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AT&T cable bids due
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December 3, 2001: 1:50 p.m. ET
Bids for broadband unit due Monday. Cox to have offer in, source says.
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NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - AT&T Corp. expects to receive multiple, competing bids for its cable unit Monday, ending a five-month contest for the broadband business, a source familiar with the situation told CNNfn.
New York-based AT&T (T: down $0.10 to $17.39, Research, Estimates), the nation's largest long-distance phone service provider, still hopes to decide the fate of the broadband business by the end of the year, a company spokeswoman said.
"AT&T is looking at strategic and financial alternatives regarding its broadband unit," said the spokeswoman, who declined further comment.
AT&T extended the deadline for the bids, originally due last Friday, until Monday.
Cox Communications Inc. is expected to submit a formal bid Monday, a source familiar with the situation told CNN/Money.
AOL Time Warner Inc. and Comcast Corp. are also each expected to submit formal bids. Microsoft Corp. is also seen pitching a deal to acquire a minority stake, press reports said.
AOL (AOL: down $0.80 to $34.10, Research, Estimates), parent of CNN/Money, and Cox (COX: down $0.16 to $38.79, Research, Estimates) each declined to comment. Microsoft also declined to comment.
AT&T could still choose to spin the broadband business off into a separate company for an initial public offering. In early November, AT&T CEO Mike Armstrong told CNN/Money that the company had yet to decide whether to sell its cable TV business or float an IPO.
Last summer, AT&T pushed plans aside for an IPO of the broadband unit when Comcast made its unsolicited offer for the cable unit.
AT&T rejected Comcast's offer and then shopped the broadband business to various suitors, most notably AOL Time Warner and Cox. Comcast (CMCSK: up $0.34 to $38.34, Research, Estimates) rejoined the bidding in September when it agreed to sign a confidentiality agreement.
AT&T Monday said it is working to move 850,000 customers of troubled Internet service provider Excite@Home Corp. The customers lost their service on Saturday after a U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge ruled that Excite could cancel service to AT&T customers.
AT&T has been in talks to buy the 77 percent of Excite it does not own.
As of Monday, AT&T has moved about 330,000 customers to AT&T Broadband, the company said in a statement. 
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