RCN announced today that it sold its San Francisco cable system to Astound Broadband, as part of the company's strategic plan to focus on its Northeast and Chicago properties.

Under a definitive agreement, Astound will pay $45 million in cash or $2500 for each of RCN's 18,000 customers in San Francisco. Astound currently serves about 55,000 customers in the California communities of Walnut Creek and Concord, but will use RCN's facilities to moves its Triple Play services into San Francisco.

"This transaction is another key strategic milestone for RCN,” said Peter D. Aquino, President and Chief Executive Officer of RCN, in a prepared statement. “By divesting San Francisco, our primary property on the west coast, we can now focus our financial and operational resources fully on our core Northeast Corridor and Chicago region. We articulated this as a main objective early on, and continue to execute toward our operational and strategic initiatives.”