Show CCW JCnTS at 11am 991874 IKh -- 1808 I Monday March 13 2000 Stated-Examin- er Business Editor 625-424- 53 5 wii ehsei r-- n m © HQDT3 end Chandler dynasty which has owned DeaOwill the LA Times since 1982 The Assoaated Press LOS ANGELES - In a media merger 'creating the nation’s third-largenewspaper st company Tribune Co will take over Times Mirror Co and end the dynasty that has controlled the Los Angeles Times since 1882“the Times announced today The JS646 billion transaction will mark the end of Times Mirror-- as a company The fi® fenny pteims Chandler family which owns a of the company’s voting shares has pledged to approve the deal the Times reported Together the combined companies will boast a daily newspaper circulation of 36 million by the Tribune’s count with readership in the nation’s three largest cities - New York Los Angeles and Chicago By circulation it will rank behind only Gannett Co Inc and Knight Ridder The deal approved by Times Mirror directors late Sunday still must be approved by shareholders and is subject to exchanging each of their Times federal review It may require a waiver of majority Communications Federal Commission rules forbidding a company to own both a TV station and a newspaper in the same market Tribune Co’s broadcast holdings include KTLA-Tin Los Angeles V Because it involved noncompetitive bidding other bidders have 20 calendar days to top the Tribune Co’s offer Under the takeover Times Mirror shareholders will have a choice of taking $93 per share from Tribune Co - nearly twice the stock’s recent value - or Mirror shares for 25 shares of Tribune Co stock The Tribune Co also will assume about $14 billion Mew Times in debt the Times reported Tribune Co would control operations from its Chicago headquarters and John Madigan chairman of Tribune Co would head the new company the Chicago Tribune said today Times reporters leaving work early today said they were surprised by the merger and uncertain about the impact “It’s a very unsettled feeling” said Carlos Selva who is a reporter with the Los Angeles Post news service “As for me I won’t know until I get more details” The proposed sale follows five years of dramatic changes at Times Mirror under the stewardship of its chief executive Mark H Willes After arriving from General Mills in spring Times-Washingt- he closed The (Baltimore) 1995 Evening Sun and New York Newsday and sold off assets that substantially trimmed the company - More information is available at wwwtimesmirror-coand wwwJribunecom on the Web m Insurer firm Aetna will soon split in two and financial services departments will become public companies Health-car- e The Associated Press NEW YORK - Aetna Inc the nation’s largest health insurer has rejected a $10 billion takeover offer and instead announced and plans to split its health-car- e financial services businesses into two publicly traded companies The troubled insurer will be separated into two independent publicly traded companies “as soon as an orderly separation can be achieved” the Hartford d company’s board said in a statement Sunday Conn-base- BEUiHS MARKET: Two Chinese men pass by a pile of shoes on sale at a Beijing market today The shoes were sellingfor about the equivalent of $1 81 a pair Chinese Foreign Trade Minister Shi Guangsheng said today that China is determined to join the World T rade Organization even if the US Congress refuses to grant Beijing permanent low-tari- ff trading rights China insists If US discourages nual session of the National its entryBeijing may cut natiorirjpff from its market The AsBoaeted Press BEIJING - China is join the World Trade Organization even if the US Congress refuses to grant Beijdeter-mined'- ing permanent low-tari- ff : tb trading China’s foreign trade minister said today Shi' Guangsheng suggested that ITCongress votes “no” on normal trade relations Beijing mightlnvoke a WTO rule allowing it tp deny US companies access to the Chinese market causing the United States “rerights get into the WTO it a generation” “If the United States misses gret for 20 years for this opportunity it will actually lose the tremendous market of China and will be giving away the opportunity for participating in this market to its competitors" Shi said at a news conference-on the sidelines of the an People’s Congress Shi’s comments were the clearest indication so far that China will seek entry to WTO regardless of the US Congress The trade minister noted that China has reached separate accords with all but 10 of the 135 WTO members and that once those remaining deals are concluded it can gain membership if two-thirof WTO members approve The Clinton administration promised to ask Congress to grant China permanent normal trade rights as part of a market access deal Shi and US Trade Representative Charlene signed in November to allow Beijing to join WTO the Bar-shefs- ky organization that oversees world trade rules China is the only major US Geneva-base- d trading partner whose normal trading status nost-favor- - previously called nation” - must be renewed annually A positive vote by Congress would assure China the same access to US tarmarkets and lowest-possibiffs that are now viewed as routine with other nations President Clinton last week sent the proposal to make normal trade benefits permanent to Congress where it is being fought by labor and environmental groups The administration business and most congressional Republicans support the China trade deal and there appears to be enough support to pass the US Senate but support in the House is doubtful le The trade minister declined to elaborate on what actions if any China might take against US business if Congress does not approve permanent normal trade status Shi said China was close to setting a bilateral agreement with the European Union the largest of the 10 trading partners with which it has yet to reach agreement He said that with EU Commissioner Pascal Lamy coming to Beijing late this month the two sides could complete a deal a Fort Worth Texas-base- d American Airlines and Atlanta-base- d Delta Air Lines said Sun- day they have matched Continental’s latest increase Northwest Airlines based in Eagan Minn kets matched in certain mar- Chicago-base- lines and St Louis-base- d Air- Trans Report FCC to promote World Airlines were studying the increases representatives trading for airwaves Mi Air fare said Sunday Dallas-base- d hike stays for noiv HOUSTON United d last year and maintenance violations account for 38 percent USA Today reported today The total amount of fines from last year could grow because the Federal Aviation Administration withholds information about security cases that were opened within the past year - A fare increase Southwest Air- lines did not go along with the increase Attempts to reach officials Sunday from Tempe-base- d America West Airlines or US Airway with headquarters in Arlington Va were unsuccess- ful Report AJrrno fines iated by Continental Airlines for safety violations go up stick as competitors have of up to $40 per roundtrip init- may ARLINGTON Va - Fines either matched it or continue to on US airlines for safety violastudy the move y It was the third time in as tions totaled more than $94 millast year an increase of at "manymonths that Houston-base- d lion 80 percent from the year least bids Continental has led before according to a published jto raise fares blaming soaring report jet fuel prices In January led the industry with a Security violations account (§for about Jmlf the amount fined -- Con-jtinen- tal YORK - The federal NEW government is developing plans to treat airwaves as commodities to be bought and sold in the open market The New York Times reported today Federal Communications Commission officials say they are working on rules that would create a trading system in which telecommunications companies could bid on frequencies that are owned by other companies but are underused Under the current system the government licenses each user and regulates what frequencies and signal power it can use The oldest licenses were given free recent ones were sold jl -- The Associated Press “We strongly believe that the interests of our shareholders employees customers and the communities in which we operate are well served by this plan and by the additional steps we will be taking to improve our’ businesses” said William H Donaldson who was named chairman and CEO in a management shak-eu- p last month pany” he said Analysts have said Aetna’s financial services business which sells annuities and other investment vehicles had little in com- mon with its health insurance business “Long term this is a very logical move” Jim Lane an analyst with Salomon Smith Barney said today “But it doesn’t do a whole lot for shareholders in the short term” He noted some investors will be disappointed that Aetna retakeover bid jected a offered from WellPoint Health Networks Inc a managed-car- e company and ING Group a Dutch investment bank and insurer WellPoint wanted Aetna US Healthcare while ING was interested in Aetna’s financial services and international arms Lane said Wellpoint-IN$70-a-sha- re G would likely have lowered its offer after getting a look at Aetna’s internal financial records Aetna probably decided not against the deal because if it opened its it books to Wellpoint-IN- UTAH Salt Lake firm get Chinese pact SALT LAKE CIT- Y- Evans & Sutherland Computer Corp will supply two advanced digital theaters for installation in China The contract awards valued at over $3 million call for E&S to install its StarRider and Digistar II systems in two science centers currently under construction in China: the Shenzhen Children’s Palace and Shanghai ScienceLand The two theater systems immerse audiences in digital adventures presented on giant domed screens E&S will also create show content for the theaters that allow audiences to explore Mars delve into the Earth's core or fight invading bacteria E&S StarRider will be installed in the Space Theater at Shenzhen Children’s Palace $100 million part of a two-year project sponsored by Shenzhen City E&S will function as the prime contractor for the Space Theater which features an Astro-Te- c dome er Iwerks large-form- film at projection system and n theater automation and surround-soun- d audio systems This is the first StarRider installation outside the United States Shanghai ScienceLand selected the E&S Digistar II projector for its Space Dome Theater Scheduled to open in June 2001 the theater is funded by the Shanghai Municipal Government and is currently the largest of its kind in China This will be the second Digistar installation in China Digistar II is the world's only digital planetarium projector Sky-Ska- er G “Each of our two core businesses has great potential and each will be better able to realize that potential as a separate com would have lost bargaining leverage Lane said Aetna officials said the bid was too low HATIOHAL 12 Technologies in $93 billion deal DALLAS -- Software developer i2 Technologies Inc is buying Aspect Development Inc for about $93 billion in stock in a deal that would be one of the largest in the software industry THE MIER'IET Computer break-in-s highlight card risks The Associated Press NEW YORK -- Erica a public relations shopped online for the first time at Christmas only to wind up with more than $500 in fraudulent Credit card charges Although card issuers eventually canceled the charges - some of them pornographic -she plans to shop oflline in the future “It was a major hassle for me waiting for new cards” Proto said “I had to fight with them at first" Faced with angry and nervous customers like Proto card companies are trying to teach Mountain View merchants better Internet security Not doing so they fear could cause an erosion in consumer confidence impeding and the use of cards online The threat of credit thefts has long existed in unscrupulous waiters copying card numbers or store clerks mishandling carbons Online the difference is magnitude: A single Internet strike can net a thief thousands of numbers Two weeks ago for instance SalesGatecom of Buffalo NY joined the growing list of victims when it discovered hackers had stolen See R1SKS63 Offidofs: Pork Raising tha minimum wags ' 10 HONG KONG -- A planned Disneyland park is environmentally sound although it may scare some endangered sea eagles away from their nearby nest and force them to find to a new home officials said Monday The pair of breeding sea eagles weren't even discovered until foe officials began their assessment of foe environment and foe birds may be far enough away from foe Disneyland park that foe construction crowds and noise won’t bother them white-bellie- 9 8 7 6 4- to environment OK The Senate may approve a bill that would boost the minimum Vrage by $1 an hour over three years Here is a look at the increases in the minimum wage and the nation’s average hourly wage 5 d Aspect Development would become a subsidiary of Dallas-base- d i2 under the deal announced today They each specialize in making software that helps companies conduct business with other companies The resulting company will have 4000 employees and a research and development budget of almost $1 million per business day Each outstanding share of Aspect would be exchanged at a ratio of 055 share of i2 common stock for each share of Aspect stock The deal takes into account Aspect’s stock split that became effective today The transaction is subject to customary conditions including obtaining necessary regulatory approvals linrrjLvncriAL A quick glcnco $13 par hour Calif-base- - d -St- 3— andard-Examiner staff and wire services 2— 1 — utj Our ’3839’45’50 '58 ’6163 '67 '68 74 75 76 78 79 SO ‘ Government began tracking average hourly mage In 1947 'll SO SI S7 breads Source Department of Uor ’T |