Excite@Home Gets Court OK to Continue Service

Excite@Home Corp. received Bankruptcy Court approval to continue high-speed Internet service for about 2.1 million subscribers through February under a series of deals that will generate $355 million for the company while preserving the right to sue its cable partners for alleged abuses.

The agreements approved by U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Thomas Carlson in San Francisco ensure that customers who buy the @Home service through six cable companies will retain their high-speed connections until they are switched to other networks.

The companies include Cox Communications Inc. and Comcast Corp. but not AT&T; Corp.

Redwood City-based Excite@Home, also known as At Home Corp., filed for bankruptcy protection in October. The company unplugged AT&T; customers this month after AT&T; refused to negotiate new terms for the service.

AT&T; says it has switched all its 850,000 @Home customers to its own cable network, but many customers have complained about connection problems.