The Excite broadband service is used by over four million broadband customers in the US, or 45% of the cable modem users in the country. The court case was opposed by the cable companies, including AT&T Broadband which has attempted a hostile takeover of Excite. The owners of Excite are hoping to find an alternative offer, arguing that AT&T’s offer is insufficient to repay its creditors.
On Saturday, AT&T Broadband’s 800,000 customers were disconnected from the web following the court’s ruling. However, according to the Washington Post, the company yesterday reached a deal with 12 other cable companies to keep the remaining network operational, at least for now. The companies will together pay Excite over $300 million to keep the network running for at least three months. A final agreement is due to be announced today.