Tivio up on investment from AOL
TiVo Soars After Broadening Pact With AOL
By Justin Dini
TheStreet.com/NYTimes.com Staff Reporter
6/14/00 10:54 AM ET
The race to deliver interactive television to American consumers appears to be heating up, with three separate announcements this week by big players who are trying to get a leg up in the space.
America Online (AOL:NYSE - news - boards) and video-on-demand company TiVo (TIVO:Nasdaq - news - boards) said Wednesday that they are expanding their alliance in an agreement that includes a $200 million investment in TiVo by the Web giant.
Under the terms of the new three-year agreement, AOL and Sunnyvale, Calif.-based TiVo will develop a co-branded AOLTV set-top box that will combine TiVo's personal recording software -- which allows programming to be delivered to a hard drive, recorded and then viewed at the consumer's convenience -- with AOLTV's interactive television offerings. The two companies hope to deliver the set-top box by early next year.
The agreement marks the expansion of an alliance first announced in August.
With its investment in TiVo, Dulles, Va.-based AOL will become the company's single largest shareholder. However, the size of the stake could not immediately be determined.
TiVo shares rocketed on the news, jumping 12 15/16, or 60%, to 34 1/2 in heavy morning trading. AOL inched up 7/8, or 2%, to 52 1/2. |
