Priceline.com Inc. shares fell 38 percent after the Internet buying service said WebHouse Club, an affiliated company that sells gasoline and groceries on its Web site, is going out of business.

        The shares fell $3.56 to $5.81, for the eighth-biggest percentage drop in U.S. markets. The shares are at their lowest level since Priceline.com went public in March 1999 at $16. Its market value dipped below $1 billion for the first time since it sold shares.

        WebHouse will shut down in the next 90 days. Money-losing Priceline.com will take a related $189 million charge against third-quarter earnings.
       

Ice cream firm closes

        Jeremy's MicroBatch Ice Creams Inc. of Marlton, N.J., a maker of premium ice creams that was once featured in a commercial run on the Super Bowl telecast, has been ordered by its board to shut down.

        Jeremy Kraus, 23, founded his company in 1997, when he was a junior at the University of Pennsylvania's business school. The company got a boost when he won a contest that allowed his company to be featured in a commercial during the Super Bowl.

        Jeremy's went public on Feb. 15 at $6 a share, raising $5.9 million, which was mostly spent on marketing and promotion. But the stock last traded for $1.08. Trading was halted Tuesday, the day the board decided to cease operations.
       

WebMD shares take hit

        WebMD Corp.'s stock fell as much as 19 percent Thursday on news that the company's co-founder and chief technology officer is resigning and that four Janus funds may sell their WebMd shares.

        On Wednesday, the Atlanta-based company said co-founder Pavan Nigam is leaving to pursue other interests.

        The Janus funds bought the shares in a private deal in January for $930 million, or $62 a share. Late Thursday, the stock fell $1.88, or 15.5 percent, to $10.19 on the Nasdaq Stock Market.
       

Time Warner, EMI merger off

        Time Warner Inc. and EMI Group Plc called off a merger of their music businesses, paving the way for European regulatory clearance of America Online Inc.'s $150 billion purchase of Time Warner.

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