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To: lee kramer who wrote (34691)	4/19/1999 7:27:00 AM
From: Doug Robinson	Respond to of 120523

IATV News very promising (see below) Technology News Mon, 19 Apr 1999, 7:22am EDT ACTV Buys Interactive TV Process From Analyst Tom Wolzien ACTV Buys Interactive TV Process From Analyst Tom Wolzien New York, April 19 (Bloomberg) -- ACTV Inc., provider of interactive television technology, said it bought a patented process for linking video and audio programming with the Internet, giving it a valuable method for offering on-line shopping and accessing Web sites. ACTV said it acquired the technology for an undisclosed price from Tom Wolzien, a Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. media analyst. It said the ''Wolzien Process'' will be combined with its existing interactive-TV product, giving it a patented means of offering electronic-commerce capabilities to its clients. New York-based ACTV's so-called HyperTV technology is designed to ''push,'' or send, Internet content in a synchronized way to provide complementary information to TV viewers or personal computer users watching certain programs. The Wolzien Process, on the other hand, allows a viewer to ''pull,'' or request, information from the Internet and will provide HyperTV with more interactive features, such as contacting Web sites to make purchases. ''When we combine HyperTV with the Wolzien Process, the potential is vast, ranging from electronic commerce and entertainment to education and public service,'' ACTV Chairman and Chief Executive William Samuels said in a statement. The acquisition also improves ACTV's competitive position as advanced digital-television boxes capable of handling e-commerce are distributed, the company said. Michael Shonstrom, a Niediger Tucker and Bruner analyst, noted ACTV's announcement comes as the National Association of Broadcasters begins a convention in Las Vegas where convergence is the theme. ''With all the talk of the coming convergence of television and the Internet, ACTV is trying to get attention, saying 'Wait a minute, we're (already) doing it,''' said Shonstrom, who has a ''speculative buy rating on ACTV.