PE deals make inroads to cable companies

-Global private equity volume for the first half of this year hit a record $630.9 billion, up 37% from a record $459.2 billion during the first half of 2006, according to researcher Dealogic. -Carlyle's bid for British cable company Virgin Media is a sign investment dollars are clamoring to push into global cable market. -Who's likely to be next? Investment bankers say there are several targets attracting attention in the European cable TV market. Malone's Liberty Global (LBTYA) is the largest of the lot, with 13 million video subscribers. -The cable market outside of the U.S. and Europe is in its nascent stages. The greatest opportunity for cable acquisitions in Asia may exist in the highly fragmented Indian market. -There's quite a bit of room for consolidation in the U.S. market as well. Insight Communications, which has 1.4 million subscribers in four Midwestern states, has put itself on the block.