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Article: CONQUERER OF THE LISTINGS WORLD, 'TV GUIDE' HAS ONE OF THE BIGGEST AUDIENCES EVER; NOW, GEMSTAR MUST FIND BEST WAY TO MAKE THE PIECES WORK.(Statistical Data Included)
- Article from:
- Advertising Age
- Article date:
- October 25, 1999
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1999 Crain Communications, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Tv guide was akin to the movie ``Titanic'' -- in production a mere two years ago.
TV Guide Inc. faced escalating distribution costs, leaking circulation and a looming suspicion the whole enterprise could soon tank.
Then came two deals in quick succession: the acquiring of TVSM's targeted cable guides and the merger with the company that owned Prevue Channel.
But the biggest surprise of all came three weeks ago when former rival Gemstar, a provider of on-screen electronic program guides, announced it would acquire TV Guide Inc. for $9.5 billion in stock and debt assumption and change its name to TV Guide International.
Suddenly, it ...