Company News: Restrictions sought during Coke trial

Prosecutors invoked a law used in terrorism and government espionage cases in asking a judge Thursday to bar jurors at the trial of a former Coca-Cola secretary charged in a trade secrets theft case from disclosing to others confidential materials they are presented.

In the unusual request, the government also asked that any exhibits containing Coca-Cola trade secrets that are entered into evidence during Joya Williams’ trial be sealed by the court.

The move comes even though reporters will be in the courtroom and will be free to report what they hear and see. The government said sealing the exhibits would “avoid further display and copying by the general public.”

The government said in its motion that “initially” it is not seeking to close certain portions of the trial or to exclude the public from attending. It’s unclear from the motion if that position could change later.

There was no immediate ruling by U.S. District Judge J. Owen Forrester.

“Warner Bros. is set to introduce a high definition DVD disc that can hold films and TV shows in rival and incompatible formats, the latest sign that the yearlong format war is long from over.

Warner Bros., a unit of Time Warner Inc., said it developed the “Total HD Disc” to help break the stalemate between HD DVD, developed by a consortium led by Toshiba Corp., and rival Blu-ray, backed by Sony Corp. Both deliver sharper pictures and increased space for special features.

All but the most adventurous consumers have stayed away from choosing sides in the battle for fear of being stuck with the losing technology, much the same as happened when VHS and Betamax battled it out for videotape dominance in the 1980s.

Initially, Hollywood studios lined up behind one or the other formats. Warner Bros. first backed HD DVD, but then decided to release films and TV shows on both formats.

Some studios, such as Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom Inc., have followed Warner Bros. in backing both formats. Only Universal Studios, a division of General Electric Co., is releasing films exclusively in HD DVD.

“Sharper Image Corp. will reprice stock option grants for three executives as a result of an internal review of its option-granting practices, according to regulatory filings.

The San Francisco-based specialty retailer will increase the exercise price by unspecified amounts for options granted between 1995 and 2005 to Executive Vice President William Feroe, Executive Vice President Gregory Alexander and Senior Vice President Anthony Farrell.