Two Cable Operations May Be Combined

AT&T; Corp.’s Liberty Media Group said it may merge Jupiter Telecommunications Co., a Japanese cable-TV operator in which it owns a 40% stake, with rival Titus Communications, which is majority-owned by Microsoft Corp. Liberty, which is headed by cable veteran John Malone and owns stakes in dozens of media and technology companies, has talked to Microsoft about combining the two cable operators, Chief Executive Robert Bennett said. The new company could then sell shares to the public. Microsoft on Monday bought a 60% stake in Titus from MediaOne Group Inc. Liberty Media also reported a loss of $2.02 billion, or $1.61 a share, in the 10 months ended Dec. 31, without providing comparable year-ago or fourth-quarter figures. Revenue rose 22% to $995 million in the fourth quarter while cash flow fell 15% to $105 million, the company said. It added that it will split its shares 2 for 1 after they’ve risen by almost half in the past year.