In brief: Microsoft fueling Yahoo searches
SAN FRANCISCO – Microsoft Corp.’s technology is now processing all the search requests on Yahoo Inc.’s website in the U.S. and Canada, completing a long-awaited leap that creates a more formidable challenger to Google Inc. in the most lucrative part of the online advertising market.
Tuesday’s shift marks the biggest step yet in a partnership that Microsoft and Yahoo forged 13 months ago after spending years trying to catch up to Google on their own, only to fall further behind.
Associated Press
Walmart recalls tainted meats
BUFFALO, N.Y. – Roast beef and ham that was distributed to Walmart delicatessens nationwide and sold in sandwiches has been recalled because it might be tainted with potentially harmful bacteria, the officials said Tuesday.
No illnesses have been reported from the 380,000 pounds of meat products that were made by Tyson Foods unit Zemco Industries in Buffalo and may contain Listeria, said Gary Mickelson, spokesman for Springdale, Ark.-based Tyson.
It wasn’t immediately clear how many stores sold the meat products.
A retail sample collected in Georgia tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes, Mickelson said. The organism can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and in others with weakened immune systems.
The products being recalled were all labeled as Marketside Grab and Go Sandwiches.
The packages, bearing vendor number 398412808 and the U.S. Department of Agriculture mark of inspection, were produced between June 18 and July 2, with “use by” dates between Aug. 20 and Sept. 10.
Associated Press
Briefcase
From wire reports
• Barnes & Noble Inc. said it lost $62.5 million, or $1.12 per share, in the quarter ending July 31. Last year during the same period it earned $12.3 million, or 21 cents per share. Revenue rose 21 percent to $1.4 billion, although the cost of sales rose as the company invested more in its online book store and Nook e-reader.
• Burger King Holdings Inc.’s fourth-quarter net income fell nearly 17 percent as sales slipped and costs for ingredients and packaging climbed. The fast-food chain said it earned $49 million, or 36 cents per share during the period that ended in late June. That compares to last year’s net income of $58.9 million, or 43 cents per share. The company also got a smaller tax benefit than last year. Revenue slipped 1 percent to $623 million. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected the company to earn 34 cents per share with revenue of $635 million.
• Medtronic Inc., the world’s largest medical device maker, reported fiscal first-quarter earnings Tuesday in line with Wall Street expectations, but weaker global demand for medical implants forced the company to slash 2011 earnings expectations. The Minneapolis-based company reported weaker-than-expected sales across all its major divisions, including heart-shocking defibrillators, pacemakers and spinal repair products.
• Dell Inc. said Tuesday its Aero smart phone is now on sale in the U.S. for $99 with a two-year AT&T contract. Dell has been selling similar phones in China and Brazil since late last year and has been promising a U.S. version since January. The Dell Aero uses an older version of Google Inc.’s Android operating system than many competing phones on the market today. The Aero uses version 1.5, also called “cupcake,” while most phones now use version 1.6 or higher. Dell says it has done a significant amount of work adding features to the base Google system.