Business briefly
Published 9:00 pm Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Music giants enter mediation
Four music giants and their local subsidiaries have entered mediation with Baidu.com, China’s largest Internet search engine, over the companies’ claims of copyright infringement.
Low interest rates won’t last forever
Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan issued a fresh warning on Tuesday that investors shouldn’t be lulled into a false sense of security by the economy’s long stretch of low interest rates. The Fed chief has been sounding an alarm for months about the perils to homeowners and lenders using risky types of mortgages.
Oil prices ease, but worries remain
Crude oil prices eased Tuesday after a robust rally a day earlier, but markets worried about possible shortages in oil products as refineries assessed the damage caused by Hurricane Rita. Light sweet crude for November fell 75 cents to settle at $65.07 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
FCC backs off phone deadline
The Federal Communications Commission backed off again Tuesday on enforcing a deadline for Internet phone service providers to disconnect all customers who haven’t acknowledged that they understand it may be hard to reach a live emergency dispatcher when dialing 911. The agency explained that the status reports required from every Internet phone company last week showed that by “repeatedly prompting subscribers through a variety of means, the majority of providers … have obtained acknowledgments from nearly all, if not all, of their subscribers.”
Maker recalls fridges, freezers
About 112,000 freezers and refrigerators manufactured by W.C. Woods Company Inc. were recalled because the defrost heater coil in the products can become exposed, posing the risk of an electrical shock. The recalled products are the 15-, 17- and 20-cubic foot Automatic Defrost Upright Freezers and 17-cubic foot Automatic Defrost All-Refrigerators. They are sold under the brand names Amana, Crosley, Danby, Maytag, Whirlpool or Wood’s. For more information, call the company at 866-493-3314 or go to www.freezer-repair.com or www.cpsc.gov. Additionally, about 5,000 Maytag front-loading washers manufactured by Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. were also called back because the spinner could break apart when the washer is loaded to maximum capacity. The recall affects Maytag front-loading washer model MAH9700. For more information, call the company at 800-462-9267 or go to www.maytag.com or www.cpsc.gov.
