COMPANY TOWN ANNEX

New Carolco Library Bid Sends Fox Running: French pay TV company Canal Plus, in an apparent preemptive move to make sure it gets its hands on the film library of ailing Carolco Pictures, raised its bid for the library to $58 million, prompting Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp. to withdraw its offer for most of Carolco’s assets. Canal Plus initially bid $47 million for the film library, which includes such box-office hits as “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” and “Basic Instinct,” during proceedings at U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Los Angeles. In November, Fox bid $50 million--later revised down to $47.5 million--for a larger chunk of Carolco’s assets, which included the film library and development rights on some projects and sequels. Carolco filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last November.