So far this is all the info I can get: I will look for more.
NEW YORK--June 2, 1998-- The Associated Press will acquire Worldwide
Television News, a global news agency that is 80 percent owned by ABC News.
AP announced Tuesday that it will purchase ABC's interest in WTN and 10 percent
stakes owned by Nine Network Australia and ITN London. Terms were not
disclosed. News reports prior to the deal had Disney setting a price tag on its WTN
stake of at least $50 million.
In addition, ABC News will enter into a multi-year deal with APTV, AP's international
video news agency, for subscription to its service, and ABC's news service, NewsOne,
will provide material to APTV.
Major television news networks subscribe to the large global news agencies, using their
footage of international news events for their broadcasts.
Competition between television news agencies has been intense since AP launched its
TV news agency in 1994, going head-to-head with WTN and Reuters Group Plc's
Reuters Television.
A Reuters spokesman in New York Tuesday confirmed the international news and
information group had been been in talks to acquire WTN.
An AP spokeswoman declined to comment on earlier reports that speculated AP
would have to make substantial job cuts because of the overlap between APTV and
WTN.
Headquartered in London, APTV operates a network of 80 bureaus and serves more
than 200 broadcasters.
ABC, owned by Walt Disney Co., bought control of WTN after holding a minority
ownership stake in the company since 1982. WTN has offices in 102 cities.
Formed in 1848, The Associated Press is the world's oldest and largest news agency,
serving more than 15,000 news organizations worldwide with news, photos, graphics,
audio and video. APTV was formed in 1994.
PanAmSat's PAS-5 Satellite Enables Associated Press TV to Link News
Bureaus in Europe and the Americas
GREENWICH, Conn., May 21, 1997 -- PanAmSat Corporation (NASDAQ:
SPOTD) announced today that Associated Press Television (APTV), a worldwide
news cooperative, will tap into PanAmSat's upcoming PAS-5 Atlantic Ocean Region
satellite to expand its news gathering and news distribution operations within and
between the Americas and Europe. PAS-5's extensive Pan-American coverage, and its
single-beam coverage of the Americas and Europe, will enable APTV to link together
its bureaus throughout the Americas and in London using just one satellite.
"PAS-5's power and broad coverage are ideal for APTV's diverse distribution and
contribution needs. APTV will have the ability to transmit breaking news from the field
using small, portable antennas and also to use small antennas for direct signal
reception," said Eddy Frankland, PanAmSat's managing director, Europe. "PAS-5's
transatlantic connectivity offers a highly efficient and flexible transmission medium for
APTV's dynamic requirements."
APTV will use a total of 18 Megahertz on PAS-5's C-band Americas beam, which
provides simultaneous coverage of Latin America, the United States and Canada, as
well as direct access to Europe. The capacity will be split to create an 8 Megabits per
second (Mbps) digital video channel from APTV's London headquarters to client
broadcasters throughout the Americas, and another 8 Mbps digital video channel for
contribution of material back to London.
APTV, with 150 customers, was launched in November 1994 as the video news arm
of The Associated Press (AP). It has established itself as an aggressive news gathering
service with high quality production standards. The Associated Press is the world's
oldest and largest news gathering organization with 143 U.S. bureaus and 93 others
worldwide. APTV is part of AP's overall strategic plan to provide the world's media
with a comprehensive array of news gathering services. AP now supplies video,
television graphics, text, audio, photos and computer software.
PAS-5 will be the first Hughes HS 601 HP model satellite in PanAmSat's fleet and will
contain 24 C-band and 24 Ku-band transponders. The satellite will provide
simultaneous C-band coverage of the Americas and Europe, allowing programmers
and other customers to create a comprehensive Pan-American and transatlantic link
using one satellite. In addition, PAS-5 will offer connectivity to the Asia-Pacific Region
via PanAmSat's teleport in Napa, California. PAS-5 is scheduled for launch on the
Proton rocket in July 1997.
PAS-5 also will serve as the Mexico direct-to-home (DTH) television platform for the
Sky Entertainment Services brand of DTH service offered by the alliance of The News
Corporation, Grupo Televisa and Tele-Communications International, Inc. |
