■ Airlines
United may liquidate
UAL Corp's United Airlines, the biggest carrier ever to file for bankruptcy protec-tion, said it may be forced to liquidate unless it can cut labor costs by May. United won't be able to satisfy conditions on loans needed to keep the carrier opera-ting without lower work-force expenses and war in Iraq may cause the company to violate the terms in June regardless, according to a motion filed on Tuesday seeking bankruptcy court approval to impose new labor contracts. United wants to reduce labor costs by at least US$2.56 billion annually and is seeking to negotiate savings with unions before pressing for a court ruling on its motion to terminate the current con-tracts. United will violate the terms set by bankers for US$1.5 billion in bankruptcy financing in May without the cost reductions.
■ Internet
Three indicted in porn scam
An alleged Gambino crime family member was among three people accused of running an Internet scam that bilked prospective pornography customers out of US$230 million by tricking them into turning over credit card informa-tion, US authorities said. Authorities say mobster Richard Martino and two other men, Norman Chanes and Bruce Chew, ran com-panies that bilked thou-sands of people in the US, Europe and Asia with offers of "free tours" of porn Web sites. The companies con-ned prospective customers to turn over credit card information, saying it would only be used as a proof of age and that users would not be billed. Instead, credit cards were billed, usually at US$59.99 a month after the initial visit without the consent of the users, authorities said.
■ Transportation
Airbus bets on new jumbo
Airbus SAS chief executive officer Noel Forgeard says the world's largest jetliner will start flying in 2006 and cost about US$12 billion to develop -- almost as much as construction of the English Channel tunnel. "This is our star," he says of the A380. From his top-floor office by the airport in Toulouse, France, Forgeard can watch Europe's largest building -- 490m by 250m by 46m -- taking shape across the runway. It's a new factory in which Airbus will soon start building the double-decker jumbo which will hold 555 passengers, 35 more than Boeing Co's 33-year-old 747. The new plane is also the biggest risk Airbus has ever taken. The company is betting on the jumbo at a time when most of the world's airlines are hurting because of stagnant economies and continuing fallout from the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the US. Passenger traffic, which normally grows about 5 percent annually worldwide, is down 3.7 percent from 2000.
■ Ipr protection
Labels warn on swapping
A group of major record labels warned companies that employees used their computers to share music over file-swapping net-works, the Los Angeles Times reported on its Web site. The Recording Industry Association of America sent letters to about 300 com-panies in the last week, alerting them to alleged piracy and informing them of the possibility of "significant legal damages," the newspaper said. The letters made no explicit threat to sue either employers or employees, the paper said. Companies might be liable for piracy on their computer networks if they know about it and don't act to stop it, the paper reported.
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