business

Apple Inc., facing tougher competition in the lucrative market for smart phones, sued Taiwanese phone maker HTC Corp., accusing the rival of violating patents related to the popular iPhone. Apple said HTC, the first company to manufacture a cell phone based on Google's Android operating system, has infringed on 20 of its patents covering aspects of the iPhone's user interface and hardware. An HTC spokeswoman said the company hasn't had time to review Apple's claims.

The popular video website Hulu is losing two of its most popular offerings: "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report." Hulu announced that Comedy Central was pulling its shows from the site beginning March 10. Both "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report" rank among Hulu's most watched programs. Comedy Central, which is owned by Viacom Inc., was a recent arrival to Hulu, which is co-owned by NBC Universal, Fox Entertainment Group and the Walt Disney Co. Both shows will still be available on their own websites.

Drugmaker Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. said Chief Executive James Cornelius will retire in May and be succeeded by Lamberto Andreotti, the company's current chief operating officer. Cornelius, who had run Bristol-Myers for 3 1/2 years, will remain chairman at the request of the company's board. Cornelius previously served as CEO at Indianapolis-based Guidant Corp., from which he retired in 2006.

General Motors Co. announced sweeping changes in its sales and marketing operations, splitting the two functions after CEO Ed Whitacre combined them in December. Susan Docherty, formerly vice president of U.S. sales and marketing, will now head only marketing, and Steve Carlisle, who ran GM's Southeast Asia operations, was named vice president of U.S. sales operations. Both will report to North American President Mark Reuss.

Sony Corp. said it has restored service to its online PlayStation Network after a system glitch reminiscent of the Y2K bug a decade ago. Sony Corp. said in a blog post late Monday that the problem was caused by the internal clock function on older PlayStation 3 models. Sony said the clocks mistakenly recognized 2010 as a leap year. Consumers began reporting trouble Sunday, as clocks got confused in switching from Feb. 28 to March 1.

Continental Airlines says the back-to-back snowstorms that shut down its New York area hub twice last month cost it $25 million in lost revenue. Despite the storms, the nation's fourth-largest airline reported a large increase in February traffic, and analysts said Continental will benefit from a rebound in business travel. Airlines have been losing money and cutting flights for two years amid a slump in travel demand.

General Motors Co. will recall 1.3 million Chevrolet and Pontiac compact cars sold in the U.S., Canada and Mexico to fix power steering motors that can fail. The recall affects 2005 to 2010 Chevrolet Cobalts, 2007 to 2010 Pontiac G5s, 2005 and 2006 Pontiac Pursuits sold in Canada and 2005 and 2006 Pontiac G4s sold in Mexico. The automaker said the vehicles are still safe to drive and never lose their steering, but it may be harder to steer them when traveling under 15 mph. GM spokesman Alan Adler said GM will notify car owners when the parts are available.

FROM NEWS SERVICES