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To: ed doell who wrote (5010)	6/17/1999 7:09:00 AM
From: Steve Hausser	Respond to of 13157

Industry related: Allen Invests in Oxygen, CBS in Web Site, Bolstering Ties Between TV and Internet By KARA SWISHER Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL Cable and broadcast continued to converge with the Internet Wednesday, with the announcement of two deals. Billionaire Paul Allen made a $100 million investment in Oxygen Media Inc., an Internet and cable venture aimed at women, and CBS Corp. announced it will acquire a 30% stake in ThirdAge Media Inc., a Web site for older adults, for $49 million in ads and $5 million in cash. Mr. Allen's investment arm, Vulcan Ventures Inc., joins a roster of powerful investors in the New York-based Oxygen Media, which is headed by well-known media executive Geraldine Laybourne. America Online Inc., TV host Oprah Winfrey and Walt Disney Co.'s ABC Inc. TV unit already have lined up behind the venture. As part of the deal, Oxygen's cable programming -- which is set to debut early next year -- also will be carried by Mr. Allen's fast-growing Charter Communications Inc., which owns cable systems that reach nearly six million viewers. Mr. Allen's investment chief, Bill Savoy, said Vulcan has been interested in investing with Ms. Laybourne since she announced her venture last fall. "Geraldine understands the opportunity to tightly lace together Internet and cable content," Mr. Savoy said. "We consider this critical to the future and we are anxious to offer these kind of services to our customers." CBS's investment in San Francsico-based ThirdAge Media is part of a larger effort by the television giant to assemble a variety of Internet holdings. It has large stakes in financial Web site Marketwatch.com and the sports-oriented Sportsline.com[part of Liberty Digital's portfolio] -- and plans to eventually spin them off into a separate public company that will be closely linked to its well-known brand name. CBS, which said it plans to promote ThirdAge material over its media properties, including its radio stations, also will get warrants for 5% more of the company and get two seats on its board. The two deals are part of a wider trend of media and online companies seeking to drive audiences to their content offerings on a variety of platforms. Walt Disney, for example, also owns a large stake in Infoseek Corp. and is close to an agreement to buy a controlling interest in the Web portal -- an effort to better integrate it with its other Web, television and cable properties. And General Electric Corp.'s NBC television unit recently struck a deal to combine its Internet assets with Web sites Xoom.com Inc. and Snap.com into a new entity called NBCi that will be heavily promoted on the network. The investments also are a sign that media companies are focusing more intently on targeting "niche" audiences, such as women and aging baby boomers, who with the advent of the Internet are easier to find as they sort themselves into communities of common interest. The women's sector, for example, has gotten increasingly competitive since Ms. Laybourne left a high-ranking post at Disney and announced her intention to start a media company focused on programming for women. With involvement from celebrities such as Ms. Winfrey and actress Candice Bergen, who will do a show for the cable channel, Oxygen has received a lot of attention. But powerful competitors also are joining the fray, including an announcement earlier this week that Time Warner Inc. and Advance Publications Inc., which owns magazine concern Conde Nast Publications Inc., would combine to create a new cable channel and Web company aimed at women. In addition, Hearst Corp. -- which already owns the popular Lifetime women's television channel in a joint venture with Disney -- also has a large stake in the Web site Women.com, which is set to go public soon. Finally, NBC has its own stake in the leading women-oriented Web site called iVillage.com[part of Liberty Digital's portfolio], which recently completed an IPO. Ms. Laybourne said Mr. Allen's large investment -- Oxygen's biggest thus far, and one that will buy a large but undisclosed minority stake -- and the impact of getting distribution on his cable holdings make for a powerful combination. "For us to have Paul Allen as an investor is a tremendous vote of confidence," Ms. Laybourne said Wednesday. "We have big ideas and lofty goals." Ms. Laybourne, who is credited with creating the popular cable channel Nickelodeon, is getting a lot of help from big names. AOL is contributing online programming assets and distribution, while Ms. Winfrey's Harpo Entertainment Group is adding more TV, Web programming and cash. Successful TV producer Carsey-Werner-Mandabach also is working on creating the cable channel. Along with Mr. Allen's cable systems, Oxygen also has gotten carriage for its TV station from AT&T Corp.'s Tele-Communications Inc. and MediaOne Group Inc. cable units. She said Mr. Allen's money will be used to expand its Web and cable assets, and possibly to buy some technology needed for the service.