The Walt Disney Co has taken what it describes as a significant equity stake in Paul Allen’s wep page design company Starwave Corp. Neither the size of the stake nor financial terms were disclosed, but Disney will assume operating control of the company that is valued at between $250m to $300m. Allen is still the largest shareholder and will remain on the board of directors. The deal coincides with Disney’s announced launch of a 24-hour online news service through its ABC-TV unit. ABCNEWS.com will launch later this month as a joint effort between ABC, Starwave, America Online Inc and Netscape Communications Corp. The AOL and Netscape websites, with combined traffic of roughly 12 million visitors a day, will carry ABC News content and offer links to the news service. Starwave already designs and manages websites for the ESPN network, Mr. Showbiz, the National Basketball Association and the National Football League.
