Briefcase

ReliOn fuel cell earns wireless award

Spokane Valley company ReliOn Wednesday won third place in a “green telecom and smart energy solutions” category at the CTIA Wireless show in Orlando.

Its E-2500 Fuel Cell System came in third behind products developed by WYSIPS SAS and Wireless NRG, LLC. Media. Industry analysts judged the entries on innovation, functionality, tech value and overall “wow” factor.

The unit is a smaller, powerful version of a hydrogen fuel cell developed to provide backup power for telecom companies, large enterprises and government groups.

Tom Sowa

Showtime series won’t stream on Netfilx

Los Angeles – Amid an emerging rivalry between traditional pay TV operators and rising star Netflix Inc., CBS Corp.’s Showtime pay TV service confirmed Wednesday that back seasons of current original series like “Dexter” and “Californication” will not be available on Netflix’s streaming service as of this summer.

Instead, CBS will offer them to subscribers who pay for Showtime through Comcast Corp. on Comcast’s Xfinity TV platform.

The deal was in place since February, but news of these details broke this week after Netflix announced it was buying the right to debut the series “House of Cards” from executive producer David Fincher.

Debuting an original series on its service makes Netflix even more of a direct rival to pay TV channels like Showtime and HBO. Netflix had 20.2 million subscribers in the U.S. at the end of December, compared with just under 20 million for Showtime and HBO’s estimated 28 million.

Associated Press

Grocery produce prices should ease soon

Champaign, Ill. – A nearly 50 percent increase in vegetable prices that has sent shoppers reeling in the produce aisle should ease in the coming weeks as farmers send grocers more tomatoes, lettuce and other crops.

Vegetable prices shot up last month after cold weather in the southern U.S. and Mexico destroyed much of the winter vegetable supply, the Commerce Department said. From tomatoes in Florida to lettuce in Arizona, fruit and vegetables became frostbitten, and prices rose for the produce farmers could save.

Costs should be coming down soon, though, as crops farmers planted after the winter freezes start to reach stores, said growers, grocers and analysts. Grocers also typically switch this time of year to crops planted for spring, said Jody Shee, an analyst for the market research firm Mintel.

“Unless there are any other weather issues, the prices should bounce back pretty soon,” she said.

Associated Press