Echostar Communication Corp

News Corp. may terminate negotiations to invest $1 billion in EchoStar Communications Corp. unless the satellite-television operator uses the News Corp. security-card system for unscrambling signals for customers, EchoStar said Monday. EchoStar said News Corp. demanded on Friday that it abandon security-system provider Nagra and resolve other unspecified issues before proceeding with the transaction. The security systems ensure that the signals are received only by paying customers.

News Corp. may terminate negotiations to invest $1 billion in EchoStar Communications Corp. unless the satellite-television operator uses the News Corp. security-card system for unscrambling signals for customers, EchoStar said Monday. EchoStar said News Corp. demanded on Friday that it abandon security-system provider Nagra and resolve other unspecified issues before proceeding with the transaction. The security systems ensure that the signals are received only by paying customers.

EchoStar Communication Corp.'s yearlong bid to take over satellite rival DirecTV appeared all but over last week as state and federal antitrust officials -- unimpressed by some last-minute concessions -- sued to block the merger. The decision is likely to set off a series of intense legal maneuvers by the two satellite-TV rivals over $600 million in breakup fees tied to the failed merger.

TiVo Inc. posted a narrower third-quarter loss Wednesday as the maker of digital video recorders gained a modest number of new subscribers amid tough competition. The Alviso-based company reported a loss of $11.1 million, or 12 cents a share, for the three months that ended Oct. 31. In the same period last year, TiVo's net loss was $14.2 million, or 17 cents. Revenue climbed to $65.6 million, up from $49.6 million a year earlier.

Cable television rates rose 8.2% during the year ended July 1, 2002, more than fivefold the inflation rate during that period, the Federal Communications Commission said Tuesday. The rate increases topped the 7.1% average monthly rise of the previous five years, according to the FCC's annual survey of 755 selected cable operators. Cable operators attributed more than 60% of their average monthly rate increases to programming costs, Commissioner Michael Copps said in Washington.

Fox is really sinking its teeth into "reality" TV. News Corp. announced Tuesday that it was launching the Fox Reality Channel early next year on cable and satellite services. Rupert Murdoch's company, which will spend nearly $100 million to start the channel, is aiming to be the dominant player in an increasingly crowded field. There is already a flood of reality shows on broadcast and cable, and several upstart cable channels devoted to the genre. Reality TV runs on EchoStar Communication Corp.'

News Corp., the media group led by Rupert Murdoch, brushed off a delay in the regulatory review of its $6.6-billion deal to buy control of El Segundo-based satellite company DirecTV, saying it still hoped to close the transaction by the end of the year. News Corp. President Peter Chernin said in an interview that he wanted to work in partnership with cable companies to bring down the cost of sports programming, sounding a conciliatory tone in a dispute that has escalated in recent weeks.

Satellite television giant EchoStar Communication Corp.'s latest merger plan looks like a rerun. The company's last-ditch attempt to salvage an $18-billion acquisition of rival DirecTV Inc. is based chiefly on its previously announced proposal to offer some satellite frequencies to Cablevision Systems Corp. Observers say there is hardly any chance the deal will go forward.

The end might be near for AT&T Inc.'s proposed $39-billion purchase of T-Mobile USA Inc. Facing growing opposition, telecommunications giant AT&T announced Thursday that it is withdrawing its merger plan from further consideration by the Federal Communications Commission. Instead, it said it would concentrate first on winning approval from the U.S. Justice Department, which sued to stop the purchase. And, in case the deal collapses, the company said it's setting aside $4 billion it would owe in breakup fees to T-Mobile's German owner, Deutsche Telekom.