Briefly

BitTorrent file-sharing Web site ‘closing down for good’

New York One of the Web’s most popular file-sharing sites has shut down less than a week after Hollywood announced a flurry of lawsuits against operators of such Internet servers.

A note posted on Suprnova.org, which facilitated sharing among users of the BitTorrent program, said the site was “closing down for good.” The collection of links to downloadable files, including music, movies and books, was taken down.

“We are very sorry for this, but there was no other way, we have tried everything,” the statement said.

Reached via Suprnova.org’s chat room, the site’s anonymous operator refused to comment on why it had shut down.

Last week, movie studios sued more than 100 operators of U.S. and European sites that host BitTorrent links but did not name the defendants.

Suprnova.org was the most popular repository for links to files that could be downloaded using the BitTorrent program.

Another site that carried BitTorrent links, N4p.com, said it had shut down due to a civil complaint that cited the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Torrentbits.org and Phoenix-torrents.com also shut down.

Penalty tariffs upheld on shrimp

Washington The Bush administration on Monday upheld the imposition of penalty tariffs on shrimp imports from Brazil, Ecuador, India and Thailand.

The move won praise from U.S. shrimp producers but drew criticism from importers, who said the penalty tariffs would drive up food costs for consumers.

The Commerce Department ruling affirmed with slight modifications a preliminary ruling reached in late July that the four countries were selling shrimp in the United States at unfairly low prices, a practice known as dumping.

The department imposed antidumping tariffs on shrimp imported from the four countries ranging from 9.69 percent to 67.8 percent for Brazil, 2.35 percent to 4.48 percent for Ecuador, 5.02 percent to 13.42 percent for India, and 5.79 percent to 6.82 percent for Thailand.

Hardee’s offers slimmer alternative

St. Louis A month after debuting its Monster Thickburger, Hardee’s is offering customers a new sandwich with 1,050 fewer calories and 103 fewer grams of fat.

The Charbroiled BBQ Chicken Sandwich weighs in at 370 calories and just four grams of fat. That’s a far cry from the Monster Thickburger that has drawn jokes from the likes of Jay Leno and David Letterman with its massive 1,420 calories and 107 grams of fat. Leno joked the sandwich — two 1/3-pound slabs of meat, three slices of cheese, bacon and mayonnaise in a buttered bun — comes in a coffin-shaped box.

“The Charbroiled BBQ Chicken Sandwich is the yin to the Monster Thickburger’s yang,” said Brad Haley, executive vice president of marketing for St. Louis-based Hardee’s.

Juli Niemann, an analyst for RT Jones in suburban St. Louis, said Hardee’s is trying to offer “a little bit of something for everyone.” And while low-carb may be fading, low-fat isn’t, she said.

Retail gas prices fall again

Washington The retail price of gasoline fell for the seventh straight week to average $1.82 per gallon nationwide, the Energy Department reported Monday.

The government survey said the average price nationwide of regular-grade unleaded gasoline declined 3.2 cents last week to $1.815. Prices are 33 cents higher than a year ago.

Pump prices are highest on the West Coast, averaging $1.993 per gallon, and cheapest on the Gulf Coast, averaging $1.718 per gallon.