UNITED STATES

As ACTA loses support in Europe, where a number of countries are putting the brakes on plans to ratify the controversial treaty, its opponents are planning new protests around the world.

It looks like American television just found its newest fad. Downton Abbey, the British WWI-era drama aired on PBS, has just dominated TV ratings according to Reuters. The show's second season, which premiered on Jan. 8, beat out television big shots Mad Men and Kim Kardashian, ranking with 4.2 million U.S. viewers.

Whether or not Rick Santorum is chosen by his party to take on President Obama, Foster Friess, the conservative billionaire who has fueled Santorum’s campaign will most likely continue to exert influence over the 2012 election. Here are five things you should know about the self-dubbed “Man Atop the Horse.”

Stocks gave up early gains on Wednesday as the Dow hovered at its highest level in nearly four years and investors waited for Greece to accept tough reforms in exchange for a new bailout.

British satellite operator Inmarsat has not received any takeover approaches, a source close to the company said on Wednesday, after speculation had driven the shares up as much as 10 percent.

Google will pledge to license on fair and reasonable terms the patents it acquires through buying Motorola Mobility, said a person familiar with the matter, in a bid to allay regulatory and users' concerns.

Though the Maldives capital Malé remains in turmoil after the ousting of president Mohamed Nasheed, officials say resorts in the popular tourist destinations remain safe and open for business.

Germany's Deutsche Bank will defer any part of an employee's bonus above 200,000 euros ($264,800) this year, a source close to the bank said, making it the latest industry player to limit pay in the face of fierce criticism of the industry.

M.I.A.'s recent split from her fiance might explain the whole middle finger situation.

Applications for home mortgages jumped last week, fueled by increased demand for refinancing as interest rates fell, an industry group said on Wednesday.

A U.S. district court judge pushed Dick Clark Productions and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association to end their bitter legal scuffle and reach a settlement.

There's been a lot of news coming from streaming video services recently. Earlier this week, Redbox, the movie rental service, announced a new joint venture with Verizon through which the companies will offer a streaming video service. Not to be outdone, Amazon has announced a deal with Viacom, Inc. that will allow Amazon Prime members to stream TV shows from Viacom-owned television stations such as Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, TV Land, Spike, VH1, BET, CMT, MTV and others.

Tuesday marked the 12th annual National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, which aims to address the disparity of infection rates in black communities.

The Washington Post reports that the CIA has plans to maintain a robust operation in both countries after conventional operations have wound down, underscoring the military's broader shift towards clandestine, targeted operations undertaken by CIA agents or Special Forces commandos.

Iran issued a verbal warning to the United States on Wednesday, claiming that the country has the military capabilities to attack American forces around the globe.

Some countries, including the U.S., could be trying to bring their budget deficit down too quickly, posing a risk for the economic recovery, the head of the International Monetary Fund's fiscal affairs department warned Wednesday.

Cisco's earnings have had a way of crushing the dreams of optimists in the last two years.

CVS Caremark Corp raised its full-year profit forecast as it wins over former patrons of Walgreen Co who fill prescriptions with pharmacy benefits manager Express Scripts Inc .

The former Pennsylvania senator, who surged back into relevancy with wins in Missouri, Colorado and Minnesota, has worked to position himself as the social values-centric conservative alternative to Mitt Romney. But he has also articulated a muscular foreign policy vision centered on his belief that radical Islam, particularly the Iranian regime, poses a dire threat to American security.

NASA is looking for at least two U.S. firms to design and build space taxis to ferry astronauts to and from the International Space Station, program managers said on Tuesday.

Stocks edged higher on Wednesday as hopeful investors awaited the latest attempt by Greece to reach a deal on reforms in exchange for a new bailout.