Both Canal Plus and Thomson Multimedia said they were in talks but declined to comment further.

DirecTV and Thomson Multimedia hope the hybrid box will solve some of the marketing problems.

After months of speculation in the book publishing business, Thomson Multimedia has set the prices of its new hand-held devices for reading electronic books.

But Dave Faulkner, product manager for Thomson Multimedia, says business travelers are still addicted to paper.

It also required that Thomson Multimedia seek private industrial partners.

For years, Thomson Multimedia was known mostly for two things: color television sets and losses.

Under an agreement announced on Thursday, each of the four partners will be allowed to buy 7.5 percent of Thomson Multimedia.

With this deal, Thomson Multimedia gets commercial connections and partners to help push it into new fields of digital television.

The deal represents a remarkable turnaround for Thomson Multimedia.

The eBook's manufacturer, Thomson Multimedia, recently said that it would stop making the slow-selling devices.