General Instrument Invests in ACTV's "Digital ADCO"; Digital ADCO Offers An End-To-End Solution For Delivering Highly Targeted, Interactive Digital Television Advertising
HORSHAM, Pa. & NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 3, 1999--General Instrument Corporation (NYSE: GIC) and ACTV, Inc. (NASDAQ: IATV), today announced that General Instrument has made a $5 million investment in Digital ADCO, Inc., a subsidiary of ACTV, Inc., in exchange for 49% of Digital ADCO common stock. ACTV will manage the new company and own 51% of Digital ADCO common stock.
The Digital ADCO service is founded on an array of proprietary and patented system technologies, including General Instrument's digital interactive platform and ACTV's patented "Individualized Television" and "Individualized Advertising" software, designed to target TV advertising to individual consumer households with digital accuracy in a multiple platform environment. This service offering for advertising via digital television will vastly improve the effectiveness of TV advertising for marketers, while making TV commercials more relevant to individual consumer households. The company expects to generate revenue from the sale of its proprietary equipment, licensing of its patented software, ongoing technical support and system upgrades, and encoding services that will enable the company to track advertising delivery with unparalleled accuracy.
Digital ADCO offers a comprehensive, end-to-end solution for delivering highly targeted, addressable interactive advertising via digital cable, digital satellite, and digital broadcast television. In addition, Digital ADCO offers e-commerce and interactive advertising opportunities, such as couponing and permission-based marketing initiatives. The company will provide services to MSOs, cable and satellite system providers, advertising interconnects, broadcast and cable television networks and programmers, and leading consumer product advertisers, advertising agencies, and media buyers.
The company will initially be capable of delivering national, regional, and local TV advertising to consumers whose digital TV programming is accessed via digital set-top terminals. To date, GI has shipped over five million interactive digital cable set-top terminals to over 100 broadband network operators. Working with these 100 MSOs, GI has deployed over 950 interactive digital systems passing over 41 million households. This digital footprint represents a significant opportunity for Digital ADCO. Full-scale implementation is expected to begin in the second half of 2000.
Digital ADCO is in discussions with SeaChange International, Inc. and nCUBE (SkyConnect), leaders in television advertising insertion technology, to enable cable operators to deliver highly targeted, interactive TV ads on a local basis via cable systems across the country. Local cable television advertising is a $2 billion business in the U.S.
"Led by two of the pioneers in digital television, this new venture provides a forward-thinking, advertiser-friendly solution for delivering targeted commercials via digital cable. We believe it offers tremendous value to MSOs and local cable operators across the country," said Michael J. Pohl, president, nCube. "As an integrated part of our ad insertion system, we are eager to begin working with Digital ADCO to make the advent of digital cable a profitable experience for cable operators and advertisers, and to help make the television experience more enjoyable and relevant for subscribers."
"By leveraging the intellectual property held by both GI and ACTV, television advertisers can now target commercials for their products and services to the appropriate consumer audiences, providing unmatched value and accountability for their media dollars," said Richard Smith, Executive Vice President, General Instrument. "At the same time, Digital ADCO improves the consumer experience by cutting through the plethora of television advertising to deliver commercials that make sense for viewers based on individual household preferences."
David Reese, President and Chief Operating Officer of ACTV, Inc., said, "While providing incredible value to marketers, the ability to also implement digital advertising insertion on a local and regional headend basis provides MSOs, cable operators, broadcasters and other system operators with incremental revenue from the same inventory of ad avails and supplemental revenue from each interactive digital commercial. Working with industry leaders, such as SeaChange and nCUBE, we expect to be the leading end-to-end solution for advertising in a digital TV environment."
About ACTV, Inc.
ACTV has pioneered TV-Internet convergence programming with its patented HyperTV(R) software solution. The company is also a leader in interactive digital television with its proprietary "Individualized Television" and "Individualized Advertising" software and programming capabilities.
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. 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. "Individualized Television" can enhance a variety of television genres, including sporting events, music programming, news, game shows, educational children's programming, advertising ("Individualized Advertising"), and others.
ACTV has relationships with many of the dominant players in the Internet, television and digital technology fields, including key strategic investments from Liberty Digital, Inc. (NASDAQ: LDIG) and General Instrument Corporation. HyperTV Networks, ACTV Entertainment and Digital ADCO are subsidiaries of ACTV, Inc. Visit ACTV's Web site at actv.com.
About General Instrument
General Instrument is a leading worldwide provider of integrated and interactive broadband access solutions, teaming with its business partners to lead the convergence of the Internet, telecommunications and video entertainment industries.
Visit General Instrument at our Web Site -- www.gi.com.
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CONTACT: Media Contacts: Sharon Corbitt
Director of Communications
General Instrument
215-323-1873
scorbitt@gi.com
-or- Mike Rosen
Bratskeir & Company (for ACTV) 212-679-2233 ext. 213
mrosen@bratskeir.com
Contact:
Dario Santana
VP, Investor Relations
General Instrument
215-323-1213
dsantana@gi.com |
