France Luxembourg Altice Suddenlink
In this Wednesday, March 18, 2015 file photo, Altice group's Chairman Patrick Drahi poses for photographers at the Scopus Awards of the French Friends of the Hebrew University, in Paris, France. Luxembourg-based Altice SA said Wednesday May 20, 2015, it will buy 70 percent of Missouri-based cable TV provider Suddenlink and is now potentially in talks to acquire Time Warner Cable.
(Thibault Camus, Associated Press)
Stock market news:
Stocks ended weaker today after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen indicated the central bank was poised to raise interest rates this year, in line with Wall Street's expectations. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 53.72 points to end at 18,232.02, the S&P 500 lost 4.76 points to close the week at 2,126.06 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.43 points to 5,089.36. (Reuters)
European stocks slipped today, with investors keeping a close eye on negotiations between Greece and its lenders as well as the latest confidence data from Germany. (MarketWatch)
Oil prices slid today as the dollar strengthened and the decline in U.S. drilling slowed down. (Wall Street Journal)
Business news:
Time Warner Cable is in talks about a potential sale to either Altice or Charter Communications, people with knowledge of the matter said. (Bloomberg News)
A $19 million deal between Target and MasterCard to settle lawsuits stemming from the retailer's massive pre-Christmas 2013 data breach has been scrapped, because it failed to get enough support from the affected banks and credit unions. (Associated Press)
In a landmark compromise with California farmers, state regulators today agreed to growers' offer to voluntarily reduce their water use by 25 percent to stave off possibly deeper mandatory cuts amid the worst drought in a century. (USA Today)
A small offshore oil platform caught fire in shallow water near the coast of Louisiana today and a sheen was seen in the sea after workers were evacuated, officials said. (Reuters)
The labor dispute that hobbled international trade through West Coast seaports earlier this year officially ended today when the union representing dockworkers announced its members had ratified a five-year contract. (Associated Press)
Amgen said it will terminate a collaboration with AstraZeneca to develop an inflammation drug after it observed suicidal thoughts in the subjects of a trial. (Reuters)
A staggering plunge in the free-market value of Venezuelan currency sent people scrambling to sell off their depreciating bolivars today. (Associated Press)
Technology news:
Microsoft and Salesforce.com held "significant talks" this spring but failed to agree on a price, according to a report. (CNBC News)
Google's most recent patent design for an anthropomorphic voice assistant/toy is a robot shaped like a teddy bear or bunny that uses facial recognition to identify the gaze of whoever's looking at it. (Gizmodo)
A Hawaii company has sued Oculus VR, saying the founder of the Facebook-owned virtual-reality system misappropriated confidential information and proprietary technology. (Dow Jones Business News)
Hackers have leaked the personal details and sexual preferences of 3.9 million users of hookup website Adult FriendFinder. (The Register)