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DIGITAL MEDIA WIRE -- Sept. 8, 2000
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o CNET: Microsoft To Acquire MongoMusic For $65 Million
o CBS Television, Microsoft Reach Interactive TV Agreement
o MP3.com To Re-Launch My.MP3.com Service
o AOLTV To Launch Service First in Phoenix
o Briefly Noted: Universal - Internet strategy, iCast Comedy,
Walt Disney - Hughes Electronics, Ticketmaster Online - Citysearch,
SanDisk - Ericsson, Pangea Design - Direct Movies Online,
CathayOne, MegaMedia Networks, Worldwide Entertainment
and Sports Corp., MeTV Network
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o CNET: Microsoft To Acquire MongoMusic For $65 Million
Redwood City, Calif. -- CNET News.com reported that Microsoft will acquire
MongoMusic, a search site for music, for about $65 million stock.
MongoMusic allows users to search for songs on the Internet and also
recommends music based on the tastes of its users. "Faced with the choice
of building a music property from scratch or buying an established site,
Microsoft took the middle ground with the MongoMusic buy, picking up a
company for comparatively little money and gaining core technology," the
article said. Investors in MongoMusic, which is based in Redwood City,
include Venture Frogs, Draper Richards, Angel Investors, Argus Capital,
Nokia Ventures and Sony Music.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200-2721048.html?tag=st.ne.1005.thed.ni
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o CBS Television, Microsoft To Offer Interactive TV
New York -- CBS Television said on Thursday that it has reached an
agreement to provide interactive television programming for Microsoft's
WebTV Networks, an interactive television service. The two companies said
they will begin offering the Internet-enhanced shows, which will provide
viewers with additional content tied to live CBS shows, at the start of
the 2000-2001 season. Microsoft, which is battling OpenTV and Liberate
Technologies to build a large subscriber base for its interactive
television service, is reportedly paying $20 million under the deal. CBS
dramas, comedies, specials, variety shows, movies and sports content will
eventually all feature the interactive service. The Microsoft service will
initially include chat rooms, games, and online retailing tied to shows.
"With the success of 'Survivor' and 'Big Brother,' we've seen how
interactive elements can supplement the television viewing experience,"
said Leslie Moonves, CEO of CBS Television.
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20000907/bs/cbs_webtv_dc_1.html
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o MP3.com To Re-Launch My.MP3.com Service
Los Angeles -- Just one day after a federal judge ruled that MP3.com could
be forced to pay damages of up to $250 million for infringing on
Universal's copyrights, MP3.com said that it will restart its embattled
online music service, called My.MP3.com. On Thursday, MP3.com's CEO said
that the service would be operational again by the end of the month; the
company has reached licensing agreements with four major record companies
to provide songs for the service. In order to access music over the
Internet using My.MP3.com, users will first be required to prove that they
paid for the recording by inserting an original compact disc into their
computer's CD-ROM drive. My.MP3.com was the basis for the copyright
infringement lawsuit against the company. When the service was originally
launched, MP3.com did not have licensing deals with the music labels.
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/ap/20000907/tc/mp3_reactivated_1.html
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o AOLTV To Launch in Phoenix
Dulles, Va. -- America Online announced on Friday that its interactive
television service, called AOLTV, will launch in Phoenix early next year.
The set-top receivers for the service will only be sold at Circuit City
stores. AOL said the service will cost $14.95 a month for AOL members, and
$24.95 per month for non-AOL members. The service is expected to be
operational in major markets in about six months. "Our members tell us
they are online and watching TV at the same time, or increasingly find
themselves logging on immediately following their favorite shows," said
Carlos Silva, vice president of AOL Devices. "AOLTV makes it easier for
them to combine these two important activities."
_____________________________________________
o Briefly Noted:
(New York) CNET reported on Thursday that Universal, which is engaged in a
major legal battle against San Diego-based MP3.com, is embarking on a
major Internet music distribution initiative. The article said that CNET
has formed an alliance with Sony to develop a subscription-based service.
"We fully understand that consumers want all music available to them on a
subscription service," said Seagram Chief Executive Edgar Bronfman in the
article. "They're not particularly interested in what label it comes
from."
http://cbs.marketwatch.com/archive/20000907/news/current/media.htx?
(Woburn, Mass.) iCast, an Internet company that shows short films and
animation programs, reportedly plans to add a comedy site to its
offerings. The service, called "iCast Comedy," will launch in the fall.
iCast's main competitors include AtomFilms, Ifilm and Icebox.
http://cnet.com/news/0-1005-200-2720537.html?pt.yfin.cat_fin.txt.ne
(Dulles, Va.) TheStreet.com reported that Walt Disney or News Corp. may be
possible bidders for Hughes Electronics, the largest satellite television
company in the country. AOL, which is expected to merge with Time Warner
by the end of the year, may be forced by federal regulators to divest of
its Hughes holdings. Regulators reportedly fear that without the
divestiture, AOL-Time Warner would have too strong a grip on the broadband
Internet market.
http://www.thestreet.com/stocks/media/1070252.html
(Pasadena, Calif.) Ticketmaster Online-Citysearch and Nextel
Communications today announced an agreement to offer Nextel Online
customers with Ticketmaster's content and transactions on their wireless
handsets.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/000907/ca_tmcs_ne.html
(Los Angeles) Data storage company SanDisk Corp. announced that it will
supply the memory card for a new digital music player made by Ericsson.
The player will plug into Ericsson's mobile telephones.
http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/000907/n07381690_2.html
(Houston, TX) Pangea Design, Inc., a provider of video programming over
the Internet, today announced a 10-year agreement with Direct Movies
Online to provide online pay-per-view programming. Pangea said it expects
the contract to generate $20 million in revenue.
http://www.pangeadesign.com/
(New York) CathayOne, Inc. announced that it is forming a joint venture
with Capital Entertainment Company and China Cultural Information Net, an
online entertainment provider in China. The new venture said it will
launch a multimedia company in China.
http://www.ccnt.com.cn
(Orlando, FL) MegaMedia Networks, Inc., the operator of a streaming media
web site, and ThrottleBox Media, a provider of digitally protected
downloadable content, today announced a partnership. Under the terms of
the deal, MegaMedia will add ThrottleBox content and technology to its web
site. MegaMedia offers sports content, feature films, and music videos.
http://www.megachannels.com
http://www.throttlebox.com
(New York) Worldwide Entertainment and Sports Corp. announced that its
Internet subsidiary, Houseofboxing.com, has reached an agreement with
TVKO, a supplier of pay-per-view boxing programming, to co-promote its
September 9 broadcast of the World Light Heavyweight Championship fight
between Roy Jones, Jr. and Eric Harding.
http://www.houseofboxing.com
(Waterford, CT) MeTV Network, a broadband video-on-demand service, and
FirstGate.net, a New York-based DSL provider, today announced an agreement
to provide online entertainment content to FirstGate.net customers using
their private DSL network.
http://www.metv.com
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