IBT Staff Reporter

In death as in life, iconic TV naturalist Steve Irwin captivated millions worldwide and clogged the Internet as fans from Guam to Glasgow reacted with disbelief to news The Crocodile Hunter was dead.

U.S. software firms SunGard Data Systems and Fiserv Inc top the list of suitors expected to submit bids for UK software company Misys by a deadline set for later this week, sources close to the matter said on Monday.

Sony Corp. said on Tuesday it would cut the price of its PlayStation 2 game console by about 19 percent to 16,000 yen ($138) in Japan as it gears up for the eagerly awaited launch in November of the PlayStation 3.

Self-regulation in food and beverage marketing is being exploited and is failing to curb childhood obesity, research by a global obesity taskforce presented on Tuesday has found.

Volkswagen AG intends to keep driving profit growth beyond the record 5.1 billion euros ($6.6 billion) before tax it has targeted for 2008, management told analysts on Monday.

Zee Tawasha is an unabashed Blackberry addict, constantly sending urgent e-mails to employees at 30 mobile phone stores he owns across California, Arizona and Nevada.

A proposed new IMF lending facility to avert crises in emerging market countries would only be available to those with strong performing economies, sustainable debt and transparent reporting systems, a draft of the proposal obtained by Reuters says.

He once cruised the nightspots of Tokyo in a Ferrari and enjoyed trips by private jet - now he prefers reading or meditating on a quiet mountainside while awaiting trial.

How much does terrorism affect stock prices?To find the answer, economists have parsed market reaction to events dating back to the 1915 sinking of the Lusitania, academics have studied how attacks on McDonald's restaurants have affected the company's stock price and researchers in Israel have chronicled what 13 years of suicide bombings did to stocks there.

Leaping past existing 3G cell phone technology, 4G Technology promises video, and data transmission as fast as broadband Internet connections.

The dollar slipped against most major currencies Friday even after the latest snapshot of U.S. employment came in better than expected.

Wall Street rallied on Friday following news that employers added 128,000 jobs in August.

Global manufacturing growth cooled in August, new orders expanded at their weakest pace in a year and inflationary pressures eased, a report said on Friday.

Hollywood is hoping high-definition DVDs will reignite a slowing market for movies at home, but they have drawn mixed reviews from retailers and analysts due to technical issues and a bitter format war.

Britain's largest shares drifted down on low volumes led by Diageo and with sentiment hit by a survey showing a sharp decline in British consumer confidence and by buoyant sterling following strong house price data.

The world's top handset maker Nokia said on Thursday it had agreed to buy mapping software firm gate5 AG for an undisclosed sum to tap into the fast-growing mobile navigation market.

Vietnam, which released a prominent jailed cyber-dissident this week, imposes tight legal and technical measures to control access to writings and people who challenge one-party rule, researchers and observers say.

Correspondent Greg Brosnan took up an assignment in Mexico City last year to cover the Mexican economy. In the following story he recounts how he was held up and robbed in an express kidnapping.

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. said on Thursday it sees global mobile phone sales growing faster than expected this year while its own handset sales would meet its target.

Electronic Arts Inc., the world's biggest video game publisher, said on Thursday it had struck deals with two in-game advertising providers, taking its first steps into the online advertising business.

In a first for the U.S. market, the struggling Mobile ESPN network is offering live and complete football games for viewing on cell phones.

A century after they were wiped out by hunters and a burgeoning population, wolves have returned to parts of eastern Germany as factories close down, businesses fail and people move out.

Intel formally announced its latest mobile processor on Monday, rounding out its entire processor family with the company's most advanced architecture to date.

Men's cable channel Spike TV is joining other Viacom properties that have taken their content digital in a significant way with Wednesday's official launch of a broadband player on SpikeTV.com.

The U.S. economy grew at a 2.9 percent annual pace in the second quarter, faster than originally reported but less of an upward revision than expected, as higher business investment offset a drop in residential construction, a Commerce Department report showed on Wednesday.

Signs that the world economy is at a turning point are being reflected by tentative evidence that bonds are moving back into favor after years as an unloved alternative to booming equities.

From Australia to Argentina, erratic weather is slashing wheat crops of the major producers, which is threatening to push up prices to multi-year highs and making it difficult for countries to replenish stocks.

Russia's leading aluminum firm, RUSAL, will take over its main competitor SUAL and the aluminum industry assets of Glencore to create the world market leader, a source close to the deal told Reuters on Wednesday.

Foster's Group Ltd., Australia's biggest beer and wine maker, said on Wednesday it was not aware of any takeover proposals, sending its shares down as much as 3 percent.