Cablevision Industries Inc., is in separate talks with three
suitors, including Time Warner, interested in acquiring all or
part of the "closely held" cable TV company.  Based on the
current valuation of cable properties, an acquisition of all of
Cablevision Industries would be valued at $2.5-3B.  Some familiar
with the situation said Time Warner, which has debt totalling
$15B, would pay with securities for any transaction.  Cablevision
CEO Alan Gerry said that Time Warner is one of 3 companies they
are talking with seriously.  An acquisition of Cablevision by
Time Warner would continue Time-Warner's "aggressive expansion"
into cable.  Adding Cablevision's 1.3M subscribers could boost
Time Warner's total subscribers to about 10M, making it a closer
second to TCI, the largest cable operator with 10.3M subscribers
(Robichaux & Roberts, WALL STREET JOURNAL, 11/4).

     Tulsa-based Vyvx will transmit a high-definition TV signal
over its fiber optics network to present tonight's Lakers-Pistons
game at United Artists theaters in Farmington Hills, MI, and
Woodland Hills, CA.  The project was designed to demonstrate
Pacific Bell's "Cinema of the Future," a program where movies and
other events are transmitted via fiber optics cable using digital
HDTV signals that show a picture "as sharp as a typical movie
picture."  Vyvx was chosen to participate in the demo because of
its history sending major sporting events and news signals
digitally to networks.  Vyvx has carried the Super Bowl for the
past five years and has also carried the signal of "nearly every
other major sporting event" in the U.S.  To send the game to
theaters, special HD-TV cameras will be placed in the game arena
(Mitch Maurer, TULSA WORLD, 11/4).  United Artists is working
with Pacific Bell in the development of "Cinema of the Future"
(Alcatel).

     The tribute to Michael Jordan on TNT had a 3.3 Nielsen cable
rating, about double what TNT gets for a regular-season NBA game
(CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 11/4)....The Miami-Temple game on 11/19 can
only be viewed live via the Sunshine Network's PPV program
(Sunshine)....Prostar Entertainment Network, the nation's first
advertising and subscription-based closed-circuit network geared
to the out-of-home market, reached an agreement with Cedric
Kushner Productions, Ltd. to televise Kushner's two monthly
boxing series live to more than 800 commercial establishments and
sports bars nationwide (Prostar)....CBS Sports said it will not
bid for Wimbledon (Rudy Martzke, USA TODAY, 11/4).

     Turner Broadcasting System Inc. "sharply lowered" its losses
during the 3rd quarter.  While TBS continued to show a net loss,
the company's operating profit rose to $88M, up 46% from the same
period a year ago.  The company attributed its "overall improved
finances to three factors":  1)  The costs of The Goodwill Games
were behind them; 2)  TBS took a $306M charge for accounting
reasons last year; 3)  Higher ad rates and subscriber fees.  Most
of TBS' segments improved during the quarter.  TBS's news
operating profits were 20%; the Cartoon Network "registered the
best performance in terms of growth in ad revenue and
subscribers."   Overall, TBS' entertainment group saw its
operating profit jump 78%.  Most of the improvement was
attributed to a "decline in the company's cost" of airing NFL
games on TNT.  One weak spot was the Braves.  TBS "suffered" a
$15M operating loss because of the baseball strike (Charles
Haddad, ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 11/4).  Last night on "NBR," the
quarterly report was characterized differently:  TBS "took a
hit," reporting a $5M loss which the company attributed to the
baseball strike.  TBS stock gained 5/8 (PBS, 11/3).