Microsoft, Yahoo and AOL are teaming up to sell some of the online advertising space that they have had trouble selling on their own. The alliance announced Tuesday represents a joint attack on Google. The Internet search leader has become an even more powerful force in Internet marketing since paying $3.2 billion to acquire the DoubleClick advertising service in 2008. Meanwhile, Microsoft Corp., Yahoo Inc., and AOL Inc. have been struggling to keep pace. Microsoft has been losing billions in its online division while revenue has been sliding at both Yahoo and AOL. The partnership covers a category of advertising that doesn’t typically appear in the prime slots on websites.
Spokane may vie for new 737 plant
Spokane County commissioners are considering zoning changes that would allow Boeing to build a factory where a new version of the 737 called the 737 Max would be assembled. KREM reported Greater Spokane, Incorporated, is pushing for a plant that would create 500 to 1,500 jobs. Tuesday’s commissioner meeting is just one of many steps that would have to be taken before a plant could be built at Spokane. Boeing is expected to decide next year where it will assemble the 737 Max.
Fannie Mae seeks $7.8 billion in aid
Mortgage giant Fannie Mae is asking the federal government for $7.8 billion in aid to covers its losses in the July-September quarter. The government-controlled company said Tuesday that it lost $7.6 billion in the third quarter. Low mortgage rates reduced profits and declining home prices caused more defaults on loans it had guaranteed. Fannie has received $112.6 billion so far from the Treasury Department, the most expensive bailout of a single company. The government rescued Fannie Mae and sibling company Freddie Mac in September 2008 to cover their losses on soured mortgage loans. Since then, a federal regulator has controlled their financial decisions. Taxpayers have spent about $169 billion to rescue Fannie and Freddie, most of it for the bailout.
Monopoly boosts McDonald’s sales
McDonald’s Corp. said Tuesday that a key revenue figure rose 5.5 percent in October, fueled by sales in China and other foreign markets and the popularity of its Monopoly game in the U.S. Revenue at stores open at least 13 months rose 5.2 percent in the U.S., 4.8 percent in Europe and 6.1 percent in the region covering Asia/Pacific, the Middle East and Africa. The results in all regions beat analysts’ expectations, said Sara Senatore, an analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein. The revenue figure is a snapshot of money spent on food at both company-owned and franchised restaurants. It does not reflect corporate revenue. It is a key measure of a restaurant chain’s performance, because it excludes the impact of recently opened or closed stores.
From Herald news services
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