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

To: Ron Harvey who wrote (2428)	4/21/1999 9:09:00 PM
From: anthony karpati	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 13157

Article posted on Yahoo: Wednesday April 21 8:25 PM ET Interactive TV coming home this year By Robert Lemos, ZDNet LAS VEGAS -- Interactive TV -- long hyped as the Holy Grail of new media, and just as elusive -- seems finally ready to hit home this year, said industry insiders at the National Association of Broadcasters show here on Wednesday. "NAB [1999] is going to go down as a milestone where interactive TV really started taking off," said Jan Steenkamp, CEO of OpenTV Inc., a Mountain View, Calif.-maker of operating systems for interactive-TV capable set-top boxes. Interactive TV devices will roll out this fall, with digital satellite broadcasters, cable providers and at least one big name Internet provider jumping on board. The devices will add features such as electronic program guides, personalized portals to TV content, the capability to delve deeper into the programs being watched, and even the potential to buy items seen on TV. Over 10 million will be installed in households by the end of this year, according to one estimate. Not just WebTV anymore That's a big difference from today. For the past two years, consumers wanting TV with a bit of oomph had little choice: WebTV Network Inc.'s WebTV service. That's set to change. By the end of the year, digital satellite provider EchoStar Communications Corp. (Nasdaq:DISH - news) will roll out a new interactive service on its DISH network that will allow consumers with special set-top boxes access to enhanced content. Two deals -- one with WebTV and another with OpenTV -- will let consumers choose their way of getting enhanced content. Competitor DirecTV Inc. has closed a deal with Wink Communications Inc. to include that company's enhanced functions in new set-top boxes. In addition, Internet service provider America Online Inc. (NYSE:AOL - news) is set to release set-top devices running on an operating system from Network Computer Inc. under the company's AOL Anywhere initiative, according to one source familiar with the deal. By Christmas 1999, early adopters looking for enhanced TV products will most likely have at least two from which to choose. An early lead Despite the new competition, however, WebTV has used its head start to gain an advantage. The company has signed deals with EchoStar in the United States, BskyB in Europe, as well as two U.K. service providers and Deutsche Telecom in Germany. And Sega's Dreamcast can host WebTV's service using a single CD-ROM, according to one company source. Others operating in Europe, which is ahead in the race to convert to digital TV, are also better prepared. OpenTV already boasts 2.2 million subscribers worldwide, with most of them in Europe. That experience is scoring big points in the United States, said Clay Conrad, vice president of worldwide sales for the Mountain View company. Conrad said he expects that OpenTV will have over 5 million subscribers worldwide by the end of the year. Cutting through the confusion While the confusing array of devices and software for interactive TV has left the consumers and industry wondering where interactive TV really is, one industry insider confirms that TV is about to be changed. "Regardless of what is in the media," said Marlin Davis, president and executive producer of enhanced TV content creator Screamingly Different Entertainment. "I know what is going on in these meetings and where this industry is headed. "Interactive TV has arrived." See Also: Top headlines on ZDNN Financial news and market view Killer downloads in AnchorDesk

To: Ron Harvey who wrote (2428)	4/21/1999 9:24:00 PM
From: Skip Jack	Respond to of 13157

Our cousins at the Discovery channel are making good. "Discovery is owned by Cox Communications , Liberty Media" ******************************** 6:04 PM ET 04/20/99 BBC America pay-TV channel nears critical mass By Jeff Daeschner LONDON, April 20 (Reuters) - BBC America, the U.S. TV channel launched by the BBC [BBC.CN] and Discovery, has surpassed expectations in its first year and should reach critical mass by end-1999, top executives said on Tuesday. The pay-TV channel secured distribution in nine million homes since its launch, topping initial estimates of five million, BBC and Discovery officials told a news conference marking the first anniversary of their global TV alliance. Discovery Chairman John Hendricks said he expects BBC America to be available in 13 million U.S. homes over the next six to eight months, giving it critical mass to attract audience ratings and advertising revenues. BBC America, which is available mainly via digital satellite TV, is distributed by Discovery but owned and operated by BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of the BBC. The start-up of the U.S. channel formed one of three key goals outlined by the global alliance between the BBC and Discovery, along with the creation of factual channels and co-operation in non-fiction programme-making. Overall, the BBC and Discovery said their channels, including Animal Planet and People + Arts, now reach 74.4 million homes around the world. The Discovery deal has also boosted the BBC's total distribution through wholly-owned and joint venture channels to 230 million homes, BBC Worldwide head Rupert Gavin said. "The alliance is already delivering real commercial value to our business -- and playing a significant part in our strategy to be one of the world's major media players," he said. So far, Discovery has invested some $58 million in factual programming for the venture, well ahead of plan. The U.S. company, famed for educational output such as its Animal Planet channel, initially committed $565 million to the alliance over a five-year period, consisting of $175 million for joint venture programming, $290 million for joint venture channels, and $100 million for BBC America. "I suspect that we'll keep exceeding our annual targets for investment," Hendricks told Reuters after the news conference. Additionally, Discovery said it signed a deal for Cable and Wireless Communications to carry all of its digital TV channels on its cable system in Britain. Discovery is owned by Cox Communications , Liberty Media , Advance/Newhouse and its chairman and founder. ((Jeff Daeschner, London newsroom, +44 171 542-7717 fax +44 171 583-3769, uk.equities.news@reuters.com))