Video Technology to Create Cooperation

Phone companies are developing video services, cable companies are planning phone services and game companies are preparing to broadcast. Amid all the chaos, one fact is clear: They must work together if they are to survive.

According to Video Magazine, developments in computer compression technology have allowed video, audio and text to be fused in innovative products that will link all video-related industries. This will revolutionize the way the public gets its information and entertainment.

Projects in the works include a cable TV network with interactive features, a 500-channel cable system and a standardized multimedia computer language.

These projects involve phone companies, cable networks and technology suppliers, causing normal distinctions among these industries to blur. As a result, many companies are joining up to develop and finance projects that will keep them in step with the changes taking place.

The widely publicized merger between The Bell Atlantic Corp. and Tele-Communications Inc. is the first to be announced, but it is not likely to be the last.

Companies are determined to create alliances rather than fall victim to the uncertainty about what will become the mainstream products of the future.

Past rivalries are being set aside between competitors as they struggle together to create technical standards to be nationally accepted for various products.

The convergence of media businesses is expected to create the world’s largest industry by the turn of the century, estimates John Sculley, former Apple Computer chairman.