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Microcap & Penny Stocks : MSU CORP-----MUCP -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: GO-MUCP who wrote (5840)	10/16/2000 6:45:11 AM
From: SharewatcherFromIreland	Respond to of 6180

It will be interesting to see the links come together between PowerChannel(LDDI), Granada Media and Web2U... which could possibly involve GM taking over MUCP, or a reverse of MUCP into LDDI or vice versa??? The longer the MUCP revival takes the nearer we get to understanding Evan's bigger picture???? XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Friday, 13 October, 2000, 09:33 GMT 10:33 UK Set-top rivals to battle it out over net TV How free is surfing the net via your TV? By BBC News Online internet reporter Mark Ward A new war for the hearts and wallets of web surfers is underway, and this time companies are trying to woo people by giving away set-top boxes. Two companies will soon be giving away set-top boxes that let consumers surf the net via their TV for only a nominal fee. One claims its gadgets will even play DVD movies and support high-speed net access once it becomes widely available. But consumers are being warned to be wary of the new services until the companies involved have proved they can meet demand and the technology has stabilised. Set-top set to This month two companies, Powerchannel and Freebox, are accepting applications for a free set-top box that will let people surf the net via their TV. At the moment details of both services are sketchy but they are expected to launch before Christmas to catch the prime shopping season. But before either one launches they face competition from established firms such as: * OnDigital and its On Net service which gives its subscribers access to the net via their TV for £5 per month on top of anything subscribers pay for digital channels. * Kingston Interactive TV which costs around £15 per month and uses high speed connections to connect subscribers to the net. * NTL offers an internet TV service for £20 per month - £10 for the rental of a set-top box and £10 of phone calls across the NTL network. Net TV times two Powerchannel, backed by Granada, is planning to launch later this year and is expected to ask consumers for a payment of about £30 deposit to subscribe to the service. Every month Powerchannel subscribers will be asked to fill in a questionnaire which the company will use to target adverts at them. The information will also be sold on to marketing firms. Peter Mowlam, marketing director for Powerchannel, said the company was planning to launch before the end of the year and would unveil its partners at that time. He said it was planning to attract subscribers by giving discounts and privileged access to goods and special offers. By contrast Freebox says it requires only a £10 deposit to secure one of its boxes that will let people surf the net via their TV. The £10 will be refunded to the customer in the form of discounts on goods or services they buy. The Freebox is also fitted with a high-speed modem that connects to the net just like a home computer. Also on board is a DVD player that a Freebox spokesman says will be used to access the DVD catalogues that will be sent to users and which will help fund the service. The disc player will also let users watch DVD movies. The spokesman for Freebox said it could not reveal its partners because it was still conducting final negotiations. Both services will leave people to pay their own phone bill for time they spend online. Web warning The Freebox service has been a subject of discussion on the Digital Spy chat site. Some contributors were sceptical that the service, and the set-top box, could do what it promised. Others seemed happy to take a risk because only £10 would be at stake. Alan Stevens, head of digital services at the Consumers Association, said it had registered for a Freebox and was eager to get its hands on the device and see if it could do what it promised. "There are a number of unknowns to the [Freebox] service," said Mr Stevens. "When you have a financial model dependent on advertising or e-commerce you have to think that it is a risky venture." In the past, several companies have tried to give away PCs or free telephone access to boost the numbers of people online but so far few have built a successful business out of it. He warned consumers to be wary of the services until the companies involved have proved they can cope with demand and the technology has settled down. "It is like Betamax and VHS," said Mr Stevens, "there are going to be a lot of competing technologies out there and you could back the wrong one." news.bbc.co.uk

To: GO-MUCP who wrote (5840)	10/17/2000 2:17:04 AM
From: SharewatcherFromIreland	Respond to of 6180

Granada Media PLC 17 October 2000 ONdigital nets 896,000 customers Subscribers more than double in 12 months * ONdigital has 896,000 subscribers signed up as at 16 October 2000 * 20,000 ONnet customers signed up in first two weeks since launch * 17 more brands join the ONnet portal * Whitbread, Punch, Scottish and Newcastle and Regency Inns first chains to sign up for ONleisure commercial service * ONdigital launches enhanced EPG * Conditional access modules for idTVs now fully available * Two Way TV deal adds new interactive games * Orange signed up as first netlinked advertisers * MGM studio deal brings more top movies for ONrequest * Transmitter upgrades in London area add 1 million households to full coverage; 2 million more to come in NW and SW England by early 2001 ONdigital, the world-leading interactive digital TV service, today announced that it has 896,000 customers signed up as at 16 October 2000. The figure for the quarter ended 30 September 2000 was 878,000, more than double the figure of 411,000 at the same period in 1999. In the first two weeks after launch, ONnet, ONdigital's full Internet service, signed up 20,000 customers. ONdigital Chief Executive, Stuart Prebble, says: 'In less than two years we have built a business with close to a million customers, and we are on track to meet the very ambitious targets we set ourselves two years ago. We've more than doubled our subscriber numbers in the last year and we believe we are in good shape to continue strong growth in the all-important last quarter of 2000.' 'ONnet, our new service that provides full internet access via the television, has launched successfully and is already proving popular with existing and new subscribers. ONnet puts ONdigital clearly ahead of the competition in the range and quality of the interactive services we provide to our subscribers' ONnet launched on 18 September. In the first two weeks of use users made more than 12 million advertisement impressions. A further 17 brands have joined the portal, including beeb.com brands, Radio Times and property centre. Many other content negotiations are underway and the ONnet portal will continue to expand significantly throughout the coming months. ONnet customers not only benefit from easy access to portal partner sites but can surf the Web freely, not being confined in the walled garden offered by some other digital TV services. ONrequest, our PPV joint-venture with SDN, has now added MGM to its roster of studios (alongside Universal, Paramount and Fox). This will mean films like The World is not Enough and The Thomas Crown Affair (both starring Pierce Brosnan) on ONrequest this autumn. ONrequest will announce further entertainment and sports PPV events in coming weeks. Orange is to be the first advertiser in the UK to use netlink, the ONdigital system that allows viewers to click straight from a TV broadcast to an Internet site. The first interactive Orange advertisement will be broadcast during a commercial break in a UEFA Champions League match on Tuesday 21 November. This week ONdigital launches a new and comprehensive electronic programme guide (EPG) service. ONview, on channel 20, will allow all DTT viewers to see what programmes are on every DTT channel for the whole day, and to click straight through to any channel they choose. It will complement ONdigital's existing Now and Next service, which allows viewers to see what programmes are on the channel they are watching and on every other channel while still watching the programme. A whole new range of games will be arriving on channel 45 - which will be renamed Two Way TV - from January 2001. The new games will include a selection of Two Way TV's most popular puzzle and quiz games such as the BBC's A Question Of Sport, Mastermind, and Antiques Roadshow, Channel 4's Crystal Maze and ITV's Comedy Awards. ONleisure, ONdigital's new commercial arm has already signed up the Whitbread, Punch, Scottish and Newcastle and Regency Inns chains for its new commercial service. The service offers ONsport 1 and ONsport2, with their exclusive UEFA Champions League coverage and MTV, to pubs and bars. This Christmas there will be at least 25 models of idTVs in the stores. The Conditional Access Modules needed to connect some of these TVs to the ONdigital service are fully available, and now that idTVs come with 6 ONdigital primary channels preloaded, sales are predicted to be higher than last year. We continue to improve the coverage of the ONdigital service. Progress in the London area at the Crystal Palace group of transmitters means that around one million more households can now get full coverage of Digital Terrestrial TV. Similar work is being undertaken in the North West and South West, as a result of which a further two million homes will come into full coverage at the end of 2000 or shortly afterwards. Notes to editors 1. Of the 878,000 total at the end of September 2000, 32,000 have signed contracts but are yet to activate their smartcards or have been installed without subscriptions, mainly in dealers, for demonstration purposes. For media information contact Andrew Marre 020 7819 8227 For analysts' information contact David Cameron 020 7663 6363 Peter Coleridge 020 7451 3000