Yahoo Inc Chairman Roy Bostock and three other directors will step down as the struggling company ploughs ahead with an internal overhaul, including discussions on dealing with its stakes in China's Alibaba Group and Yahoo Japan. The corporation - once a Web powerhouse but now agonizing over a range of options to revive flagging growth - on Tuesday said it appointed former Rovi Corp CEO and International Business Machines Corp veteran Alfred Amoroso and ex-eBay COO Maynard Webb as independent directors. Yahoo's board has come under fire from investors impatient with the company's persistent inability to effect a turnaround, and frustrated with the apparent indecisiveness of stakeholders over ...
Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne has vowed to fight an "anti-business culture" in Britain, warning that a row overexecutive pay and bonuses threatens the country's fragile economic recovery. "Let me say something about the row over bonuses and pay," Osborne said in a speech to the Federation of Small Businesses. "Of course rewards for failure are unacceptable -- and those who believe in the free market are the first to say so. But a strong, free market economy must be built on rewards for success." The Labour Party has heaped pressure on the ruling coalition to curb excessive pay for top executives, using a House of Commons debate to demand the return ...
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda said on Tuesday he is resolved to settle a longstanding territorial dispute with Russia at an annual rally calling for the return of all four Russian-held islands off Hokkaido in northern Japan, the Kyodo news agency reported. "We'll continue to make steady and determined efforts to move ahead with negotiations," Noda said, stressing the need to sign a peace treaty with Russia. The four islands - which Russia calls the Southern Kurils and Japan calls the Northern Territories - has been the subject of a territorial dispute between the two nations since the end of World War ...
Amanda Knox's Italian lawyer has filed an appeal of her slander conviction in Italy, a Knox family spokesman inSeattle said Monday. In October, an Italian appeals court overturned the young Seattle woman's murder conviction in the 2007 death of her British roommate in Perugia. But the same court upheld Knox's conviction for slander — for falsely accusing bar owner Diya "Patrick" Lumumba of involvement in the slaying. Lumumba was freed after two weeks in prison for lack of evidence. Knox later said she was "manipulated" during her lengthy police interrogation. An appeal of the slander conviction was filed Monday, Knox family spokesman Dave Marriott confirmed. He doesn't know when the Italian ...
The Dutch railway will remain 'vulnerable' during wintry weather but Dutch Rail (NS) and track operator ProRail did not help matters during the current cold snap by the late introduction of schedule adjustments to cope with the conditions, transport minister Melanie Schultz van Haegen told parliament in a briefing on Tuesday. The NS and ProRail assumed on Thursday of last week that there would be three to five centimetres of snow. When the forecast was increased on Friday morning to between 10 and 15 centimetres, it was too late to change the timetables automatically, Schultz van Haegen told parliament. Drivers and conductors ...
Greece can leave the eurozone without damaging monetary union, European digital affairs commissioner Neelie Kroes says in an interview with the Volkskrant on Tuesday. Kroes, a member of the Dutch ruling right-wing Liberal party VVD, is not a supporter of Greece exchanging the euro for the drachma, but says: 'It is absolutely not a case of man overboard if someone leaves the eurozone.' The commissioner is very critical of the new Greek government and says they are not fulfilling their promises. 'Too few spending cuts, too little restructuring,' she says. She says the Greeks should follow the example of Italy where the new ...
Mitt Romney hopes his presidential campaign hasn't ignored Rick Santorum's aggressive attacks for too long, as caucuses in Colorado and Minnesota on Tuesday could reshuffle the race for the Republican presidential nomination. Santorum largely bypassed Florida and Nevada to blanket the two caucus states with criticism of Romney and lay the groundwork among conservatives who have great sway in the process. RivalNewt Gingrich praised Santorum's strategy as shrewd even as he signaled he had no interest in exiting the four-way race, which also includes Ron Paul. "I think that Santorum's going to have a pretty good day," Gingrich told reporters on the eve of the caucuses. "He targeted differently than I ...
Glencore and Xstrata agreed an all-share merger worth $90 billion (56 billion pounds) on Tuesday in the industry's largest ever deal, creating a commodities powerhouse spanning mining, agriculture and trading. Glencore, the world's largest diversified commodities tradinghouse, will issue 2.8 new shares for each Xstrata share in a deal they said was a "merger of equals." The ratio is a 15.2 percent premium to Xstrata shareholders compared with its share price last Wednesday before word leaked out about the merger talks, a joint statement said. "A merger between Glencore and Xstrata offers a unique opportunity to create a new business model in our industry to respond to ...
US White House hopeful Mitt Romney aims for another big caucus win in Colorado on Tuesday, as his well-oiled campaign machine works to cement his position as the Republican front runner in the US presidential race. Polls suggest he should triumph easily in the western US state -- where he scored 60 percent in 2008 -- although there is a tighter race in Minnesota, where last-placed Rick Santorum is hoping to snatch a win. Romney's main rival, former House speaker Newt Gingrich, is battling to stay in the race after two heavy losses in a row to the former Massachusetts governor, who ...
As President Christian Wulff remains mired in allegations of impropriety, anti-corruption group Transparency International (TI) has called for politicians to use the case as a chance to open up German politics. “We are very concerned that people seem to be starting to think that all politicians behave like Wulff, and that would be fatal,” Christian Humborg, TI Germany’s managing director told The Local. “I think the Wulff affair is a wonderful opportunity for German politicians to react to the cynical attitude that this is normal, and improve things,” he said. He said the fact that the authorities were investigating whether Wulff and his ...
British actor Colin Firth was moved to tears as he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Firth, who found fame playing Mr Darcy in the BBC’s Pride and Prejudice, dedicated the honour to his Italian wife. “I want to thank everybody that has accompanied me on this extraordinary journey,” he said. “But probably more than anybody I could ever imagine Livia who has walked every step of this with me joyfully and... [more]
Japan’s Prime Minister Naoto Kan has added new faces to his cabinet in a bid to appease opposition parties, help his push to mend the country’s tattered finances and boost free trade to spur growth. Among the changes in Kan’s third cabinet since becoming prime minister were new fiscal policy, trade, justice and transport ministers, but the premier kept other key posts such as foreign, finance and defence portfolios unchanged. In... [more]
James Bond fans will be shaken and stirred to learn that the 23rd film featuring 007 is to be made this year. There were doubts over the future of the spy franchise when the film, set to be the third starring Daniel Craig, was put on hold last year. EON Productions blamed the financial difficulties of MGM Studios for the hiatus. The new owners of MGM and Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, producers of the films, confirmed that Bond will... [more]
A judge has ordered Michael Jackson’s personal physician must stand trial for involuntary manslaughter over the pop superstar’s death. The ruling against Dr Conrad Murray came after a six-day preliminary hearing in Los Angeles, California. Earlier, the court heard Jackson told Murray on the day he died he would have to cancel his comeback tour in London unless he received a dose of his “milk” – the powerful... [more]
Hollywood star Harrison Ford has paid tribute to his friend Michael Douglas for the courage he showed in beating cancer. “I’m so glad to hear the news. I’m very happy for him because he’s a great guy,” Ford said at the UK premiere of Morning Glory in London’s West End. Oscar-winner Douglas, who was diagnosed with the disease last year, revealed in a US TV interview that the tumour is gone, adding he was... [more]
Rep. Gabrielle Giffords reached an important step in her recovery from a bullet through her head, breathing on her own for the first time and moving both arms, doctors said Tuesday in what was expected to be a long recuperation. Giffords still has a breathing tube in place as a precaution, said her neurosurgeon Dr. Michael Lemole. “I’m happy to say that she’s holding her own,” he said. Giffords, a three-time Democrat,... [more]
Courts in Italy have begun proceedings that could decide whether Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi will face trial over corruption and fraud charges relating to his Mediaset business empire. The hearing has been set up to reconsider a ‘legitimate impediment’ law passed in March 2010 that shields Berlusconi from prosecution. Cries of “shame” were heard in parliament when the law was passed. Critics have argued that... [more]
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has said his website will “step up” its release of secret diplomatic cables and other materials. He was speaking after he returned to court to fight extradition to Sweden, where he is accused of sex crimes. A full two-day hearing is set to take place on February 6 and 7 after the Australian’s legal team said it would be ready to start by then. The controversial figure is behind the release... [more]
Former Countryfile presenter Miriam O’Reilly, who lost her job when the show was moved to a prime-time slot, has won her employment tribunal against the BBC on the grounds of age discrimination, her solicitors have said. The award-winning journalist, 53, was “delighted” after winning a claim of age discrimination against the broadcaster, said her solicitors Leigh, Day & Co. “The primary claim which she has won... [more]
President Obama and the First Lady will travel to Arizona on Wednesday to attend a memorial service for the victims of the Tucson shootings. Six people were killed and 14 others were injured, including a congresswoman who was in a critical condition after being shot in the head by a lone gunman. A US college dropout arrested after the shooting rampage on Saturday has appeared in court for the first time. Jared Lee Loughner, 22, arrived at... [more]
