BRIEFS.(Business)

NATIONAL

Lehman Brothers rakes in respectable Q3 profit

Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. on Wednesday delivered third-quarter profit above expectations as Wall Street's No. 4 securities firm relied on trading gains to make up for a slowdown in investment banking activity.

The languishing of the investment banking business might be temporary. Lehman expects a record pipeline of deals that could power fourth-quarter earnings.

Investors seemed pleased with the news, sending Lehman's shares up $2.04, or 3 percent, to close at $70.06 on the New York Stock Exchange.

Delta Air Lines to offer on-demand services

Delta Air Lines will offer on-demand movies, television shows and music to all customers on some long-haul domestic flights, including its daily service between Denver and Atlanta.

First-class customers will receive the new entertainment features for free, while coach class customers will pay a $5 charge per movie and receive television, music and trivia for free, spokeswoman Betsy Talton said.

The new service, which will be phased in over a period of time, will be available to all passengers on select Delta flights over four hours or more than 1,750 miles, including those from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport to cities including Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Salt Lake City, San Francisco and Seattle.

MTV targets cell phones for its music videos

Viacom Inc.'s MTV Networks said it will create videos for mobile phones with Universal Music Group artists including Elton John and The Killers, part of an effort to find new outlets for music, videos and ring tones.

MTV also will produce original programs derived from its shows such as Sucker Free and VH1's Live@VH1.com performance series, spokesman Matthew Hutchison said.

Net phone service offered to Mac users

EBay Inc.'s Skype, the world's largest Internet telephone service, introduced the first version of its video- calling software for Macintosh computer users as it seeks to add new subscribers.

The software allows users to make free video calls to other Skype subscribers regardless of whether they use Apple Computer Inc.'s Macintosh or Microsoft Corp.'s Windows software, Luxembourg-based Skype said .

Ford's board may speed job, factory reductions

Ford Motor Co.'s board of directors began a two-day meeting Wednesday to contemplate a plan that could have the ailing automaker slash jobs and reduce factories further and faster in its quest to revive profits.

Details from the meeting, which is expected to continue today, were not available Wednesday.

Many industry analysts say the new round of restructuring is crucial to the company's future and will involve cuts to bring Ford's production capacity in line with its declining sales and market share. White- collar jobs and benefits reportedly are also in line for reductions.

LOCAL

Former SEC chief to head Adelphia payout

Former Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Richard Breeden was hired by the U.S. government to oversee the payment of hundreds of millions of dollars to defrauded Adelphia Communications Corp. investors.

The Justice Department has seized more than $720 million in cash, stock and real estate from the cable company's founder, John Rigas, and his son Timothy, who were convicted in 2004 of conspiracy and securities fraud. Both remain free as they appeal.

Ex-J.D. Edwards exec lands job in Florida

An ex-CEO of the former J.D. Edwards & Co. was named chief executive of Tech Data Corp., a Florida distributor of computer products.

Robert Dutkowsky's appointment is effective Oct. 2. Steven Raymund will resign as CEO and remain as nonexecutive chairman.

The move comes after the Clearwater, Fla.-based company set plans to split the roles of chairman and CEO. Dutkowsky, 51, is currently CEO of computing firm Egenera Inc. in Massachusetts. Dutkowsky came aboard Egenera after PeopleSoft bought J.D. Edwards. Dutkowsky helped oversee the friendly merger. Oracle later bought PeopleSoft after a protracted takeover battle.

Tech Data Corp. said it would pay Dutkowsky a $900,000 annual salary. He also has the opportunity to earn a bonus equal to his base salary. The CEO is guaranteed to receive the bonus during fiscal 2007 and 2008.

Northfield Stapleton adds handful of retailers

Developer Forest City named several new stores signed for Northfield Stapleton, which opens next month.

Children's Place, Hot Topic, Iron Mountain Winery, Buckle, Journeys and Justice will open shops at the center, which is anchored by the first new Macy's store to open in Colorado.

Ultimate gives face-lift to flagship retail outlet

Thornton-based Ultimate Electronics Inc. has revamped its flagship store just in time to unveil it to attendees of the Consumer Electronics Design and Innovation Association Expo this week.

The store, at 321 W. 84th Ave. in Thornton, will feature signature vendor rooms designed to house the latest in consumer electronics technology; a larger selection of HDTVs; and Ultimate Ride, a custom auto installation bay for in-car audio and video systems.

Nonprofit alliance holds grand opening

The Alliance for Sustainable Colorado held a grand opening Wednesday for its Alliance Center, a historic LoDo building that serves as a hub for more than 30 nonprofit groups working on health care, conservation and other policy development issues.

The 38,000-square-foot building has been renovated and fitted with energy-saving and environmentally friendly products, including insulation made with recycled blue jeans and fixtures that reduce water consumption by more than 80 percent.

Mine cleanup bill sails through Senate group

A mine cleanup bill introduced by U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar on Wednesday was approved by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

The bill will now go to the full Senate for consideration.

Dubbed the Good Samaritan bill, SB 1848 encourages community groups, companies and individuals to clean up mines under a permit issued by the Environmental Protection Agency and exempts them from liabilities outside the strict obligation to complete a cleanup plan. State approval and public participation will be required.

Sens. Harry Reid, D-Nev., Wayne Allard, R-Colo., Max Baucus, D-Mont., Tom Carper, D-Del., and Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., and governors Bill Owens of Colorado and Kenny Guinn of Nevada support the bill.

Comcast pumps up HD programming

Comcast, which has more than 800,000 subscribers in Colorado, on Wednesday announced it's adding 100 hours of high-definition programming through its On Demand service, including at least 20 movies from Starz Entertainment Group each month. The companies plan to kick off the series this Friday by showing The Chronicles of Narnia more than a week before its scheduled air date on the Starz HD cable channel.

Douglas County-based Starz, which offers 16 channels through its Starz and Encore brands, is owned by John Malone's Liberty Media.

Samsonite racks up $6 million net loss

Denver-based Samsonite Corp. reported a net loss of $6 million or 3 cents per share on revenue of $257.5 million for the quarter ended July 31, compared with a net loss of $1.3 million or 1 cent per share on sales of $236.5 million in the same period last year.

The luggage maker, which will hold its annual shareholder meeting in Paris next week, said this year that it expects to fold its Denver operations into its Massachusetts facility and exit this market completely by the end of 2007.

INFOBOX

ECONOMY

Mortgage applications index up 3.2%

Mortgage applications in the U.S. rose last week to the highest level in more than three months after a recent decline in borrowing costs spurred home buying.

The Mortgage Bankers Association's index of applications to buy a home or refinance an existing loan increased 3.2 percent to 584.2. The group's gauge of purchases rose 5.3 percent to a nine-week high. Refinancing edged up as well.

The report suggests the slowdown in housing after a five-year boom will be gradual and unlikely to jeopardize economic growth, economists said. Smaller gains in home prices, mortgage rates close to a five-month low and builder incentives such as free granite countertops are sparking interest.

"There are still people buying homes and still people selling homes, and there's a market force in place to soften the blow," said Bill Mulvihill, an economist at First Trust Advisors LP in Lisle, Ill. "I don't expect the housing slowdown to have a noticeable impact on consumer spending. It'll be a gradual, orderly decline."

The average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage edged up to 6.32 percent from the prior week's 6.31 percent, which was the lowest level since March, the report showed.

The index of total mortgage applications rose to the highest level since 588 in early May.

THIS JUST IN...

* CH2M Hill, an engineering, construction and operations firm based in Denver, said it opened an office in Tucson.

* Western Union Co., a Greenwood Village-based money transfer services company, said Gary Kohn has been appointed vice president, investor relations, to lead the company's investor relations activities as it completes a planned spinoff from parent company First Data Corp.

* Denver-based mobile asset management company TrenStar Inc. said it named Edward R. Flaherty president and chief executive officer. Flaherty was the company's chief financial officer and its chief operations officer.

* Golden-based HumWare Media Corp. said it has been awarded the Fantasy Sports Trade Association's 2006 Top Industry Award for the Top Unique Contest for the HumWare Fantasy Online Sports Division's Loser Challenge.

* Christian Living Communities announced a renovation of its senior care community in Centennial, The Johnson Center, to include an adult day services program. Construction of the $650,000 project will begin in September with completion set for January.

* Charlotte Brantley was named president and CEO of the Denver-based Clayton Foundation.

* Winners of the Colorado Parent 2006 Colorado's Best Companies for Working Families recognition program will be honored next month. Large company winners: HealthOne; Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield; Citigroup; Hunter Douglas; and Alpine Bank. Medium company winners: OSI Pharmaceuticals; Allstate Insurance Co.; Merrick & Co.; Sybase Inc.; and Sundyne Corp. Small company winners: The North Highland Co.; Arnold & Porter LLP; Morrison & Foerster LLP; Alion Science/MA+D Operation; and Picosecond Pulse Labs. Nonprofit company winners: Kaiser Permanente Colorado; University Corporation for Atmospheric Research; Colorado Housing & Finance Authority; Valley View Hospital; and Children's Hospital.

* Breckenridge Ski Resort announced its new eight-person gondola has a name: BreckConnect. The gondola connects the ski resort and the town of Breckenridge.

CAPTION(S):

Photo (3)

Elton John

CAPTION: Robert Dutkowsky

CAPTION: Ken Salazar