February 20, 2002

BP plans to sell its 25 percent stake in natural gas field in waters off Thailand and Malaysia (S)

Counter Spy Shop in Manhattan, which specilizes in night-vision goggles and other espionage gizmos, is selling thousands of gas masks, hazardous materials suits, letter-bomb detectors and bulletproof vests following events of Sept 11; even in wobbly economy, sales have remained strong, doubling over comparable period last year; similar stores around country also report substantial increases in revenues; photo (M)

Washington, DC, federal appeals court, in major victory for nation's largest television networks and cable operators, rules government must reconsider sharp limits on number of stations network can own and strikes down regulation that restricted cable operators from owning television stations; ruling would remove significant impediments that have prevented companies from merging with broadcast networks that own TV stations; would permit big broadcast networks, which have bumped up against station-ownership limits, to continue buying stations unimpeded; is setback for smaller owners of broadcast stations and consumer groups advocating more diversity in media since it could open door for new wave of megamergers in entertainment and media industries and continued concentration of power among biggest media companies; executives at large media companies laud ruling; consumer groups express alarm; ruling, based on consolidation of five separate cases in which Federal Communications Commission sought to defend ownership regulations, discussed; photo; chart (M)

New Jersey Gov James McGreevey names Joseph Santiago special assistant to attorney general while he undergoes scrutiny by State Senate to head up state police; Republicans criticize move, saying McGreevey is effectively installing him before Senate is able to review background and suggesting he is finding place for him in case nomination as state police superintendent fails; union representing state troopers opposes appointment, having urged McGreevey to appoint someone from their own ranks; brief profile; photo (M)

LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton chairman Bernard Arnault sells his company's majority stake in auction house Phillips, de Pury & Luxembourg to partners Simon de Pury and Daniella Luxembourg, former Sotheby's officials who run art dealership based in Geneva and are chairman and president, respectively, of Phillips; LVMH will keep about quarter of Phillips; financial terms undisclosed; graph; photo (Market Place column) (M)

Jeweled artworks dating to 17th-century India will go on view at Cleveland Museum of Art; photo (S)

Fyffes, Dublin-based distributor of bananas and other produce in Europe, is suing former board member James F Flavin, accusing him of insider trading; case promises to set important precedents for corporate accountability in Dublin; DCC, Irish industrial holding company, sold its 10.2 percent in Fyffes in two batches in early 2000, shortly after Flavin, DCC's chief executive and Fyffes director, received internal reports that showed rough times ahead for Fyffes; Fyffes contends action amounts to improper sale based on nonpublic price-sensitive information, and under Irish law, that means DCC owes Fyffes compensation; Irish investment funds Eagle Star and Hibernian Asset Management have followed Fyffes in filing suits of their own against DCC on same ground; photos (M)

Nissan Motor Co president Carlos Ghosn says company will post record profits for second straight year; photo (S)

In a plan approved by President Bush, a temporary wartime effort to shape information and coordinate messages will be expanded into a permanent office of global diplomacy, intended to spread a positive image of the United States. Article, Page A11.

Palestinian gunmen stage audacious attack at West Bank outpost killing six Israeli soldiers and escaping, stunning army already reeling from deaths of seven soldiers since February 14; attack is most lethal against Israeli soldiers in West Bank and Gaza in more than 16 months of fighting; follows dizzying 24 hours of shooting, shelling, bombing and rocket attacks that have claimed lives of at least 16 people; attack on checkpoint at Ein Ariq west of Ramallah described; Israeli forces stage reprisal; attack Yasir Arafat's official compound in Gaza City, killing at least four members of his elite guard; photos (M)

US Supreme Court agrees to decide whether 1998 law, Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act, that extended duration of existing copyrights by 20 years is constitutional; court's action takes copyright holders and users by surprise and holds potential of producing most important copyright case in decades; issue is whether Constitution's grant of authority to Congress to issue copyrights and patents 'for limited times' to 'promote the progress of science and useful arts' contains any real limitatation on how that power is to be exercised; that quesion has implications for future cases as battle over ownership of intellectual property focuses on Internet; consequences could be enormous, both for those with stakes in copyrights that are running out and for growing community of people, represented by plaintiffs in case, trying to use Internet to expand boundaries of public domain; if 20-year extension is unconstitutional, early Mickey Mouse depictions could no longer belong exclusively to Walt Disney Co, although Disney would retain trademark protection of character; two lower federal courts had rejected arguments by coalition of publishers and individuals that latest extension of copyright protection defeated original intent of Copyright Clause; initial Copyright Act, which Congress amended only once in 150 years, provided for 14-year term, with 14-year renewal only if author was still alive; plaintiffs' Supreme Court appeal, filed by Prof Lawrence Lessig of Stanford Law School, garnered support from concerned groups including American Library Association and other libraries (M)

Moody's Investors Service lowers credit ratings of Japan's second- and third-largest brokers, Daiwa Securities and Nikko Cordial Securities, citing falling stock-trading volumes and growing costs brought on by weak economy and deregulation (S)