Motorola, Liberty Media Form Digital Latin America

Focusing on the expanding market for digital cable services in Latin America, Motorola, Liberty Media, and investment firm Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst Inc. have formed Digital Latin America, a full-service, fully integrated digital launch initiative for the region.

The companies are touting DLA as a full turnkey solution for providing digital programming and Internet access to cable systems in Latin America. Motorola will provide the set top boxes and head-end equipment and Liberty Media will provide programming.

DLA will service the entire Latin and Central American region, which is estimated to have more than 92 million households. Hicks Muse has invested more than $2 billion in the Latin American television market.

"DLA is the key to unlocking the value created by convergence of media and telecommunications in Latin America," says Thomas O. Hicks, chairman and CEO of Hicks Muse. "The ability to provide digital programming and broadband Internet services to Latin American cable subscribers at a significantly reduced capital cost to the MSOs should increase customers' programming choices and accelerate Internet adoption. DLA's underlying Motorola technology is an ideal complement to the unique distribution and content base held by Hicks Muse and Liberty in Latin America, providing a key component in our joint strategy to develop one of the leading media and telecom companies in the region."

Edited by Tom Butts