IBT Staff Reporter

Shares of RealNetworks (NASDAQ: RNWK) plummeted Thursday, following disappointing 2007 guidance announced with its fourth quarter earnings.

Merck & Co. (NYSE: MRK) said Wednesday it will pay $2.3 billion in taxes, interest and penalties to settle a dispute with the Internal Revenue Service.

Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO) reported a 22 percent profit drop for the fourth quarter Wednesday, hurt by a charge from its largest bottler.

Price competition is sparking up again between the world's largest chip makers, Intel Corp. (Nasdaq: INTC) and Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE: AMD).

GPS and consumer electronics maker Garmin Ltd (GRMN) soared today after reporting that fourth-quarter earnings more than doubled from a year ago.

DaimlerChrysler AG (NYSE: DCX) will downsize its Chrysler Group unit by cutting 13,000 jobs, or 16 percent of its total, in a bid to make its North American division return to profitability by 2008.

Time Warner Cable officially became public company Tuesday, with shares of the new company expected to begin trading as early as March 1.

Electronics maker Sharp Corp. was toppled from its leading position in the LCD-TV market in the most recent quarter, falling to fourth place as rival Samsung rose to take the lead.

There may be something to siestas after all. Office workers feeling a bit drowsy during the day may feel better about themselves knowing that midday napping seems to reduce fatal heart problems by about one third among men and women, according to new research.

Bollywood films are coming to mobile phones for the first time, a pair of companies announced at this year's 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona, Spain.

Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) is getting out of the baseball business and, as of Tuesday, the Atlanta Braves' new owner is Liberty Media Corp (NASDAQ: LCAPA), according to reports.

Shares of technology company Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) edged slightly higher in Tuesday mid-day trading, after an analyst raised his price target for the company on strength from its core businesses.

Shares of aluminum industry leader Alcoa, Inc. (NYSE: AA) rose over six percent Tuesday on talk of a possible takeover bids from mining giants BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto.

While General Motors Corp. and Toyota Motor Co. both say that being profitable and providing the cars that people want to buy is their priority, the question of who will be number one in vehicle sales has nevertheless attracted a great deal of attention.

Imagine being able to send money internationally via cell phone, even to impoverished nations where access to financial infrastructure such as ATMs and bank branches isn't convenient.

Luxury Hotel chain Four Seasons Hotel Inc. (NYSE: FS), said Monday it had agreed to be bought for $3.37 billion by a group of private investors which include Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates, and Saudi Prince Alawaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud.

Flashy new cell phones, faster networks and more entertainment geared for the small screen are taking center stage this week as the wireless industry gathers for the 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona, Spain.

The Home Depot Inc.(NYSE: HD), the largest home improvement retailer, said Monday that it could sell its wholesale distribution unit as part of its strategic revision.

Chip maker Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) said its researchers have built a chip with 80 processing cores capable of more than a trillion calculations per second (teraflop).

Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) has a candidate for the $40 billion race to provide airborne refueling for the Air Force, its KC-767 Advanced Tanker.

Cell phone carrier market is headed downhill and companies need new strategies to cope according to a new report.

Shares of memory makers fell on Monday as Micron Technologies Inc. (NYSE: MU) after management warned analysts on last week of steep memory price declines.

Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) shares rose Monday, following a Wall Street upgrade citing several product catalysts and potential upside from declining memory prices.

Vodafone secured its expansion into the fast growing Indian cell phone market, gaining control of the nation's No. 4 cell phone operator for $11.1 billion.

The U.S. is trying to see if a new set of dollar coins can catch on after previous attempts have fizzled.

Use of the iPod or any other portable electronic device while crossing the street would be illegal if enough fellow lawmakers agree with a New York official.

The first U.S. non-prescription weight loss pill was approved this week by U.S. health officials.

Following a complaint by Toshiba Corp., the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) said it would investigate flash memory devices produced by South Korea's Hynix Semiconductor.

SpiralFrog, the firm that hopes to expand the online music market beyond payment-based iTunes and others with its ad-supported music service, signed a pair licensing deals this week in anticipation of a launch early this year.