The economy is in the toilet, the credit markets are frozen, and the consumer is pinched, but don't tell that to James Dolan. His company, Cablevision, is on a roll.

The New York area cable company, which also owns assets including Madison Square Garden, the New York Knicks, and the recently purchased Long Island-based Newsday Media Group, announced plans to boost shareholder value by establishing a dividend, buying back stock, or spinning off business units.

No matter that chief executive Dolan already said as much during a quarterly conference call late last week. Today's press release made it official, and Cablevision's shares are up more than 6 percent.

The news comes on the heels of a favorable court ruling yesterday that could let Cablevision customers use a remote digital video recording system to tape television shows without using a set-top box. Such a recording device would dramatically increase the number of households that could fast-forward through television commercials.

The Motion Picture Association argued that the remote system amounted to unauthorized re-broadcasting of its shows. It won an earlier legal battle, which was overturned yesterday by the U.S. District Court in Manhattan.

During the earnings call on Friday, after Cablevision reported better than expected second-quarter profit, Dolan said its stock was undervalued. Dolan, whose family controls Cablevision as its largest shareholder, declined to provide details but said the company would explore ways to boost shareholder value.

"We have a strong desire to close the value gap between our operating performance and the market value of our debt and stock," Dolan said. "We recognize that current capital market conditions may contribute significantly to this value gap. We are considering and actively exploring alternatives that may close this gap and want to assure our investors that we will be open to listening to their thoughts."

Today's announcement doesn't give any more information, but merely talking about it again is pleasing shareholders. Cablevision shares rose nearly 5 percent last Friday, and are soaring again today.

One option might be to spin its valuable cable franchise off or sell its cable networks, which include IFC and AMC. The latter is currently basking in the success of its original program Mad Men.

But certain spinoffs might crimp Dolan's style, as Cablevision has used its lucrative cable business to fund unrelated acquisitions, a move that some analysts have questioned. In July, it closed its $650 million purchase of the struggling newspaper publisher Newsday.

Last year, Dolan offered to take the company private at $36.26 per share, but its shareholders rejected the offer. Today its shares trade for $27.65.