PRESS DIGEST- New York Times business news - Feb 14
Feb 14 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories on the New York Times business pages. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
* Comcast Corp's proposed acquisition of Time Warner Cable Inc comes at a moment of seismic change in the television industry, with consumers increasingly cutting their cable cords and instead streaming their favorite shows via the Internet. ()
* The Ivanpah solar power plant stretches over more than five square miles of the Mojave Desert with an ability to energize 140,000 homes. The plant, the first electric generator of its kind, could also be the last. Since the project began, the price of rival technologies has plummeted, incentives have begun to disappear and the appetite among investors for mammoth solar farms has waned. ()
* Paris-based BNP Paribas's fourth-quarter profit fell 76 percent as it set aside $1.1 billion to settle charges it violated economic sanctions. ()
* Big banks operating in London are adhering to the European Union's rules on banking bonuses by revamping the way they pay top employees so they still receive the extra money. ()
* The Bridgestone Corp became the latest automotive supplier to plead guilty to charges of conspiring to fix the prices of parts sold to automakers here and abroad, the justice department said on Thursday. The world's largest producer of tires and rubber also agreed to pay a $425 million criminal fine. ()
* A 120-car Norfolk Southern train carrying heavy Canadian crude oil derailed and spilled in western Pennsylvania on Thursday, adding to a string of recent accidents that have prompted calls for stronger safety standards. ()
* General Motors Co is recalling about 619,000 small cars in the United States because either a heavy key ring or a "jarring event" such as running off the road could cause the ignition to shut off and possibly prevent the air bags from deploying in a crash, the automaker said. ()
* People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals has scored again in its fight against the use of primates in advertising, as Volkswagen of America agreed to abide by a no-primates policy and withdrew a video clip from online platforms that had served as a teaser for the company's commercial during Super Bowl XLVIII on Feb. 2. ()
* Apple Inc in a report on Thursday said its hardware factories did not use any tantalum, a metal commonly used in electronics, from areas engaged in warfare. ()
* PepsiCo Inc said on Thursday that it had decided not to spin off its North American beverage business, effectively rejecting a push by the activist investor Nelson Peltz. ()
* Fortress Investment Group Llc, the first publicly listed hedge fund in the United States, has bought back its 12 percent stake from Nomura Holdings, one of its principal investors for $363.4 million. ()
* A growing number of primary care doctors and specialists in private practice are becoming employees of hospitals, though experts caution that the change may not yield better or cheaper care for patients. ()
