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Non-Tech : Comcast Corporation (CMCSA) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: caly who wrote (143)	3/26/2004 5:01:41 AM
From: David C. Burns	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 189

Comcast to acquire TechTV By Jim Hu CNET News.com March 25, 2004, 12:23 PM PT URL: zdnet.com.com Comcast on Thursday said it agreed to acquire cable channel TechTV, owned by Paul Allen's Vulcan, and merge it with its own G4 video game network. The acquisition will enable Comcast, the nation's largest cable network, to expand its technology and gaming channel to 44 million cable and satellite homes. G4 CEO Charles Hirschhorn will become head of the combined company. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Comcast sank millions into launching G4 in 2002, in an effort to tap into the $11 billion video game market. While Comcast has made a name for itself in TV services, it also owns majority stakes in programming stations such as The Golf Channel, Outdoor Life Network and E! Entertainment Television. In recent months, Comcast has been looking to expand its slate of cable stations. The company in February submitted a $66 billion bid to acquire Walt Disney. TechTV, which magazine publisher Ziff Davis Media launched as ZDTV in 1998, broadcasts technology- and Internet-related programs. Microsoft co-founder Allen acquired a majority stake in TechTV in 1999. EchoStar Communications also will have a financial stake in the combined company, terms of which were not disclosed. EchoStar will distribute G4 on its Dish Network satellite TV service.

To: caly who wrote (143)	9/15/2004 7:23:26 AM
From: David C. Burns	Respond to of 189

THE MGM DEAL Key to Vaults Is Comcast's Prize By Sallie Hofmeister LA Times Staff Writer latimes.com September 15, 2004 Comcast Corp. tried to break into the entertainment business as a star. But it's looking as if its best role for now may be a cameo. After losing its $50-billion bid to take over Walt Disney Co. this year, the cable giant is in the thick of Sony Corp.'s proposed purchase of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. — without putting up a dime. "This is all good for Comcast," said analyst Craig Moffett of Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. Under a proposed deal, the nation's largest cable operator would obtain rights to Sony and MGM movies to pump up its video-on-demand service and create new channels. The goal: to stop consumers from switching to satellite providers — a key reason behind Comcast's run at Disney. The Sony and MGM libraries account for half of all color movies produced since the 1950s, including such blockbuster franchises as Sony's "Spider-Man" and MGM's James Bond. Under an alliance Comcast struck with Sony on Monday, it would get access to the Japanese company's movies even if the MGM deal collapsed. Comcast Chief Operating Officer Stephen B. Burke said that in the crucial arena of video on demand, "we're farther ahead than we would have been with Disney. And with no upfront investment." The value Comcast would bring to the table is its ability to launch cable channels — jointly owned by Sony — that would have access to 22 million subscribers and could be worth billions of dollars in the future. Burke predicted that Comcast's programming alliance with Sony would be only the beginning. "The resources that Sony brings to bear in home entertainment dovetail beautifully with our strategy," he said. "Eventually the partnership will extend way beyond where it began." Burke would not elaborate, but he pointed to Sony's position as the leading manufacturer of televisions, video game boxes and other entertainment devices. Comcast's relationship with Sony could help it overcome a hurdle that has threatened cable's expensive video-on- demand gambit, according to analysts. Since 1996, Comcast and the nation's other cable providers have spent more than $85 billion to upgrade their networks to deliver video on demand and other services in an effort to undercut their satellite rivals. But Hollywood studios have been unwilling to give cable operators access to their newer films, fearing that consumers would be less likely to buy DVDs if those movies were on cable at the same time. In the near future, most of the Sony and MGM titles would be available to Comcast for video on demand only after they have aired on premium cable channels such as HBO and Showtime, and long after their DVD release. Still, the joint venture would give Comcast limited access to some titles at the time of their DVD release in an experiment that could become a template for all of Hollywood. "If Comcast gets earlier releases for Sony titles, that would be great," analyst Moffett said. "But if this becomes a tipping point for the entire movie industry, that's a home run." Since becoming the nation's largest cable operator in late 2002 through the acquisition of AT&T Broadband, Comcast has sought to increase its reach and power by controlling more content. After kicking the tires when Vivendi Universal put its entertainment assets up for sale last year, Comcast made its boldest bid yet for movie content: the unsolicited bid for Disney. Smarting from the rejection, Comcast Chief Executive Brian L. Roberts was gun-shy when MGM came on the block. But he came to Sony's rescue when Time Warner Inc. emerged as the lead bidder for MGM about two weeks ago. Comcast passed on a deal during the Labor Day weekend in which it would have become an equity partner in Sony's proposed MGM acquisition. But it did agree to the cable channel programming partnership, with an option to become an equity owner in MGM later. Comcast's entry into the deal gave Sony's financial partners the confidence to raise their bid, effectively knocking out Time Warner. Analysts said Time Warner might now be even more determined to buy Adelphia Communications Corp., the nation's fifth-largest cable TV operator and Los Angeles' leader. Should that happen, Time Warner would want to unwind a partnership with Comcast, which owns 21% of Time Warner Cable. Rather than taking money, industry sources say, Time Warner would give Comcast about 2 million of the newly acquired Adelphia customers. And that would make Comcast even bigger. Copyright 2004 Los Angeles Times