- - - TiVo To Offer 5.5 Million Shares in IPO - - -

On-demand television provider TiVo reported Wednesday that it plans to sell 5.5 million shares for an estimated $11 to $13 in an initial public offering.

Sunnyvale, Calif.-based TiVo has developed personal video recording (PVR) technology that allows users to pause, fast-forward, rewind or record television programs. One of TiVo's many strategic partners is DirecTV, which plans to offer PVR services to its subscribers.

In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, TiVo said it will use the estimated $60 million raised by the IPO to boost advertising, develop new products and other administrative functions. The company reported it had $11.6 million in net losses during the first half of this year and an accumulated deficit of $21.9 million.

TiVo did not say when the IPO might happen, but it did report that shares will be traded on Nasdaq under the "TIVO" symbol.

TiVo also said Wednesday that it has entered into a strategic manufacturing alliance with Sony. Beginning tomorrow, Best Buy will become the first national retailer to sell TiVo equipment.

- - - DirecTV Passes 7.5 Million - - -

DirecTV, a division of Hughes Electronics, announced Wednesday that its high-power DBS service acquired 141,000 net new customers last month.

The company reported that its August subscriber additions represent a record for that month and a 40 percent increase in net customer acquisitions over August 1998. DirecTV said these numbers do not include customers transitioned from PrimeStar By DirecTV.

DirecTV has added 932,000 net new subscribers so far this year, pushing its overall number of customers to more than 7.5 million, including subscribers to the medium-power PrimeStar By DirecTV service. At the end of August, PrimeStar By DirecTV had approximately 1.9 million customers.

In related news, J.P. Morgan initiated coverage Wednesday of Hughes Electronics, a subsidiary of General Motors, with a buy rating and a year-end 2000 price target of $71 per share. Analyst Marc Corssman said, "We believe that Hughes Electronics will have a breakout year in 2000."

General Motors (GMH) stock closed at $51.50 Wednesday, the same as the previous day.

- - - Weather Pushes Back EchoStar 5 Launch - - -

The EchoStar 5 launch scheduled for tomorrow has been pushed back because final check-out tests were hampered by adverse weather conditions at Cape Canaveral Air Station in Florida.

The satellite, which was built by Space Systems/Loral and will go up on a Lockheed Martin Atlas 2AS rocket, will enable EchoStar to offer expanded "DISH 500" channel service, HDTV, Dolby Digital surround sound, Internet and interactive data services. Industry analysts have said if this launch or the launch of EchoStar 6 scheduled later this year are not successful, the company could be forced to curtail some of those offerings.

The EchoStar 5 launch has been rescheduled for early Monday morning.

- - - FCC Delays Vote on Cable Ownership Rules - - -

The Federal Communications Commission has delayed a vote until Oct. 8 on cable-television ownership rules that could force AT&T to shed cable customers in order to win approval of its MediaOne purchase.

AT&T needs the FCC to relax a ban in which one company cannot serve more than 30 percent of U.S. cable households in order to gain approval of the proposed $58 billion purchase. The agency had planned on voting on the new rules next week, however AT&T sought the delay to gain more time to discuss its proposition with FCC staff.

Federal coverage area rules also come into play with Tuesday's announcement that media titan Viacom - the parent company of MTV, VH1, Nickelodeon and Paramount Pictures - plans to buy CBS for about $36 billion in stock. If the rules are not changed, these companies also could have to get rid of some of their television station in order to win FCC approval.

- - - Legislative Action Unlikely This Month - - -

Washington sources said Wednesday that although legislators and their staffs have been trickling back into town after a month-long recess, it is unlikely any substantive work will happen this month on pending satellite TV legislation.

Both the House and the Senate have passed bills that address local-into-local network transmission, copyright fees and distant network signals. Although a team of lawmakers was selected in June to comprise the conference committee charged with merging the two bills, that committee has yet to officially meet.

Washington insiders report that some Senate staffers have met to discuss ways to address the differences in the two bills, but that has not happened with House staff members.

The timeframe for an official conference committee meeting depends on other competing issues legislators face as they return from the recess including the budget, taxes, appropriations, a new crime bill, as well as such recent developments as the FBI's handling of the Branch Davidian standoff in Waco, Texas.

- - - INTERNATIONAL: - - -

• Sat Phone Company To Launch in Columbia -
  Upstart satellite telephone company Globalstar Telecommunications announced plans Wednesday to launch service in Colombia by early next year. Company officials said its local operations would be handled by Telecomunicaciones Satelitales Moviles, which is controlled by France Telecom and Alcatel. Colombia's state-run telephone company Empresa Nacional de Telecomunicaciones will also be a partner in the venture.

• SkyPerfecTV Continues Japanese Lead -
  Japanese satellite television provider SkyPerfecTV added 72,993 new customers in August, bringing its total subscriber base to 1.3 million. Reuters reported that the company's main rival, DirecTV's service in Japan, has roughly 306,000 subscribers.

• Loral Wins Argentine License -
  Loral Orion has been authorized to deliver domestic and international services in Argentina, one of the largest markets in South America. The new license will allow the company to provide satellite-based, high-speed Internet services, broadband business TV and data services throughout the country.

• Channel Master Opens Office in Germany -
  Satellite equipment manufacturer Channel Master has opened an international sales office in Pforzheim, Germany. The office will promote the North Carolina-based company's commercial satellite products including VSAT antennas, Terrestrial Microwave and IFD products. Channel Master also has facilities in England and Asia.

• MediaX Listed on Frankfurt Stock Exchange -
  MediaX, the developer of new media content for entertainment companies, the Internet and interactive satellite channels, has announced that it received approval for listing on the Third Market Segment of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and will be embarking on it first major European I nvestor Relations Program. The company's shares were scheduled to start trading this week.