The Journal News from White Plains, New York • Page 51

E7 THE JOURNAL-NEWS, THURSDAY, JULY 12, 1990 European HDTV consortium launched Publisher plans new TV network Panel to urge tax credits for to aid computer chip firms nology as a world standard. The system would allow HDTV signals to be received by conventional 625-line European television sets. Japan and the United States have proposed a worldwide HDTV standard based on 1,125 horizontal lines. Conventional TV sets in the United States and Japan use 525 horizontal lines. The EC has rejected the Japanese HDTV technology on grounds that it is incompatible with existing broadcast and reception equipment in Europe and would give Japanese companies a virtual monopoly over the television hardware market in an Parliament's energy, research and technology committee.

The formation of Vision 1250 follows a 1989 decision by the 12 European Community nations to formulate a strategy to launch HDTV in Europe. The founding members of Vision 1250 are NV Philips of the Netherlands; RAI of Italy, the British Broadcasting British Satellite Broadcasting, Laser Creation and Thames Television of Britain; BHD TV, BTS, and Unitel of West Germany, Nokia of Finland; and France Telecom, OFRT, SFP and Thomson SA of France. One of Vision 1250's objectives is to promote its tech By Christina Mackenzie The Associated Press STRASBOURG, France European companies and television networks developing high definition television formed a consortium yesterday in a bid to make their version of razor-sharp pictures and digital sound acceptable worldwide. The consortium is named Vision 1250 after the 1,250 horizontal lines of resolution planned for European HDTV screens, compared with the 625 on conventional sets. Its launch "may turn out to be a milestone," said Antonio La Pergola, chairman of the Europe By Skip Wollenberg The Associated Press NEW YORK Magazine publisher Dale Lang said yesterday be plans to launch a new television network this fall that will feature classic TV show reruns along with direct-response advertising programs.

Lang, chairman of the newly created Star Television Network said 23 independent UHF stations' reaching more than 13.7 million of the nation's 92 million TV households have agreed to carry the service starting in September. Stations that sip affiliation agreements will be given eight hours of television programs a day, consisting of series such as "Life of Riley," "The Invaders" and "Richard Diamond," movies and game shows, Lang said. The programming concept will be marketed as "TV Heaven" and affiliate stations will be encouraged to use that term in their own tions. In exchange for the programs, the stations must run at least four hours a day of direct-response programs, also called "infomercials." These are program-length commercials in which a marketer typically demonstrates a product and invites viewers to call in to order. Lang said Star Television and the producers of the infomercials would share revenue from sales of the products or services with affiliate Los Angeles Times A high-level panel of business and government leaders was to recommend today a package of aggressive tax credits to revitalize the nation's semiconductor equipment industry, seeking to alter the Bush administration's continuing opposition to an industrial policy favoring the electronics industry.

The presidentially appointed National Advisory Committee on Semiconductors will release a study that says Japanese manufacturers of the sophisticated equipment used to make semiconductors just like Japanese producers of the chips themselves have taken the lead once held by U.S. companies, and will dominate the $15.2 billion industry by 1993. The panel says that to regain global pre-eminence, the United States should adopt investment tax credits of 50 percent on new equipment purchased within a year of its introduction, liberalize depreciation rules for high technology investments, and establish tax credits for research and development of strategic semiconductor materials and equipment. The report further recommends that Congress revise antitrust laws to encourage the creation of manufacturing consortia and cooperatives in both the' chip-making and semiconductor equipment manufacturing industries. An advance copy of the report was obtained by the Los Angeles Times.

The panel notes that while the U.S. semiconductor equipment industry is far from dead, its condition poses "a cause for concern" because foreign competitors are larger, serve larger customers and dominate key new chip-making technologies. "Technological and-or competitive advantages, once lost, are very difficult and costly to regain," the report says. Although the study calls for tax incentives, it makes no mention of the panel's recommendation last year to immediately boost funding by $100 million for Sematech, the chip industry's research and manufacturing consortium in Austin, Texas. The report also omits a previous observation that Sematech will need an additional $800 million over the next three years.

Industry observers said the omissions were not inadvertent. "The panel has been pressured by the Bush administration to water down its position," said Dan Hutchinson, president of VLSI Research, a San Jose, semiconductor research firm whose work is cited in the panel's report. "The problem is that while the Silicon Valley is burning, the Bush administration is playing its fiddle." advertising-free publication. Ms. suspended publication last December shortly after Lang's company acquired it because of mounting losses.

Lang said the stations that have signed up and their markets are: WOCD, N.Y.; KHFT, Albuquerque, N.M.; KDMD, Anchorage, Alaska; WNHT and WPHX, both in Boston; W25AI, Cincinnati; KJLF, El Paso, Texas; KKAK, Fresno, and KBLR, Las Vegas. Also, KXLI, Minneapolis; WAYQ and WAYK, Orlando, WWLA, Portland, KCFV, Portland, WYED, Raleigh, N.C.; KXLT, Rochester, KOOG and KZAR, both in Salt Lake City, and KLXV, San Francisco. Also, WBSV, Sarasota, KBGE, Seattle; KSKN, Spokane, and WTTA, Tampa, Fla. FCC construction permits to proceed with new UHF stations. He said Star eventually will produce original programming for its network, and anticipates generating product sales of more than 100 million in its second year in operation.

A spokeswoman for Lang could not say how much was being invested in the new network. The network will be transmitted to member stations via satellite from the MCA-Universal Studios in Orlando, Lang said. Lang also heads Lang Communications, a New York-based media company that publishes Working Woman, Working Mother, Sassy and Success magazines. It plans to resume publishing Ms. magazine later this month as an stations.

In addition, stations would be given the option of using shorter direct-response advertising ranging from 30 seconds to two minutes to fill any' gaps they may have in their commercial schedules. Informercials were once a staple of some cable networks, but have fallen into, disfavor as those networks have grown and found more traditional revenue sources. Media critics have long faulted television stations for carrying such programming because viewers may not always recognize it as paid programming created expressly to sell a particular product or service. But Lang said this type of programming can help stations cut their operating losses and make it economically feasible for holders of Head of failed Hooker Corp. declares bankruptcy including Bonwit Teller and other department store chains.

According to documents filed with the Federal Court, Herscu claims assets of $150,000, including a Rolls Royce, a Cadillac, a 35 percent interest in a racehorse, paintings, jewelery, and furniture and effects at his mansion in suburban Melbourne. The house, modeled after Tara from the film "Gone with the Wind," was the subject of an auction last month. Mrs. Herscu claims assets of $19,600, including a Daimler car, paintings and jewelry. declaration was announced.

Herscu is believed to be in New York for the birth of his daughter's child. The Hooker Corp. was placed in receivership a year ago with debts of about $1.6 billion. Sydney-based Hooker is being managed by a court-appointed provisional liquidator in a process similar to what its American subsidiary is experiencing in the U.S. bankruptcy court.

The U.S. subsidiary, L.J. Hooker has disposed of the bulk of ts retail holdings acquired since 1986, The Associated Press MELBOURNE, Australia The former head of the collapsed retailing concern Hooker Corp. and his wife have declared bankruptcy, claiming debts of nearly $400 million. George and Sheila Herscu lodged debtors petitions in Federal Court at Melbourne on Monday, which the court accepted.

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