"The notion has been around that the Pentagon might worry about high-powered civil satellites," he said in a brief interview.

Shareholders will have to decide whether they want to bet on a futuristic vision of television beamed down from a series of medium- and high-powered satellites.

But because it will transmit from a high-powered satellite, TCI could lease its subscribers a dish as small as 14 inches in diameter.

The smaller dishes can receive medium- and high-powered direct-broadcast satellite.

These high-powered satellites are placed in orbit over the equator, matching the earth's rotation and essentially hovering over the same spot.

The F.C.C. has licensed eight "direct-broadcast" television services, which would employ high-powered satellites that can reach smaller antennas, but none are operational yet.

Second, the Pentagon, worried that high-powered civilian satellites will threaten national security, has promoted efforts to limit and control the development of such systems.

After raising $335 million in a debt offering, it built and launched a high-powered satellite six weeks ago aboard a Chinese rocket.

Today's high-powered satellites can show objects as small as a football.

It commissioned Hughes Aircraft to provide two high-powered satellites using launch vehicles from McDonnell Douglas.