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Technology Stocks : UMG - MediaOne Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: John F. Dowd who wrote (827)	4/23/1999 3:17:00 PM
From: FR1	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 891

Right. Another guy pointed out the obvious. We have two Godzillas punching it out here (MSFT and T) but, because of fear that the feds will step in and take action, they have to fight behind the scenes. MSFT can't buy UMG and Comcast without problems. However, they can, and did, take a major stake in Comcast with decision making authority. You gotta ask yourself, why did Microsoft demand, in writing, that MSFT had the right to tell Comcast to kick ATHM off the cable after May? Gotta be a reason! T only owns 40% of ATHM stock but 70% of the voting rights. Armstrong is no dummy. He knows that if the Comcast deal went through MSFT would have control of Comcast and UMG. That's a lot of pipe! MSFT can blackmail T (I'm gonna pull the plug on ATHM, I'm gonna do it. Don't make me do it! Now here is what I want you to do...."). Also, MSFT could introduce their own cable internet program to replace ATHM. There are endless angles Gates can play and he loves to kick sand in the face of big boys (like IBM). Don't forget, he has all these LEO satellites he is bringing on line soon. Whatever the cost T has to have UMG. Interesting how this whole soap opera is brought on by congress. They decided to regulate the money cable can get. Naturally, the money is not enough to pay for upgrades. But the cable businesses have to do upgrades - otherwise they will get eaten alive by satellite. Consequently you have cable businesses going in big debt and begging for someone to bail them out. Hence T buys TCI and MSFT buys big control in Comcast.