New Brunswick-based Fundy Cable is the first cable company to link up with a computer manufacturer and market a multimedia pc that receives cable television programs.

Fundy partnered with Maritime Information Technology to sell Presario pcs, made by Compaq Computer, and launched the units Nov. 21.

The Presario receives cable tv and phone calls, and is capable of a range of multimedia services that include fax, game ports, Internet access and cd-rom. On a split screen, the end user can watch tv programs on one side while running software applications on the other. The system also features a vcr connection for video viewing and digital editing.

Fundy doesn’t receive a monthly fee-for-cable from the end user, but rather takes a straight fee off every computer sold, says Malcolm Stanley, director of network services for Fundy.

Fundy is acting as both the cable supplier and the marketer of the Presario line, which comes with a built-in tv tuner card that facilitates cable access. (Presarios without the tuner card are sold in retail outlets.)

The Presarios are displayed in Fundy’s cable offices, and customers coming in to pay their bills can receive on-the-spot financing for the units, which retail between $1,969 for a low-end model and $2,959.

The projections for sales of the unit are good, but that wasn’t the primary motivation for Fundy to get involved with the computer project, says Stanley.

Fundy is moving into the areas of network services and Internet access and wanted to establish a connection in the consumer’s mind between the cable company and digital communications, he says.