successful initial public offering for Mediacom, paving the way for the company’s dramatic growth into the nation’s 5th largest cable television provider, offering high-speed data, video, phone, and mobile services to over 3 million households and businesses in 22 states. He took the company private in 2011, and now Mediacom is wholly owned by the Commisso family.
Before starting Medicom, Commisso spent a decade in the financial community. He also served as executive vice president, chief financial officer, and director of Cablevision Industries Corporation. During his tenure, privately-held Cablevision Industries grew from the 25th to the 8th largest cable company in the nation, serving 1.3 million customers at the time of its merger with Time Warner.
Commisso also owned the Italian soccer club Fiorentina. Born in Calabria, Italy, Commisso immigrated to the U.S. at the age of 12. He graduated from Mount Saint Michael Academy in the Bronx in 1967. He attended Columbia University on a full undergraduate scholarship, where he earned both a BS degree in industrial engineering and an MBA degree from the Graduate Business School.
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