Web retailer Amazon.com Inc. has nipped $40 from the price of its Kindle e-book reader. The $399 Kindle launched in November and sold out in hours. Amazon sorted out its supply chain and manufacturing problems, and the device was back on sale in April. Amazon spokesman Drew Herdener said Tuesday that Amazon's cost of manufacturing the Kindles dropped as it increased the number produced.
JetBlue will stall jet purchases to save money JetBlue Airways Corp. said Tuesday it will put off buying 21 new Airbus jetliners it planned to receive starting next year for four to five years because of rising fuel costs. The A320 planes, originally scheduled for delivery between 2009 and 2011, will now be delivered in 2014 and 2015. Spokeswoman Alison Eshelman declined to say how much the Forest Hills, N.Y.-based airline hoped to save with the move.
American rebuffs pilots' contract proposal American Airlines said Tuesday it has rejected its pilot union's contract proposals after deciding the cost would be too high. The union sought to know if management's rejection means talks are at an impasse. American, a unit of Fort Worth, Texas-based AMR Corp., said in an internal negotiations update that the proposals would increase annual pilot costs by roughly $3 billion in recurring expenses. Last fall, the union sought raises of 50 percent to return to 1992 pay levels. The union says the pay restoration would only increase the company's annual costs by $750 million.
Mattel in court over rights to Bratz dolls The rights to the popular Bratz doll franchise belong to Mattel Inc., not a rival toymaker that stole the concept that became a global darling among consumers, a lawyer for Mattel told jurors in Riverside, Calif., Tuesday. Attorney John Quinn made the claim in his opening statement in the federal copyright infringement trial pitting Mattel against MGA Entertainment Inc., the maker of the urban-themed Bratz dolls. Quinn contended that Mattel, the world's largest toymaker, owns the rights to the fashion dolls because designer Carter Bryant created the line while employed at Mattel.
Mesa says loss of contract means bankruptcy Mesa Air will file for bankruptcy protection by July 20 and cut 700 jobs -- 14 percent of its workforce -- if Delta's termination of a regional flying contract sticks and Phoenix-based Mesa can't redeploy unused aircraft, an executive said Tuesday. The comments in U.S. district court by Mesa Air Group Inc. President and Chief Operating Officer Michael Lotz came as Mesa sought an injunction to block Delta's decision to end a contract with Mesa subsidiary Freedom Airlines.
Pharmacy benefits manager to pay settlement St. Louis-based Express Scripts Inc. on Tuesday said it will pay $9.5 million in an agreement with 28 states that alleged the pharmacy benefits manager misled consumers when it encouraged doctors to switch patients' cholesterol drug brands under the guise of controlling costs. Most of the settlement will be paid to the states and the District of Columbia; $200,000 will provide no more than $25 apiece to patients to reimburse them for physician visits and tests linked to switches between rival brands of cholesterol-controlling drugs known as statins.
