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Thursday November 4, 5:59 am Eastern Time
Company Press Release
Viewer's Choice, ACTV & Liberty Digital Join Forces
to Revolutionize Pay-Per-View Programming
Groundbreaking Alliance to Bring Powerful Interactivity to Marquee
Pay-Per-View Television Events
NEW YORK & LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 4, 1999-- Viewer's Choice L.L.C., America's leading
pay-per-view television network which will become iN DEMAND on January 1, 2000, ACTV, Inc. (NASDAQ: IATV -
news), a leader in interactive digital television and pioneer of TV-Internet convergence programming, and Liberty Digital, Inc.
(NASDAQ: LDIG - news), a diversified new media company with investments in Internet content and infrastructure and
interactive television, today announced they are joining forces to create a powerful new cable and satellite television
pay-per-view programming venture.
The three companies have agreed to a long-term alliance to license and produce marquee pay-per-view sports programming
and other events of national significance, and to distribute them nationwide utilizing ACTV's patented ``Individualized
Television' software and Viewer's Choice programming and marketing capabilities. Viewer's Choice will be the exclusive
distributor of these events.
Using a standard digital set-top box and remote control, ACTV enables viewers to customize their viewing experience by
seamlessly switching among multiple, real-time feeds of video, audio and data originating from the event venue. Sports viewers,
for example, will be able to access isolated camera angles, in-depth statistics, instant replay on-demand, and ``always on'
video highlights, among many other options, all at the touch of a button on their remote control. In addition to sporting events,
``Individualized Television' can enhance a variety of television genres, including music programming, news, game shows,
educational children's programming, advertising, and others.
Mindy S. Herman, President and CEO of Viewer's Choice, said: ``Viewer's Choice is proud to partner with ACTV and
Liberty Digital to deliver this new way of watching major pay-per-view events to our affiliates' subscribers. We believe there
will be strong demand to watch these events in a pay-per-view environment, and we are confident customer acceptance of this
new way of customizing their television programming will grow rapidly. It will turbo-charge the ordinary remote control and give
our customers a fun, intuitive and empowering new viewership tool. Once you've seen a Championship boxing match, the
Olympics, a big NBA showdown, a major college basketball or football rivalry, or a headliner concert this way on Viewer's
Choice, you'll never go back to old-fashioned, passive viewership.'
``This is a further illustration of Liberty Digital's growing strategic relationship with ACTV, and we are very pleased to be joined
by Viewer's Choice in launching this innovative business. We think it will take pay-per-view to a new level of customer interest
and commercial success. Matching ACTV's exciting technology to the huge customer base and promotional expertise of
Viewer's Choice is a potent combination that will be a nice fit with our portfolio of interactive investments,' said Lee Masters,
President and CEO of Liberty Digital.
``The ACTV functionality will give millions of pay-per-view purchasers a fun, exciting and personalized way to experience
major events with more relevant content and more complete context. It gives each viewer the power to produce and customize
the event, just as if that viewer were sitting in the director's chair in the production control room,' said David Reese, President
of ACTV, Inc.
The new alliance is founded on a long-term agreement between the parties, who plan to produce and distribute a minimum of
four marquee events each year, beginning early next year depending on the licensing of suitable initial events. The scheduled
events will be available for viewers to purchase and watch, as long as they have digital cable or satellite receivers that support
ACTV's ``Individualized Television' technology. ACTV's ``Individualized Television' programming capabilities are already
accessible in digital set-top terminals manufactured by General Instrument Corporation (NYSE: GIC - news), and are currently
being integrated into digital set-tops manufactured by Scientific-Atlanta (NYSE: SFA - news) and Pioneer Digital
Technologies.
About Viewer's Choice L.L.C.
Viewer's Choice, which will become iN DEMAND on January 1, 2000, is the nation's leading pay-per-view network, offering
titles from all the major Hollywood and independent studios, plus sports and entertainment events through its 35 channel digital
pay-per-view multiplex service. Viewer's Choice serves over 1,700 affiliated systems with approximately 27 million
addressable households and 112 million channel subscribers nationwide. The company's five shareholders include AT&T / TCI
Communications, Inc., Time Warner Entertainment - Advance/Newhouse Partnership, Comcast Programming Ventures, Inc.,
MediaOne of Delaware, Inc., and Cox Communications Holdings, Inc. Further information about the company can be found
on the Internet at ppv.com.
About ACTV, Inc.
ACTV, Inc., is a leader in interactive digital television with its proprietary ``Individualized Television' and ``Individualized
Advertising' software and programming capabilities. The company has also pioneered TV-Internet convergence programming
with its patented HyperTV© software solution.
ACTV's proprietary ``Individualized Television' software remembers viewer commands and responses to on-screen prompts,
enabling an unlimited number of viewers to, literally, call their own shots and individually-tailor the TV program they are
watching. ACTV's unique capabilities also make possible the delivery of highly-targeted addressable advertising, which enables
advertisers to more effectively deliver messages to the appropriate consumers, while making television advertising more relevant
to individual viewers.
ACTV offers superior, practical solutions for TV networks and programmers, advertisers, cable operators, educators, and
consumers seeking to capitalize on the emergence of digital television and the broadband delivery infrastructure. The company
has relationships with many of the dominant players in the Internet, television and digital technology fields, including key
strategic investments from Liberty Digital and General Instrument Corporation. ACTV Entertainment and HyperTV Networks,
Inc., are subsidiaries of ACTV, Inc. Visit ACTV's Web site at actv.com.
About Liberty Digital, Inc.
Liberty Digital, Inc. is a diversified new media company with investments in Internet content and infrastructure and interactive
television businesses, as well as music services delivered to commercial and residential customers via cable, satellite, the
Internet and other platforms. Liberty Digital holds an approximate 12% equity interest in ACTV, Inc. Exercise of additional
warrants would bring Liberty Digital's stake in ACTV, Inc. to approximately 25%. Liberty Digital's Series A Common Stock is
traded on the National Market tier of The NASDAQ Stock Market under the symbol LDIG. |
