DR
Got this in my e-mail:
Couldn't think of a better topic title:
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Source: BBC Preparing ABC Alliance Pitch
By BRUCE STANLEY
AP Business Writer
LONDON (AP) — The British Broadcasting
Corp. is preparing to pitch a plan to
the ABC television network for a
trans-Atlantic alliance, as merger talks
between ABC News and its U.S. rival CNN
appear to have stalled, a BBC source
said Monday.
``If talks were to completely break down
between CNN and ABC, we'd be interested
in talking with them,'' the BBC source
said, speaking on condition of
anonymity.
However, ABC News spokesman Jeffrey
Schneider played down prospects for a
deal.
``While we're always looking for ways to
improve coverage and be more efficient,
there are no dramatic plans with the BBC
on the horizon,'' Schneider said from
New York.
The BBC and ABC already have an
agreement, in place since 1993, to share
video footage and other news material.
The British broadcaster is believed to
want to broaden and deepen these ties
and create an alliance that would stop
short of a full-blown merger.
The BBC has not approached ABC's parent,
Walt Disney Co., Schneider said. The
Financial Times reported the British
company is reluctant to intervene until
ABC and CNN break off their talks.
ABC and CNN have been in discussions for
several months about a possible merger.
Dick Parsons, chief executive of AOL
Time Warner Inc. — the owner of CNN
cable news network, said last month that
talks aimed at a merger with ABC have
``hit a pause'' due to the potential
deal's complexity.
The BBC is concerned that a merger
between the American networks could
displace its existing arrangement with
ABC, the Financial Times said.
Under its deal with ABC, the BBC gets
access to a North American news
gathering system that it would be
hard-pressed to replicate on its own.
The British company also has commercial
arrangements with two other U.S.
broadcasters. It provides BBC World news
programs to the Public Broadcasting
Service TV network, and it co-produces
programs with National Public Radio in
Boston and other U.S. cities.
Couldn't think of a better topic title:
--------------------------------------------------------
Source: BBC Preparing ABC Alliance Pitch
By BRUCE STANLEY
AP Business Writer
LONDON (AP) — The British Broadcasting
Corp. is preparing to pitch a plan to
the ABC television network for a
trans-Atlantic alliance, as merger talks
between ABC News and its U.S. rival CNN
appear to have stalled, a BBC source
said Monday.
``If talks were to completely break down
between CNN and ABC, we'd be interested
in talking with them,'' the BBC source
said, speaking on condition of
anonymity.
However, ABC News spokesman Jeffrey
Schneider played down prospects for a
deal.
``While we're always looking for ways to
improve coverage and be more efficient,
there are no dramatic plans with the BBC
on the horizon,'' Schneider said from
New York.
The BBC and ABC already have an
agreement, in place since 1993, to share
video footage and other news material.
The British broadcaster is believed to
want to broaden and deepen these ties
and create an alliance that would stop
short of a full-blown merger.
The BBC has not approached ABC's parent,
Walt Disney Co., Schneider said. The
Financial Times reported the British
company is reluctant to intervene until
ABC and CNN break off their talks.
ABC and CNN have been in discussions for
several months about a possible merger.
Dick Parsons, chief executive of AOL
Time Warner Inc. — the owner of CNN
cable news network, said last month that
talks aimed at a merger with ABC have
``hit a pause'' due to the potential
deal's complexity.
The BBC is concerned that a merger
between the American networks could
displace its existing arrangement with
ABC, the Financial Times said.
Under its deal with ABC, the BBC gets
access to a North American news
gathering system that it would be
hard-pressed to replicate on its own.
The British company also has commercial
arrangements with two other U.S.
broadcasters. It provides BBC World news
programs to the Public Broadcasting
Service TV network, and it co-produces
programs with National Public Radio in
Boston and other U.S. cities.