ROUNDUPS
In the papers 22 April
22-04-2002
by Paula Mythen
Micron Technology has provisionally agreed to a takeover of Hynix Semiconductor | Bill Gates is to testify in US court on Monday
The Irish Independent reports that Network 365 posted losses of over IEP1 million in its first six months of trading, according to figures filed at the Companies Office. Incorporated in June 1999, the company reported in December 2000 a loss of around IEP1.05 million on turnover of around IEP340,000. The figures also show that the company had a trading loss of nearly IEP0.7 million and capital expenditure of almost IEP260,000 in the same period to December 2000.
The Financial Times reports that Ericsson is seeking SEK30 billion from shareholders to strengthen its weak balance sheet and enable it pull through the telecoms market downturn. The company also announced that 10,000 jobs could go in 2002, including some job cuts already identified. A further 10,000 more jobs could go in 2003. The group announced a deeper-than-expected first quarter loss of SEK5.4 billion, against market estimates of a SEK4.8 billion deficit. It also warned it was facing a full-year loss, after indicating in January that it hoped for a five percent operating margin this year. Read the full story on ElectricNews.Net.
The paper also reports that Micron Technology of the US has provisionally agreed a USD3.4 billion equity-funded takeover of Hynix Semiconductor of South Korea in a long-awaited deal that would create the world's largest memory chipmaker. Under the terms of a non-binding memorandum of understanding, Micron pledged to take control of Hynix's core memory business and buy a 15 percent stake in the South Korean company's non-memory division.
The Wall Street Journal reports that Microsoft chairman Bill Gates is to testify in the antitrust case on Monday. Microsoft has said that in his testimony, Gates will trace the evolution of the personal-computing industry and the software industry that his company's Windows operating-system monopoly dominates. Most important, he will tell the court about "the potential harm to consumers and the industry" posed by the restraints on the company's business sought by a group of nine states that have refused to settle the case, a spokesman said.
The same paper reports that Advanced Micro Devices Inc. has been hit with an unusual post-11 September discrimination suit, filed by Walid Maghribi, a man of Arab descent who had been the third-ranking executive at the company. Maghribi, who resigned in December as a senior vice president and president of the chip maker's memory-products group, alleges that he was subjected to humiliating treatment after Jerry Sanders, AMD's chairman and chief executive officer, learned that Maghribi is a Lebanese Arab. His suit, filed last week in federal court in San Jose alleges that Maghribi was negotiating "the most significant business transaction" in AMD's history when he was abruptly undermined by actions of Sanders and president Hector Ruiz, who is scheduled to assume the chief executive officer title Thursday.
The Sunday Independent reports that Iona has launched a breach of contract case against former employee, Bob Wahmsley, who is currently chief operating officer of Cape Clear. The paper also reports that Cyril Maguire's Trintech is considering a share buyback to prevent the company being delisted from the Nasdaq Stock Exchange.
The Sunday Tribune carries a feature on Datalex and questions whether the company has enough resources to last until it reaches profitability. The same paper reports that Digicel, the Jamaican mobile telecommunications company in which Denis O' Brien has a major share is not expected to break even or make a profit for at least three years.
The Sunday Business Post reports that Spectel is expected to announce its timetable for a market listing in Dublin and London. The paper also reports that Marrakech is expected to take on USD10 million in funding, the second tranche of an investment committed last November by existing investors.
The Sunday Times reports that about 14,000 employees and former employees of Eircom will receive payments of up to EUR12,700 each after the Eircom Employee Share Ownership Trust decided to distribute Vodafone shares valued at EUR135 million.
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