Saturday, December 18, 1999
TRISTATE BUSINESS SUMMARY
Comair flights normal day after lawsuit filed
Comair flights continued as normal Friday, the day after the Erlanger-based regional airline sued its pilot union.
No hearing date has been set on the lawsuit filed in Covington's federal court. The Air Line Pilots Association has 20 days to respond to Comair's filing, which accuses the union of canceling 402 flights by having its members refuse to fly planes with minor mechanical problems, such as torn seat cushions and broken coffee pots, that were unrelated to the planes' safety.
Comair operates 750 flights a day, more than 300 from its hub at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, feeding passengers to Delta Air Lines from small and medium sized cities.
The union says it did not urge its pilots to do anything unusual. Federal law gives pilots the authority to ground planes for mechanical reasons, but does not allow an organized work action by airline unions during active contract negotiations. Comair and its pilots have been negotiating a new contract since mid-1998, when its last one came open for change.
More information requested on Gibson deal
The antitrust division of the Department of Justice has requested additional information regarding the acquisition of Gibson Greetings Inc. by American Greetings Corp., which could delay the merger.
The $10.25-a-share tender offer for Gibson is scheduled to expire Jan. 5. American said it will extend the offer if necessary.
Such requests are not unusual when large companies merge.
EGreetings shares soar, then slide on 1st day
Shares in online greeting card provider EGreetings Network Inc., of which Gibson Greetings owns a stake, briefly soared in its first day of trading before slipping back toward its initial offer price.
The San Francisco-based company closed up 561/4 to $10.561/4, a gain of 6 percent. Early in the day, the company rose as much as 63 percent.
Gibson is the largest shareholder of EGreetings. This could raise investor concerns because Gibson is scheduled to be acquired by rival American Greetings Corp. in Cleveland. Also, Yahoo! Inc., the biggest Internet search and directory service, launched a free digital greeting site in August.
EGreetings does not charge customers; it relies on advertising, sponsorships and promotional relationships for most of its revenue.
Ex-Hasbro president to head reflect.com
Procter & Gamble's new beauty-care Internet start-up, reflect.com, has named former Hasbro President Virginia “Ginger” Kent as chief executive officer and member of the board of directors.
Ms. Kent has a background in global product development, including leading Hasbro's Cincinnati-based toy sector that produces more than 1,000 new products each year.
In her new role, Ms. Kent will be responsible for overseeing the launch and evolution of reflect.com — a joint venture between majority owner P&G and a group of Silicon Valley venture capitalists that sell customized beauty care products online.
— From staff and wire reports
UDF stores to sell Mobil gas
Utilities ordered to reduce emissions
Category TV has Scripps sizzling
Multi-Color buys Buriot as step one of expansion
TRISTATE BUSINESS SUMMARY
Fed likely to hold rates
Internet cradle not Silicon 2
Wall Street wants rally for Christmas
