Mediaone Group

Cablevision Systems Corp., the New York City area's largest cable-television provider, agreed to sell its Boston business to AT&T Corp. for $1.16 billion and a suburban New York cable system. AT&T would pay $878 million in stock and $284 million in cash to acquire 357,850 subscribers. Cablevision would get 125,500 customers from Englewood, Colo.-based MediaOne Group Inc., which is being acquired for $59.3 billion by AT&T. AT&T owns about 38% of Bethpage, N.Y.-based Cablevision.

AT&T Inc., the largest U.S. telephone company, must face a lawsuit by former MediaOne Group Inc. executives who say a buyout reduced the value of their stock options, a judge ruled. The executives, including ex-MediaOne Chief Executive Charles Lillis, can go to trial to press claims that they lost millions in the fallout from AT&T Corp.'s 2000 takeover of the cable company, Delaware Chancery Court Judge Stephen Lamb ruled. SBC Communications Inc. acquired AT&T Corp.

The Los Angeles City Council was forced Friday to delay a final vote to transfer ownership of two San Fernando Valley cable television franchises after three council members recused themselves because of potential conflicts of interest. The council delayed for a week approval to transfer ownership of the Sylmar and Sunland-Tujunga franchises from MediaOne Group to AT&T Corp., which agreed to buy MediaOne in May.

Federal regulators said they will require AT&T Corp. to shed its stake in Time Warner Entertainment to meet conditions attached to the telecommunications giant's $44-billion acquisition of MediaOne Group. AT&T, the nation's largest cable company, told the Federal Communications Commission last week that it would sell Liberty Media Group and slash its share of the nation's cable market to less than 30% as required by the agency earlier this year.

AT&T Corp., which had exceeded U.S. limits on cable television ownership, won temporary relief Friday from federal deadlines to sell some assets, a decision that could be worth billions of dollars. The Federal Communications Commission granted the No. 1 cable TV operator's request to lift deadlines for either selling a 25.5% stake in Time Warner Entertainment or spinning off its interest in Liberty Media Group. That puts AT&T in a better bargaining position to shed the assets.

AT&T Corp. and Chairman C. Michael Armstrong are being sued by shareholders who say the biggest U.S. phone and cable television firm misled investors about its financial strength, lawyers said. The suit on behalf of investors who bought AT&T shares from October 1999 to May comes as the company is planning to split into four stocks in an effort to reverse the slide of its share price.

About 20,000 Los Angeles-area customers of MediaOne Express will see their high-speed Internet service transformed into MediaOne Road Runner on Thursday. Along with a new brand name, the service will feature additional content, a new Web browser and customized channels that take advantage of the high-bandwidth connections that are possible with cable modems. But some things won't change. The service will continue to be about 25 times faster than Internet connections via standard dial-up modems.

MediaOne, which for years provided cable TV service in the east San Fernando Valley, Santa Clarita Valley and South-Central Los Angeles, has agreed to pay $3,250 in fines to the city Ethics Commission for excessive contributions to City Council members--and for late disclosure of lobbyist activity.

AT&T Corp., the largest U.S. cable television company, is seeking regulatory permission to sell stakes in E Entertainment, the Food Network and six other cable channels it acquired when it bought MediaOne Group Inc. last year. AT&T proposed the sales in a January filing with the Federal Communications Commission. In July, the New York-based company asked the FCC for permission to sell stakes in Outdoor Life and Speedvision, also obtained through MediaOne.