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Technology Stocks : IATV-ACTV Digital Convergence Software-HyperTV -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: mike.com who wrote (916)	3/31/1999 9:43:00 AM
From: Jim Mulis	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 13157

UK Interactive TV--Liberty Media NTL Unveils Interactive TV Platform; Telewest May Adopt By BILL MCINTOSH Dow Jones Newswires LONDON -- NTL Inc. (NTLI) Tuesday became Britain's first cable system operator to launch interactive services and content linking television and the Internet. The initial offering will feature interactive content in five areas - travel, sports, news, entertainment and shopping - and draws together more than 40 branded services and joint ventures. Partners include food retailer Tesco PLC (U.TSC), Bargainholidays.com and booking service Ticketmaster. "Being first will be a major advantage in gaining more content more quickly and getting more experience," said Jeremy Thorpe, director of NTL Interactive. "We believe we have a very significant lead in what we're doing." Open, a rival interactive service controlled by British Sky Broadcasting Group PLC (BSY) and British Telecommunications PLC (BTY) will compliment Sky Digital and is due for launch in around mid-year. NTL and Cable & Wireless Communications PLC (CWZ), Britain's largest cable company, are in competing talks to offer their respective interactive platforms to Telewest Communications PLC (TWSTY), the country's second largest cable system. "We're looking at all the suppliers of interactive content and NTL could be one of those companies, as could CWC," said a Telewest spokesman, adding that the talks include digital platform and cable modem issues. "We're certainly talking to NTL but there aren't any firm plans about a deal to be struck," NTL and Telewest are already partners in a cable movie service called Front Row. In recent months all three of Britain's major cable companies have sought to coordinate digital platform hardware and software to reduce launch costs as well as to pave the way for franchise swaps and expected further mergers among the companies. NTL hopes by year end to have 100,000 television users hooked up through a modum connected with a BT phone line and 100,000 cable networks users. Separately, the European Union Commission gave conditional antitrust clearance to an international services joint venture between AT&T Corp. (T) and BT, although the companies agreed to create "greater structural separation" between the U.S.-based telecoms giant and its 21.6% interest in Telewest. AT&T inherited the stake when it acquired Tele-communications Inc. last year. Since then, the Telewest interest and other, mostly programming, assets have been placed in Liberty Media headed by former TCI chief John Malone. Analysts said the EC ruling meant that Liberty Media's board would operate autonomously from AT&T on business matters relating to Telewest. But few doubt that AT&T will sell the stake, which carries a market value of about GBP1.2 billion. "I still ask the question long term of what's the objective for AT&T holding a stake in that business," said one cable company executive. "There's some significant value in that and they will be looking how to realize it."

To: mike.com who wrote (916)	3/31/1999 12:40:00 PM
From: Ron Harvey	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 13157

<<. Anyway, Verisign's stock has gone from 19 to well, it just opened at 154. Could IATV's stock make a similar move? I think it's completely possible. I know VRSN is much more a pure internet play but the excitement of digital TV hasn't even begun yet and I feel it will rival the excitement over the internet sector.>> Good post. Making a projection via analogy is infinitely more sensible to me than numbers plucked willy-nilly from wishful thinking and imagination. Most message boards seem to contain spiral-eyed forecasts based on nothing more than a spurt of adrenaline. And I agree that there's lots more excitement to come for this nifty story stock, although my druthers are that it not get spiky. I personally feel more comfortable holding when up-moves alternate with consolidation, which allows nervous hands to exit without causing undue volatility. (Not that the trading is going to consult me about how it will unfold.) But the action does look strong, and I'd guess that profit-taking slippage (to be expected) will be viewed as opportunity by many who regret not getting in just a tad lower from whereever the price happens to be. The stock's certainly rising with greater authority than I'd expected, which doesn't exactly make me wring my hands in dismay. I think that for investors the risk is in selling too soon; the stock is certainly telegraphing that there may yet be lots more movement north over the coming months.