Additional 1.3 million residential customers for At Home.

AT&T may sell its Internet-access business to At Home Corp. in a complex deal that would enable the long-distance telecommunications company to maintain much of its control over the business, according to a report in Friday_s Wall Street Journal. Under the potential deal, At Home would pay $1 billion in stock for AT&T_s WorldNet Internet service. At Home, which provides Internet service over cable television lines, would receive WorldNet_s 1.3 million residential customers and roughly 1 million business customers, according to the Wall Street Journal report. AT&T would continue operating the network underlying the WorldNet service, the report said. The main goal behind the possible sell-off would be for AT&T to drop the Internet access business from its financial books, the report said. The deal is contingent on AT&T_s pending acquisition of Tele-Communications Inc. expected to close next month.