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To: porcupine --''''> who wrote (1145)	1/28/1999 2:47:00 PM
From: porcupine --''''>	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 1722

IBM said it spent about $1.6 bln on share repurchases in the 4Q, bringing the total value of shares repurchased during 1998 to $6.9 bln. In a statement announcing the company's 4Q earnings results, the world's largest computer maker said the average number of shares outstanding in the quarter was 919.8 mln, compared to 964.8 mln in the year-ago quarter. Such share repurchases have the effect of boosting earnings per share by reducing the number of shares against which earnings are divided to arrive at the company's bottom-line results. (Reuters 04:37 PM ET 01/21/99)

To: porcupine --''''> who wrote (1145)	2/1/1999 4:16:00 PM
From: porcupine --''''>	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1722

AT&T, Time Warner Strike Phone Deal By DAVID E. KALISH= AP Business Writer= NEW YORK (AP) _ AT&T Corp. has struck a deal to offer telephone service over Time Warner Inc.'s cable systems in 33 states, greatly escalating the long-distance phone company's move into local service. The deal comes as AT&T is close to completing its purchase of Time Warner's biggest rival in the cable TV industry, Tele-Communications Inc. AT&T had been widely reported to be talking with Time Warner about the possibility of offering phone service over its cable systems. In the deal announced today, AT&T and Time Warner expect to begin offering the new service in one or two cities by the end of 1999 and begin broader commercial operations in the year 2000. AT&T said today's deal, its acquisition of TCI and arrangements with other cable TV companies will give it the potential to supply local phone service to 40 percent of U.S. households, or 35 million homes, over the next four to five years. AT&T's acquisition of TCI is expected to be completed this spring. AT&T is talking with other cable operators about deals, but declined to elaborate. Customers will pay about 20 percent less for the venture's package of long-distance and local phone service than what other vendors could potentially offer, AT&T chief executive C. Michael Armstrong told industry analysts this morning. In addition to phone service, the new venture will offer interactive digital television and high-speed Internet service. ''We will be the low-cost provider compared to any other way to deliver these services and we will be putting together more bundles on top of what we're announcing today,'' Armstrong said. AT&T shares, the nation's most widely held, were up as much as 3 percent in early trading. The stock was up $1.81\ at $92.56\ in midday trading on the New York Stock Exchange. AT&T will own slightly more than three-quarters of the joint venture and Time Warner the rest. AT&T estimates it will spend $600 million on costs resulting from the venture in the first two years. In addition, it will spend between $300 and $500 to equip each home to handle telephone services over cable lines. Time Warner will get monthly fees ranging from $1.50 to $6 per home over six years. The arrangement is expected to have annual sales of $4 billion after three years. AT&T has been spending furiously to break into the $110 billion local phone market at a time when its share of the long-distance business is slipping. In addition to its planned acquisition of TCI, the nation's second-largest cable company, AT&T spent $11.3 billion last year on Teleport Communications, a smaller local phone company. AT&T hopes consumers will be enticed by the convenience of receiving phone service channeled through the same cable TV circuits that deliver hundreds of channels, Internet access and online banking.