Daily News from New York, New York • 537

THE MZ25 -i $25.37 1 Vi iA i jwlIUsIjulj US) in RoboCop, meet Bond James Bond. In a $573 million deal, East Rutherford, N.J.-based Metromedia International Group said yesterday it has agreed to sell its film and television library and other entertainment assets to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The move allows Metromedia to concentrate on its telecommunications work in Europe and Asia, while MGM will boost its feature movie holdings to give it the largest modern film library in the world. Metromedia's films include the three "RoboCop" movies, as well as Oscar winners "Dances With Wolves" and "The Silence of the Lambs," and will augment MGM's holdings that include the James Bond and "Rocky" series. "It's a pretty big deal and it's a very good price that Metromedia got," said entertainment analyst David Londoner of Schroder Wertheim.

"It fleshes out their library and it gives them another income-producing asset" The deal comes on the heels of a $1.3 billion management-led buyout of MGM, which has passed through four owners in the last six years. Chairman and chief executive Frank Mancuso called it the "second chapter" in a rebuilding process. "With the global expansion of delivery systems, this acquisition is also a great opportunity for our worldwide marketing and distribution organization, now that we have a greater critical mass of MGM assets," Mancuso said. "At the same time, the new additions to the library will generate increased cash flow for the company." MGM's library currently includes 1,600 feature films, a home video library and a "significant television library." Under the terms, MGM also would acquire the production and distribu- REAL ESTATE Court upholds ban on cig, booze billboards The Supreme Court turned away arguments that restricting cigaret billboards violates free speech, a fresh blow to the tobacco industry even as President Clinton's own advertising crackdown heads toward the court. The move came as the industry prepared to resume talks with anti-smoking lawyers in a bid to end a war on tobacco.

The justices, without comment, denied review of Baltimore's ban on billboard ads forcigarets and alcoholic beverages. This opens the door for others to do the same. An even more important decision lies ahead: how the same appeals court and later the Supreme Court will review the FDA's pending tobacco crackdown. Nervous about Nike Nike shares fell 2 to $53.37 on concerns that U.S. sales of the company's athletic clothes and shoes will be lower than originally anticipated.

Hambrecht Quist analyst Shelly Hale Young lowered her fiscal 1998 U.S. sales growth estimate to 4-5 from 10 and downgraded Nike to a "hold" from a "buy." She estimated fiscal '98 earnings at $3.40 a share on $11.1 billion in sales. Chase banks on PCs Chase Manhattan has introduced free online banking for its customers, matching Citicorp. Chase, the biggest U.S. bank, said its service will let customers check their account balances, track account activity such as checks and deposits, transfer funds between accounts, pay bills and send E-mail to Chase customer service representatives.

The bank said the software needed to use its online service will be available to its customers for free. Customers won't have to use a commercial online service, such as America Online, to hook up with the bank. Citicorp, the biggest U.S. bank until Chase merged with Chemical Banking Corp. last year, launched its own free online service two years ago.

Not good enough Boeing took a bashing from Wall Street despite more than doubling first-quarter earnings as sales rose 70 as it ramped up airplane production. Boeing said it earned $313 million, or 87 cents a share, excluding an accounting credit vs. $119 million, or 35 cents, a year earlier. Revenue soared to $7.32 billion from $4.29 billion. But that was 13 below expectations of $1 a share, Boeing stock tumbled 6 to $95.37.

Bigger slice of pie Pizza Hut is investing $50 million to improve the taste of its pizzas while holding the line on prices as the chain tries to recover from what its new president of eight months, David Novak, called a terrible year. PepsiCo's pizza chain introduce the changes in advertising next month that initially includes a money-back offer for customers who aren't impressed. bill rates rise The Treasury Department sold $7.08 billion in three-month bills at an average discount rate of 5.22, up from 5.21 last week. An additional $7.03 billion was sold in six-month bills at an average rate of 5.45, up from 5.38. Li TRINE GIWEH DAILY NEWS tributes films and TV shows in domestic home video and TV through its in-house distribution divisions and subsidiaries.

The Entertainment Group has produced such movies as "Dumb and Dumber," the Academy Award-winning "The Madness of King George" and the current release "Kissed." TIm Associated Press tion activities of Metromedia's Entertainment Group, one of the nation's largest independent producers and distributors of film and TV products. The group, which includes Orion Pictures, Goldwyn Entertainment and Motion Picture Corp. of America, distributes feature films it produces or acquires to domestic theaters and dis DSdDinisiidl Duopiongt caslfo dud uddd com perts predicted the site would yield when it was put on the market earlier this year. He reportedly also is bidding the most for the site of the New York Coliseum, $275 million. Real estate experts are divided on whether they think Trump will be able to get the high condo prices he needs, about $700 a square foot to justify the price he is paying.

Some brokers point out Trump already is getting more than that for condos at the Trump International Hotel and Tower at Columbus Square. Trump's name has great cachet with international buyers. "Trump's name in the real estate business is what Gucci's name is in the leather business," said Charles Ur-stadt of Brown Harris Stevens. But others pointed out that Trump is taking a big risk since he won't be able to complete the project until 2000. "Who knows what the market will be like then," said Clark Halstead of Hal-stead Property Co.

But Trump must wait at least two years to build to give the United Engineering Trustees time to move. Trump could not be reached, and Howard Presant, an attorney representing the Trustees declined comment But sources said that officials with the five engineering groups are expected to approve the transaction today. The deal is a sign that much like the 1980s, investors are again paying prices for development sites based on lofty assumptions of what they believe people will pay for condos in the future. Trump, who has reemerged as one of the city's leading developers after a close call with bankruptcy in the early 1990s, has become one of the most aggressive bidders. The competition for the United Engineering site pitted Trump against such developers as Howard Ronson, Daniel Brodsky, Harry Macklowe, Bruce Eichner and Millenium Partners.

The price Trump is paying is about $10 million more than real estate ex By PETER GRANT Daily News Business Writer Donald Trump has won a bidding war against many of the top names in real estate for a prime apartment building development site across the street from the United Nations. Trump, in a joint venture with a group of Korean investors, bid $53 million for the site, the highest price paid for a residential development site in the 1990s, real estate experts said. The site, at First Ave. and 47th St, currently houses the headquarters of the United Engineering Trustees, a 93-year-old group of five engineering groups. Trump reportedly is planning to raze the existing structure and build ultra-luxury condominiums there, which he is hoping to sell for more than $1 million per apartment The new building could be over 50 stories and cost more than $250 million if Trump is successful in buying additional air rights from adjacent property owners..