Newcomer Time Warner hopes triple play will slow DirecTV.

Time Warner Cable hosted a Chavez Ravine news conference to roll out its Dodgers on Demand channel last week. That's appropriate, because the success of the cable giant's recent entry into the Los Angeles market will hinge on its ability to pull off a baseball rarity, the triple play.

Selling a bundled package of cable service, telephone and high-speed Internet access is the strategic key to making its partnered, $17 billion purchase of Adelphia pay off.

The offer is designed to strike back at satellite services such as El Segundo-based DirecTV Inc., which has established a major foothold among L.A. County customers. The satellite TV firm lured customers, many disenchanted with . Adelphia's service, by offering as many channels as cable at a lower rate.

"The concept is for customers to do business with one company for their TV, phone and Internet," said Jeffrey Hirsch, president of Time Warner Cable, who said that the service would be available in October. Bundling the service will allow Time Warner to discount the services, too.

"If you take two of those services, it will be $5 off per month and if you take three, it will be $15 off per month," he said. Hirsch wouldn't commit to a specific price structure, but one of the cabler's rivals, Charter Communications, offers customers in Long Beach a similar package for $100 per month.

When Time Warner and Comcast completed the deal for Adelphia, they divided the regions geographically. Time Warner will take on 3.3 million Adelphia subscribers--including virtually all of the L.A. County market--bringing its total to 14.4 million nationwide. Comcast will add 1.7 million Adelphia subscribers, and assume control of the San Francisco cable territory, bumping its nationwide total to 23.5 million customers.

"The triple play has revived cable," said Variety's John Dempsey, who has monitored the cable TV landscape for decades. "With it, the cable systems look great, particularly against satellite TV companies."

Throwing a change-up

If not for the ubiquitous Time Warner TV ads, most customers probably wouldn't realize they have a new cable TV provider. There have been no price increases or programming changes of significance, yet.

"The only thing that has changed is the name of the company," said Time Warner spokeswoman Patti Rockenwagner. "We're looking making changes gradually."

She added that Time Warner would try to capitalize on the technological advantages it holds over DirecTV, such as upgrading its highspeed Internet delivery and viewer interactivity.

"We have two-way technology. We send it to them and they send it back," said Rockenwagner. "Satellite doesn't have the capability to do that."

Time Warner has also introduced a Digital Video Recorder (DVR) service, which serves as a Tivo-like addition that allows a customer to tape record, rewind and tap into a high definition cable signal.

Time Warner officials are hoping the Dodgers on Demand channel will turn out better than its earlier sports play.

Days after taking over Adelphia's customers in L.A., Time Warner dropped the free NFL Network from its lineup, planning to reinstate it as part of pay package. The National Football League protested, and the Federal Communications Commission ordered Time Warner to reinstate it, until the issue is resolved. Hirsch said negotiations are still underway to maintain the NFL channel.

Dodgers on Demand, which will offer classic games, player profiles, interviews and game highlights, is another effort to make inroads on DirecTV.

With Dodgers President Jamie McCourt and former All-Star Ron Cey at his side, Hirsch said this pitch was aimed at DirecTV customers.

"If you're a real Dodger fan, and you have DirecTV, we're hoping that this new channel will make you switch to Time Warner cable," he said.

With DirecTV already entrenched, it may not be an easy sell.

"I have a strike against me," Cey confided, "I'm actually a DirecTV customer."

BY DAN COX

Staff Reporter