In brief: Ex-anchor takes job at visitors bureau
Dana Haynes, a KAYU broadcaster, has been named communications director for the Spokane Regional Convention & Visitors Bureau.
Haynes has recently been an anchor for the 10 p.m. Fox First at 10 on KAYU-TV.
Her new job starts Sept. 13, said Jeanna Hofmeister, vice president and director of destination marketing for the bureau, which promotes conventions and tourism to the region.
Haynes is taking the job vacated by Pam Scott, who left for a position with Red Lion Hotels.
KHQ, in a press release, said Stephanie Vigil will fill the weeknight 10 p.m. Fox First at Ten slot.
Tom Sowa
Dell gives up fight for data company
Seattle – Dell Inc. is walking away from a bidding contest with rival Hewlett-Packard Co. for data-storage maker 3Par Inc.
Dell said Thursday it won’t match HP’s offer to pay $33 per share for 3Par, or about $2.07 billion.
The board of 3Par approved HP’s offer, which is 83 percent above Dell’s first offer. The deal is expected to close by the end of the year.
Associated Press
GM going public in mid-November
DETROIT – General Motors plans to start trading shares again on Nov. 18, timing that allows the company one more quarter of earnings to build its case to investors, a firm that researches initial public offerings said Thursday.
Scott Sweet, the managing partner of IPO Boutique, said GM plans to price the shares on Nov. 17 and begin selling them the next day.
It’s unclear if the IPO dates have been finalized. Two people with knowledge of the process say the automaker’s board hasn’t approved a date for the IPO but is expected to meet next week to discuss the issue.
Sweet said his information comes from multiple people on Wall Street but declined to name them.
Associated Press
From wire reports
• H&R Block Inc. on Thursday said its fiscal first-quarter loss narrowed by 2 percent as it reduced staffing and other expenses. The tax preparer posted a net loss of $130.7 million, or 41 cents per share for the three months ended July 31, compared with a loss of $133.6 million, or 40 cents per share, last year.
• Sunoco Inc. has tapped former General Motors CEO Fritz Henderson to lead the energy spin-off it is forming early next year. Henderson, 52, is joining Pittsburgh-based Sunoco as a senior vice president and will help prepare for SunCoke Energy to split from the company’s core oil refining and gasoline station business in the first half of 2011. He will then become chairman and CEO of SunCoke, Sunoco’s metallurgical coke manufacturing operations.
• Under a new five-year agreement, Google Inc. will continue to provide the search results on AOL Inc.’s websites. The companies signed the deal this week.
• Car rental company Avis Budget Group said Thursday it is raising the cash portion of its bid for Dollar Thrifty as it battles Hertz for the potential buyout. Avis said that it will increase the cash component to $40.75 per share from its previous offer of $39.25 per share. The bid also includes 0.6543 shares of Avis Budget Group Inc. stock.
• The average rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage fell to 4.32 percent in the week ended Thursday from 4.36 percent, Freddie Mac said in a statement. That was the lowest since the McLean, Va.-based company began compiling the data in 1971.