BusinessMoney Minute: Xbox, Palm, Star WarsMoney Minute: Xbox, Palm, Star WarsThe Associated PressMicrosoft's Xbox 360 video game console will be able to stream thousands of movies over the Internet, thanks to a deal with Netflix. The AP's Mark Hamrick reports on that and the rest of Monday's top business headlines. (July 14)AP Money Minute Palm, struggling to maintain its position in the smart phone market, has introduced a new Treo model with Wi-Fi and GPS capabilities.The Treo 800w runs the latest version of Microsoft's Windows Mobile software and has a sharper screen resolution than previous Treos. Sprint Nextel is the first carrier to sell the Treo 800w in the U.S.------------------------------------ ---------------EMBARGOED until after print version moves, 3pm.----------------- Microsoft's Xbox 360 video game console will be able to stream thousands of movies over the Internet, thanks to a deal with Netflix.The arrangement will give Netflix's 8.2 million subscribers another way to stream movies to a TV set instead of a computer.The Netflix-XBox service - which operates in addition to its DVD-by-mail program - offers 10,000 movies and TV shows. ---End Embargo--------------------------------- Use the Force, Luke. You may need a supernatural ally when you play the upcoming video game, "Star Wars: The Force Unleashed." Video games used to come preprogrammed with canned movements that players eventually could anticipate and figure out. But recent advancements have endowed games with a sense of self-preservation and unpredictability not seen even a year ago. So don't expect Darth Vader to swing his saber the same way twice.I'm Mark Hamrick with AP Money Minute(****END****)

BusinessMoney Minute: McMahon, Merck, SmuckersMoney Minute: McMahon, Merck, SmuckersThe Associated PressEd McMahon, who for decades appeared as Johnny Carson's sidekick on "The Tonight Show," is fighting to avoid foreclosure on his Beverly Hills home.. (June 4)AP Money MinuteThe New Jersey Supreme Court will dismiss a class-action lawsuit against Merck. The 5-1 ruling means the drugmaker will no longer have to pay for the medical monitoring of Vioxx users. The lawsuit was filed by Vioxx users who claim they have no immediate symptoms, but that use of the drug gives them a greater risk of developing illness. Merck pulled Vioxx from the market in September 2004 after its own study showed Vioxx doubles risk of heart attack or stroke.--------------------------------E d McMahon, who for decades appeared as Johnny Carson's sidekick on "The Tonight Show," is fighting to avoid foreclosure on his Beverly Hills home.The Wall Street Journal says Countrywide Financial filed a default notice against McMahon on Feb. 28. At the time, he's said to have been $644,000 behind on $4.8 million in mortgage loans. The six-bedroom, five-bath house overlooking Mulholland Drive is listed for sale at $6.25 million.McMahon, has been a pitchman for the American Family Publishers' sweepstakes for years but has been unable to work since he broke his neck 18 months ago. -------------------------Smucker, the jams and jellies maker is expected to reach an all-stock deal later this week to acquire the Folgers coffee business from Procter&Gamble.According to the Wall Street Journal the deal could bring a price tag of $2 billion or more. Folgers has annual sales of $1.6 billion but has faced increased competition in recent years from Starbucks and other coffee-makers. The sale would nearly double the size of Smucker, which now has annual sales of about $2.5 billion and a market capitalization of about $3 billion.I'm Mark Hamrick with AP Money Minute.

BusinessMoney Minute: Home Sales, Credit Cards, OilMoney Minute: Home Sales, Credit Cards, OilThe Associated PressThe National Association of Realtors says pending home sales fell 4.7 percent in May or 14 percent from a year ago. The AP's Mark Hamrick reports on that and the rest of Tuesday's top business headlines. (July 8)AP Money MinuteThe National Association of Realtors says pending home sales fell 4.7 percent in May or 14 percent from a year ago.The group's seasonally adjusted index came in at 84.7 from an revised April reading of 88.9. The index, which sunk to a record low of 83 in March, stood at 98.5 in May 2007. ---------------------------Oil tumbled for a second day this week, falling fell $5.75 to $135.62 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil dropped nearly $4 a barrel a day earlier. The retreat in crude oil also arrives amid escalating worries about deteriorating lending conditions and the still-slumping housing market.---------------------------Consum ers are spending more, but they're using plastic to do so. The Federal Reserve reported that consumer credit increased at an annual rate of 3.6 percent in May. Use of revolving credit, which is primarily credit cards, rose at a 7.1 percent pace for the month. The rise pushed total consumer debt up by $7.8 billion to $2.57 trillion. I'm Mark Hamrick with AP Money Minute ___ ___, The Associated Press.(****END****)

BusinessMoney Minute: French Fries,Google, MortgagesMoney Minute: French Fries,Google, MortgagesThe Associated PressMcDonald's says its french fries are now trans-fat-free in all its restaurants in the United States and Canada. AP's Mark Hamrick reports on that and the rest of Thursday's top business headlines. (May 22)AP Money Minute---------------------Google co-founder Larry Page said the Internet search leader opposed a Microsoft-Yahoo deal because it would monopolize the online communications market, stifle innovation and curb competition.But Page discounted the idea that a deal between Google and Yahoo - one the two companies are now exploring - would present any potential antitrust problems. Microsoft had sought to buy Yahoo for $47.5 billion as a way to counter Google's dominance in the search and advertising market. That deal is currently dead, but the companies are exploring other options.---------------------McDonald's says its french fries are now trans-fat-free in all its restaurants in the United States and Canada. McDonald's dragged its heels in switching to a zero-trans-fat cooking oil out of worries it would compromise the taste of its trademark fries. McDonald's has been under increasing pressure from consumer advocates and public officials to make the change. The company says it's on schedule to convert to the new oil by year's end for its remaining baked items, pies and cookies.---------------------Rates on 30-year mortgages have dipped below 6 percent, falling to their lowest level in five weeks. Rates on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages also fell, dropping to 5.55 percent. The five-year adjustable-rate mortgage edged up slightly to five point six percent (5.61). One-year ARMs rose slightly to five and a quarter percent. (5.24) Analysts say longer-term rates dropped in response to reports showing continued weakness in the economy. Adjustable rate mortgages rose as they are more sensitive to what the Federal Reserve intends to do with the short-term rates it controls.I'm Mark Hamrick with AP Money Minute ___ ___, The Associated Press.(****END****) ANCHOR VOICE:-------------------------VIDEO PRODUCER:------------------------------V IDEO SOURCE:--------------------------VIDEO APPROVAL:------------------------------V IDEO RESTRICTIONS:--------------------------- -------SCRIPT/WIRE SOURCE:--------------------------------- ---

BusinessAP Money Minute: AOL Radio, Oil, FordAP Money Minute: AOL Radio, Oil, FordThe Associated PressAOL is revamping its popular online radio service, adding streams from all 140 CBS-owned stations. AP's Mark Hamrick reports on that and the rest of Tuesday's top business headlines. (June 10)AP Money MinuteA retreat in oil prices failed to keep investors from fretting over the effect of high energy costs on the U.S. economy.Light, sweet crude futures, which traded above $137 a barrel early in the day, dropped back below $132 on reports of a stronger dollar and the U.S. government reducing its oil consumption forecast. And although investors got some temporary relief from oil's steady rise, their long-term concerns remain that high energy costs could stymie consumer spending and overall economic growth. -------------------------------Ford investors flocked to Kirk Kerkorian's offer to buy 20 million additional shares of the company for about $170 million, a move that will help the billionaire investor increase his stake in the automaker to about 5.5 percent. Kerkorian's Tracinda Corp. says its tender offer of $8.50 a share drew overtures of more than 1 billion of the company's shares, or nearly half of Ford's outstanding stock. Analysts said the enthusiastic response was not surprising given the trajectory of Ford's stock price in recent weeks. ----------------------------------AOL is revamping its popular online radio service, adding streams from all 140 CBS-owned stations Much is at stake for AOL, which is looking for new ways to boost revenues from online music streaming, which has yet to become profitable. The addition of CBS stations will bring a number of highly rated news, talk and sports channels to the portal. CBS will also use its vast advertising sales force to sell all ads across the AOL radio service.I'm Mark Hamrick with AP Money Minute(****END****)

BusinessMoney Minute: Windows XP, Rhapsody, YahooMoney Minute: Windows XP, Rhapsody, YahooThe Associated PressMicrosoft will stop selling its Windows XP operating system to retailers and major computer makers, beginning today. AP's James Limbach reports on that and the rest of Monday's top business headlines. (June 30)[Notes:ANCHOR VOICE] AP Money MinuteVerizon Wireless has adopted Rhapsody's subscription music service, allowing its customers to download as much music as they want for $15 per month. The service will work with seven current handsets and three to be launched soon, including the third version of the popular LG Chocolate.Rhapsody is also dropping copy protection on all tracks bought from its online store, allowing songs to play on practically any music gadget, including iPods.-----------------------------Micro soft will stop selling its Windows XP operating system to retailers and major computer makers today, despite protests from a slice of PC users who don't want to be forced into using Vista.Once computers loaded with XP have been cleared from the inventory of major PC makers, consumers will have to buy a version of Vista and then legally "downgrade" to XP through Microsoft.-----------------------------Y ahoo is meeting with its major shareholders in hopes of fending off Carl Icahn.The activist investor is trying to overthrow Yahoo's board in retaliation for rejecting Microsoft's takeover bid. Now the company is making its case for keeping its current board and management team.Yahoo has also filed a brief with the SEC to elaborate on its defense of its directors, including CEO and co-founder Jerry Yang. I'm James Limbach with AP Money Minute(****END****) ANCHOR VOICE:-------------------------VIDEO PRODUCER:------------------------------V IDEO SOURCE:--------------------------

BusinessMoney Minute: Wall Street, Concord, RefcoMoney Minute: Wall Street, Concord, RefcoThe Associated PressStocks closed an abbreviated session mixed Thursday after some uneven economic data: news of a contraction in the nation's services sector and a tame reading on employment. (July 3)[Notes:ANCHOR VOICE] Stocks closed an abbreviated session mixed Thursday after some uneven economic data: news of a contraction in the nation's services sector and a tame reading on employment. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 73 points to 11,289. The Standard&Poor's 500 index rose 1, to 1,263 nad the Nasdaq composite index fell 6, to 2,245.---------------------------------- --------- Phillip Bennett, the former chief executive of Refco Inc. has been sentenced to 16 years in prison for a financial cover-up that brought down one of the world's largest commodities brokerages.Refco went public in August 2005 and for bankruptcy just weeks later after disclosing that a $430 million debt owed to Refco by a firm controlled by Bennett had been concealed. ---------------------------------------- ---------A French judge has ordered Continental Airlines and five people to stand trial on charges of manslaughter for the 2000 crash of a Concorde jet that killed 113 people.The investigators say the crash was caused in part by a titanium strip from a Continental Airlines DC-10 that was lying on the runway. The inquiry also determined the Concord's tanks lacked sufficient protection from shock _ and that Concorde's makers had been aware of the problem since 1979. ___ ___, The Associated Press.(****END****)

BusinessMoney Minute: Vytorin, Banks, BernankeMoney Minute: Vytorin, Banks, BernankeThe Associated PressA new study shows that the cholesterol drug Vytorin doesn't lower the risk of major heart valve problems and need for related surgical procedures. The AP's Mark Hamrick reports on that and Monday's other toheadlines. (July 21)The cholesterol drug Vytorin doesn't lower the risk of major heart valve problems and need for related surgical procedures. According to a large-scale study, Schering-Plough and Merck's drug was no better than placebo at lowering a the risk of major cardiovascular events. Vytorin also failed to meet one of its two secondary goals, which both involved reducing certain types of heart problems.--------------------------Bank of America said its second-quarter profit fell 41 percent. But the nation's second-largest bank still beat Wall Street expectations. Bank of America reported income of $3.41 billion, or 72 cents per share, on $20.32 billion in revenue. That compared with net income of $5.76 billion, or $1.28 per share, on $19.63 billion in revenue a year earlier.--------------------------Federa l Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has taken extraordinary steps to ease the nation's economic problems. His own finances are a bit more straightforward. The chairman's financial disclosure form shows his holdings last year were in no-frills investments, including U.S. Treasury securities, Canadian Treasury bonds, mutual funds and annuities. Bernanke's salary last year was $186,600. This year it rises to $191,300. ___ ___, The Associated Press.(****END****)

BusinessMoney Minute: Volkswagen, YouTube, MoreMoney Minute: Volkswagen, YouTube, MoreThe Associated PressVolkswagen has picked Chattanooga, Tenn. for its new U.S. auto plant. The AP's Mark Hamrick reports on that and the rest of Tuesday's top business headlines. (July 15)AP Money Minute: YouTube may have to disclose which videos are watched on its site, but it wont have to disclose who was watching them. Viacom and other copyright holders are accusing YouTube of enabling copyright infringement. The plaintiffs are seeking at least $1 billion in damages. But in a nod to privacy complaints, Viacom won't be told the identities of individuals who watched clips on on the site.----------------------------------- -Chattagnugen!! Volkswagen has picked Chattanooga, Tenn. for its new U.S. auto plant.The German auto maker has approved more than $990 million to build the facility, with a projected capacity of 150,000 cars a year. It plans to employ 2,000 workers when it starts production in 2011.------------------------------- Two telemarketing companies that sell Dish Network's satellite TV services have agreed to pay $95,000 in fines for ignoring the federal do-not-call list. The FTC said Planet Earth Satellite and its president have been charged with calling consumers whose phone numbers are on the National Do Not Call Registry.Star Satellite was fined for failing to implement a two-second rule which requires calls to be connected to a live operator within that time frame.I'm Mark Hamrick with AP Money Minute(****END****)

BusinessMoney Minute: Tyson, Citigroup, Cell PhonesMoney Minute: Tyson, Citigroup, Cell PhonesThe Associated PressTyson Foods is recalling more than 51,000 pounds of frozen raw chicken breast tenderloin. The AP's David Melendy reports on that and the rest of Thursday's business headlines. (Aug. 7)AP Money MinuteTyson Foods is recalling more than 51,000 pounds of frozen raw chicken breast tenderloin. The world's largest meat processor said the product may contain soy that was not declared on the label. Soy is a known allergen. Tyson says the meat came from a plant in Vicksburg, Miss., between July 23 and Aug. 1, and was shipped to Tyson food service distributors nationwide.----------------------------- The friendly skies are not so affable when it comes to using cell phones. A Department of Transportation survey found nearly four out of 10 U.S. residents would oppose cell phone use aboard flights even if there were no aircraft communications interference issues. But, as any parent of a teenager could have predicted, there is a cell phone generation gap. About 60 percent of residents aged 65 and older oppose cell phone use in flight.-------------------------------Ci tigroup will buy back $7 billion in auction-rate securities from tens of thousands of investors across the country. The buyback is part of settlements reached with federal and state regulators who said the bank marketed the investments as safe despite liquidity risks. Citigroup will pay also a $50 million civil penalty to New York state and a separate $50 million civil penalty to the North American Securities Administrators Association.I'm David Melendy with AP Money Minute ___ ___, The Associated Press.(****END****)

BusinessMoney Minute: Stimulus Checks, Delta, PizzaMoney Minute: Stimulus Checks, Delta, PizzaThe Associated PressThe first round of economic stimulus checks gave a boost to personal incomes in April but a huge question remains: Will people spend the checks quickly enough to keep the economy afloat? (May 30)AP Money MinuteThe first round of economic stimulus checks gave a boost to personal incomes in April but a huge question remains: Will people spend the checks quickly enough to keep the economy afloat?The Commerce Department reported that consumer spending barely budged in April, rising a tiny two-tenths of a percent, and income growth was just as weak, increasing a similar percent. The growth in incomes, held back by four straight months of jobs losses, would have been just 0.1 percent had it not been for the first wave of stimulus payments.------------Delta Air Lines is cutting at least 1,000 more jobs than it previously planned because the number of employees who accepted voluntary severance offers exceeded the company's goal. In March, Delta offered voluntary severance payouts to roughly 30,000 employees - more than half its work force - and cut U.S. capacity by an extra 5 percent. Delta said roughly 10 percent of the targeted employees took the offer.---------------------------------- ----It was 50 years when Dan and Frank Carney borrowed $600 and opened a small pizzeria in Kansas. Today that humble enterprise with a humble name - Pizza Hut - is now the world's largest pizza chain with $10 billion in annual sales and more than 11,000 stores worldwide. The chain is now updating its look - and its menu - a move analysts say is right for the company in the face of a struggling economy.I'm Mark Hamrick with AP Money Minute.(****END****)

Southwest Airlines grounds 41 planes, Bill Gates lectures Congress and Japan claims an iPod Nano sent off sparks. (March 12)

BusinessMoney Minute: Ross Perot, Satellite Radio, MoreMoney Minute: Ross Perot, Satellite Radio, MoreThe Associated PressBillionaire former presidential candidate Ross Perot has launched a new Web site to highlight what he calls the "economic crisis" facing the country.(June 16)AP Money MinuteBillionaire former presidential candidate Ross Perot has launched a new Web site to highlight what he calls the "economic crisis" facing the country. PerotCharts - a play on Perot's use of economic charts during his 1992 and 1996 presidential campaigns - includes a video of Perot, a blog and a chart presentation explaining the nation's economic problems. Perot says the nation's debt reached $9.4 trillion in April and is rising more than $1 billion a day. He calls the economic crisis far greater than anything since the Great Depression. -----------------------------------FCC Chairman Kevin Martin made his recommended that Sirius Satellite Radio's $3.8 billion buyout of rival XM Satellite Radio Holdings be allowed to proceed. Martin made the recommendation in exchange for a number of concessions, including turning 24 channels over to noncommercial and minority programming. The other four FCC commissioners have kept their views on the deal largely to themselves.And unlike most FCC decisions, there is no clear indication how the vote will go.------------------------------------- --Lehman Brothers has posted its first quarterly loss since going public in 1994. The $2.87 billion loss - or $5.14 per share - compared with a profit of one and a quarter billion a year earlier. Revenue plunged to negative $668 million from last year's five and a half billion.The loss follows a tumultuous week in which Lehman also was forced to raise $6 billion in fresh capital, and unexpectedly demoted two of its top executives.I'm James Limbaugh with AP Money Minute(****END****) ANCHOR VOICE:

BusinessMoney Minute: OOXML, Snoose and FordMoney Minute: OOXML, Snoose and FordThe Associated PressSouth Africa is appealing a decision to make Microsoft's Office Open XML format an internationally recognized standard for electronic documents. AP's Mark Hamrick reports on that and the rest of Wednesday's top business headlines. (May 28)AP Money Minute. South Africa is appealing a decision to make Microsoft's Office Open XML format an internationally recognized standard for electronic documents.Supporters of a rival format called OpenDocument Format have claimed that Microsoft used strong-arm tactics to win approval from the national committees and say OOXML still locks out competitors.The appeal means Microsoft will have to wait at least another month before knowing for sure whether the file format is approved as an open standard.---------------------As cigarette sales continue to decline, the Altria Group said it will deal with fewer cigarette sales by capitalizing on its Marlboro brand and selling more smokeless products. Chief Executive Michael Szymanczyk (suh-MAN-sihk) said the company has made "remarkable progress" in its testing and marketing of its Marlboro-branded moist smokeless tobacco and spitless product called snus (snoose).Szymanczyk made the comments at Altria's first shareholder meeting since the March spinoff of its international cigarette business.------------------------Ford plans to conduct involuntary layoffs of salaried employees as part of a restructuring in the face of slumping sales and record-high gas prices.The company hasn't yet determined how many white-collar jobs will be cut, but stressed that this round won't involve any voluntary buyout packages with financial or early retirement incentives. The company wants the cuts completed by Aug. 1, which is says is not enough time to roll out voluntary offers and wait for employees to accept them.I'm Mark Hamrick with AP Money Minute ___ ___, The Associated Press.(****END****)

BusinessMoney Minute: Oil Falls, Pickens, MPAAMoney Minute: Oil Falls, Pickens, MPAAThe Associated PressCrude oil sank by $2.54 to $122.19 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Tuesday. Oil has now fallen more than $25 from its trading high of $147.27, reached July 11. (July 29)AP Money MinuteThe Motion Picture Association of America is suing two Web sites saying they make it easy for consumers to illegally download movies.The MPAA filed copyright infringement suits against F-o-m-d-b dot com and Movierumor.The association says the sites profit from advertising while posting links to pirated movies as recent as "The Dark Knight" and "The X-Files: I Want to Believe," which are still in theaters.-------------------------Oil prices have tumbled to their lowest level in seven weeks. Crude oil sank by $2.54 to $122.19 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil has now fallen more than $25 from its trading high of $147.27, reached July 11. The Energy Dept says demand for oil in the U.S. continues to fall, dropping by 891,000 barrels per day in May compared the same month a year ago.---------------------Billionaire investor T. Boone Pickens has dumped his holdings in Yahoo over the way the Internet company's management handled sales talks with Microsoft. Pickens told the San Francisco Chronicle that he sold all 10 million of his Yahoo shares. He's declining to quantify his losses, but he acquired his stake in mid-May when Yahoo was trading between $24 and $28 per share. Yahoo's stock price hasn't climbed above $22.50 for the past week, meaning Pickens probably lost tens of millions of dollars.I'm Mark Hamrick with AP Money Minute(****END****)

Swiss pharmaceutical maker Novartis AG said it will spend about $38 billion in a two-step bid for a majority stake in U.S. eye-care company Alcon. Ap's Mark Hamrick reports on that and the rest of Monday's business headlines. (April 7)

BusinessMoney Minute: Millionaires, Yahoo, Circuit CityMoney Minute: Millionaires, Yahoo, Circuit CityThe Associated PressThe world's millionaires club is getting bigger _ and its members decidedly richer. The AP's Mark Hamrick reports on that and the rest of Tuesday's top business headlines. (June 24)AP Money MinuteThe world's millionaires club is getting bigger _ and its members decidedly richer. According to the 12th annual World Wealth Report released by Merrill Lynch, the number of people around the globe with at least $1 million in assets swelled by 600,000 or 6 percent last year to 10.1 million. The combined wealth of the millionaires' club meanwhile grew 9.4 percent to $40.7 trillion. Their average wealth, which didn't include primary homes, surpassed $4 million for the first time.------------------------Yahoo's depressed stock has jumped by more than 3 percent on reports that the Internet pioneer is once again exploring a possible deal with Microsoft. The Silicon Valley blog TechCrunch says the two companies are talking, but a person close to Yahoo told The AP that Microsoft still isn't interested in buying Yahoo in its entirety. Microsoft and Yahoo didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.------------------------Circuit City isn't saying a buyout is in the future for the electronics retailer, but an activist investor expects an announcement of a possible sale within the next month. Mark Wattles, whose investment firm holds a 6.5 percent stake in Circuit City, said three companies are in the late stages of conducting due diligence in regard to buying the company. Wattles says, "the sniffing is over with."i'm Mark Hamrick with AP Money Minute(****END****)

BusinessMoney Minute: Milk Price Probe, More Free GasMoney Minute: Milk Price Probe, More Free GasThe Associated PressGas prices are high, food's more expensive and the job market's cold, but the U.S. may still avoid a recession, at least according to one economic report. (May 19)AP Money MinuteGas prices are high, food's more expensive and the job market's cold, but the U.S. may still avoid a recession.That's the message from the New York-based Conference Board, a private business group whose index of leading economic indicators defied expectations and inched higher in April.Six of ten leading indicators rose for the month, including stock prices, interest rate spreads and housing permits. Those increases more than offset the sharp declines in average weekly hours worked and consumer spending.------------------------------T he Wall Street Journal is reporting Federal regulators are investigating a milk price-manipulation scheme. The investigation is focusing on the Kansas City-based dairy cooperative, which controls about a third of the nation's milk supply. Separately, the Justice Department is preparing to investigate a recently disclosed $1 million transfer to a former director of the Dairy Farmers of America.----------------------------Chry sler is extending its offer to subsidize customers' gasoline prices for three years. The deal caps gas at $2.99 per gallon with Chrysler paying the rest. People who buy or lease eligible vehicles can pick between the gas subsidy, cash rebates or zero percent financing. On some vehicles, customers can get rebates and the gas subsidy. It was to expire June 2, but now will go through July 7.I'm Mark Hamrick with AP Money Minute. ___ ___, The Associated Press.

A Texas appeals court has overturned a verdict against drugmaker Merck in a case involving its withdrawn painkiller Vioxx. AP's Mark Hamrick reports on that and the rest of Wednesday's top business headlines. (May 14)

The federal budget deficit soared in July, pushed higher by economic stimulus payments and $15 billion in outlays to protect depositors at failed banks.(Aug. 12)