Edited by Douglas Harbrecht

Don't bet on the rumors about Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. buying hot Internet startup PointCast Inc. for $350 million or so. PointCast, which "Webcasts" news and entertainment to 1.5 million PC screens, said on Tuesday, Mar. 18, that it has turned down several unsolicited offers to buy the company -- including, says one informed source, yet another offer from News Corp. for $500 million. Says Chief Executive Christopher Hassett: "Our present intention is to remain independent."

Why would PointCast turn down an offer so far above its private valuation of $250 million? For one thing, it hopes to get even more from an initial public offering, which investors have been eagerly awaiting. With "clear market leaders" like PointCast, notes Dan Case, chief executive at high-tech investment bank Hambrecht & Quist, "the IPO valuation can be substantially higher than a mergers-and-acquisition valuation." He says PointCast's valuation should be closer to Yahoo! Inc.'s, which stands at about $700 million but topped $1 billion as recently as January.

Moreover, an acquisition by Murdoch could throw a monkey wrench into PointCast's plan to become the Internet's first broadcast network. It has assembled a wide range of news and entertainment providers, such as Times Mirror Co. and Knight-Ridder Inc. -- which are also investors. They might frown on providing material to a rival such as News Corp.

There are still no plans for an IPO, but a source says it's likely this summer, after PointCast hires a chief financial officer.

By Linda Himelstein and Rob Hof in San Francisco