OpenTV revs hit $8.4 million

Cyberbiz brief

By MARC GRASER

Interactive TV services provider OpenTV said fourth-quarter losses narrowed to $2.5 million from $4.4 million a year ago, while revenues nearly tripled to $22.3 million, from $8.4 million last year. Announcement comes as News Corp.'s BSkyB is readying to release its Sky Digital set-top box, which includes a digital video recorder, with functions similar to TiVo. OpenTV developed software that allows viewers to simultaneously watch one digital satellite program while recording another. OpenTV will also contribute approximately $8 million to the promotion and sales of the product for U.K. consumers. OpenTV software has been shipped with or installed in more than 11 million digital set-top boxes worldwide, including EchoStar's Dish Network in the U.S.