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Oracle Corp. has recently filed lawsuit against its competitor SAP on the allegations that its German competitor has clandestinely and illegally acquired proprietary materials from the Redwood City giant’s customer support Web site. Oracle has accused SAP of hacking into its computers to steal classified and confidential product information in the lawsuit. The latest development is expected to escalate the bitterness that had already been building between the two of the world’s largest business software makers. The lawsuit was filed in a San Francisco federal court that has alleged that Germany-based SAP resorted to high-tech skullduggery in a desperate attempt to maintain its leadership in business applications software programs, which helps companies to manage a variety of administrative tasks. Oracle further elaborated that SAP has used its customers’ log-in information to obtain more than 10,000 unauthorized downloads of software and supporter materials related to hundreds of programs. In the meanwhile, Steve Bauer, SAP’s vice president of global communications, has said the company just learnt about the suit this morning, and had no immediate comment. However, the Financial Times has reported that people close to SAP were unconcerned of suggestions that it or any of its subsidiaries were involved in any unlawful activity. They further argued that Oracle appeared unsettled by SAP’s competitive edge and was now resorting to unjustified legal means to try to hinder the German company. Oracle has spent close to $20 billion for buying software rivals over the past three years to challenge SAP, the leader in corporate applications. The firm at present is seeking an injunction against SAP, as well as unspecified general and punitive damages.

The $8.4 billion private equity offer to acquire Qantas is now set to be grounded, with a large institutional shareholder opting not to accept its offer and others are considered to follow suit. In addition to it, a key shareholder Balance Equity Management, which holds four per cent of Qantas, has rejected the $5.45-a-share offer. The prominent shareholder has said that it does not intend to accept the offer owing to the current strong conditions in the local share market. The move is widely perceived as a strategy to encourage Airline Partners Australia (APA) to improve its $8.41 billion offer. At the same time, speculations are taking rounds that Balanced Equity and UBS Global Asset Management would use their combined shareholding to impede the sale. Analysts have argued that if UBS rejects the bid, it will definitely not move ahead unless the 90 percent condition is dropped. The bid consortium, which is raising $8.4 billion in debt to fund the acquisition, needs to win 90 percent of acceptances to be able to compulsorily acquire the rest of Qantas and de-list the company, an important safeguard for debt holders. On the other hand, Airline Partners Australia, the consortium behind the Qantas acquisition, has announced that it would extend the deadline for the offer from April 3 until April 20. In response to the recent development APA has said that it was considering ”a range of alternatives in light of the announcement.’ It is believed that UBS Global Asset Management has bought another 1 percent stake of Qantas, taking its possibly deal-blocking stake to around 7.1 percent. Following this development Balanced Equity is now in a position to speak for 10.5 percent of Qantas, that means, given that the APA offer is conditional on 90 per cent acceptances, these two shareholders alone could kill the deal.

The chief executive of French oil and gas group Total Christophe de Margerie was brought under formal investigation for alleged corruption, under a criminal probe into alleged kickbacks paid by Total to win Iranian oil contracts in the 1990s. According to the reports, Total Chief Executive Christophe de Margerie was charged with abuse of company assets and corruption of foreign agents in connection with the case in which bribes are suspected. In the meanwhile, the firm in question has said that nothing prevented him from resuming his duties. Total’s chief executive will remain under judiciary control, a measure that obliges him to remain at the disposal of the judge. Total has given no additional information of the specific charges but added that it is ‘confident that the courts will establish that no offences have been committed.’ Christophe de Margerie was person in command in Total’s Middle East operations between 1995 and 1999. Afterwards he became head of exploration and production before assuming the role of chief executive last month. The investigation focuses around allegations of kickbacks paid to win a contract with the Iranian government to operate the South Pars gas contract. Margerie was placed under investigation last year over allegations that he had paid bribes to win contracts in Iraq. Anti-corruption campaigners also are following the cases closely to see whether they create new deterrents to the way intermediaries and corrupt officials make money off the trade in natural resources like oil and gas. the French business magazine Challenges reported in October, citing a letter by a Swiss prosecutor that Total paid commissions of as much as 26 million euros to Iranian officials to win development rights in the South Pars gas field,. In its report the magazine also made the disclosure that the payments were made from 1999 to 2003, mostly to the son of Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a former president of Iran. In addition to it, Total is also facing a potentially damaging, separate trial in Paris over its probable role in the worst oil spill in France, the sinking of the tanker Erika in 1999. The trial opened in February and is expected take months to reach a decision.

Wal-Mart, the largest retailer in the world, succumbing to the intense pressure has announced that it will pay $530 million in bonuses to U.S. workers. The decision was taken after facing mounting pressure to increase wages and improve working conditions. The payments will be divided among 813,759 eligible part- and full-time staff members at Wal-Mart and its Sam’s Club unit, the company said in its release. In addition to it, the retailer will also start paying bonuses every quarter, doing away with its earlier practice of paying it annually. Recently, Wal-Mart Stores has come under fierce criticism by union-backed critics who condemn its pay and benefits. Apart from that, Senator Barack Obama lashed out heavily on the company saying the retailer shortchanges employees and must improve pay and benefits. However, the Bentonville, Ark.-based retailer has said that it was making the bonuses public as a new way to honor its employees, not in response to critics. Former managers on condition of anonymity have said that in the past, the bonus has been around $1,000 for full-time workers and up to $500 for part-timers. However, following the figures provided by Wal-Mart the mathematical average payment comes around $651 per worker but Wal-Mart clarified that the individual amounts varied. The firm declined to reveal a range or the specific level of payments, mentioning competition with other employers. Wal-Mart, which has 1.3 million employees in the US, has been criticized in recent years by labor unions and politicians. The company had taken several measures to counter the allegations including raising pay levels and selling generic drugs for $4 per prescription in many areas.

Mergers and acquisitions have become the order of the day. Virgin Atlantic has its eyes set on BMI which is a rival airline despite failed merger talks in 2003. The open skies deal may enable us to see a number of merger deals. What makes BMI an attractive option is that it has benefited a lot from a landmark deal between EU and U.S which allow EU and U.S carriers to fly within the twenty seven member states. It is expected that the deal might lead to a bidding war between BA and Virgin. It was way back in 1999 when Sir Michael Bishop, chairman of BMI had an option for selling the stake of the company but now with the open skies policy favoring the company if a deal is struck it may end up costing more to the companies bidding for it. On the bidding issue Sir Michael Bishop stated: I’m not actually because I’m a private company. I’ve no plans to change the shareholders. People always go on fishing trips but it’s business as usual here. You never know with merger and acquisitions becoming common, BMI might end up in the kitty of Virgin or BA. Till then let’s keep our fingers crossed.

General Electric Co. said that it will launch a tender offer for all shares of Sanyo Electric Credit Co. in a takeover bid valued at up to 135 billion ($1.14 billion). The US based multinational firm will launch the tender offer after defeating offers from firms such as Japan’s Shinsei Bank Ltd. according to a Nikkei report, in bidding conducted by Goldman Sachs and Sanyo Electric Co. GE has planned this takeover with a view to focus on smaller businesses and lending to small companies in Japan. GE, in its official statement has said that it will pay 3,250 yen ($27.58) a share, 62 percent premium over the closing price in Tokyo, Sanyo Credit. The acquisition is expected to be completed by the second quarter. In the deal, Goldman Sachs will receive around $366 million for its Sanyo Credit stake; Goldman had paid $204 million for the stake last year. As a matter of fact, GE is prompted to diversify its market into more company lending in Japan after the government stiffen consumer credit rules and limited the interest that can be charged. Japan’s economy grew at the fastest pace in three years in the last quarter as surging exports prompted spending on factories and machinery. Analysts are of the view that the move signals that GE is serious about expanding its finance unit in Japan. Acquiring the unit will make possible for GE to lend to smaller companies and expand its leasing business. Sanyo Credit receives almost two-thirds of its sales from leasing consumer electronics, including computers and other equipment, to different businesses. It reported an operating profit of $98 million on revenues of $284 million in the last financial year. On the other hand, GE at present offers credit card, housing loans, consumer finance and insurance services in Japan through Tokyo-based GE Consumer Finance. The deal also reflects a speed up in merger & acquisition activity in Japan, where domestic companies face growing pressure to shed unprofitable businesses.

A US District Court judge in Virginia has stunned the VOIP market by issuing a permanent injunction against Vonage barring it from basing its service on three of five patents owned by Verizon. The permanent injunction was issued on Vonage using the technology to connect users to landline phones. However, the judge agreed to put off the effective date of the injunction for two weeks while considering a request by Vonage for a stay pending what could be a lengthy appeal. Vonage was also ordered to pay $58m ($30m) to Verizon for infringing three patents, as well as royalties on future sales. The decision would naturally compel Vonage to close or to install new systems. Nevertheless, in an official communique issued after the ruling, Vonage reassured its customers that service would continue, uninterrupted, while the company worked its way through the appeals process. The firm has further said that in case if it loses that round, it vows to go to the Federal Court of Appeals. In the mean time, speculations have started taking rounds that Vonage simply vanished from the scene in no time, which seems to be a bit overstated. But following the belief that the firm’s days are numbered seems to a little appropriate. Vonage in its defense has maintained that even though it owns no patents of its own, it did not violate any intellectual property in building its business. In its place, the company says it banked on open industry standards available for free to anyone out there who wants to innovate with them. In Verizon’s original complaint, the company has asserted that Vonage had signed up 1.1 million new subscribers in the 15 months leading up to the patent infringement filing. The firm further claimed that many of them are Verizon’s former customers. Verizon also emphasized that Vonage had signed up around 350,000 new customers in the first quarter of last financial year, and had spent $400 million on advertising and marketing so far.

The California based manufacturer, Leegin Creative Leather Products Inc. has challenged a 1911 Supreme Court ruling that automatically classifies agreements to set minimum prices as anticompetitive. The case was filed when Kay’s Kloset, a family-owned retailer in Texas decreased prices on women’s fashion accessories; in reaction the manufacturer discontinued the store’s supply. Phil and Kay Smith sued and won in a case now before the Supreme Court that asks whether price-fixing always is illegal. Arguments before the court are scheduled for Monday. The case has brought Brighton handbags and accessories, famous for their high-end tooled leather, silver trim and heart logos, at the center of the legal dispute that could affect the price and marketing of a multitude of other products as well. The court will reconsider the rule enacted in 1911 that prevent companies from requiring a minimum retail price for their products. The ‘suggested’ retail price is intended to be just that, a suggestion. Leegin, backed by the U.S. Justice Department, says it is time to drop the rule that any such price mandate is automatically illegal. The Justice Department siding with Leegin has said current competitive market no longer makes minimum-price deals automatically bad for buyers. For example, they say, minimum pricing can induce retailers to invest in a product, whether through advertising or service, which can serve buyers. At the same time, the Consumer Federation of America maintains that any such advantage is overshadowed by price competition among all kinds of retailers for a product. Leegin and its supporters also contend that manufacturers need to set minimum prices so that retailers can afford to promote their products and offer service to customers. On the other hand, Kay’s supporters argue that setting price floors is almost always harmful to consumers. They further are of the view that it creates no incentive for distributors and retailers to become more cost-effective in the delivery of goods and services to consumers. And the practice passes on to consumers the cost of inefficient business practices. In the recent past, the court has relaxed or repealed several rules intended to prevent anti-competitive schemes and is now set to hear another widely followed case that could dramatically change the rules of the retailing business. However, the court will specifically seek to resolve the legality of a handbag manufacturer’s requirement that retailers adhere to minimum pricing agreements. Such agreements have long been considered to be illegal under an antitrust ruling from 1911.

Kuwait’s Mobile Telecom Co., MTC, emerged as the highest bidder in the tender for the license to become Saudi Arabia’s third telecom operator. MTC’s bid was valued at 22.91 billion Saudi Arabia riyals ($6.11 billion), said Mohammed Al-Suwaiyel, governor of Saudi telecom regulator during a public ceremony in Riyadh. The second highest financial bid was made by Samawat Consortium, led by the Indian Bharti Co. at 17.25 billion riyals. And the consortium was followed by Tawasul Consortium, led by the Caribbean operator Digicel, which held number three position. Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, is the biggest economy in the Gulf and has very less mobile phone penetration than its neighboring countries. MTC has already spent more than $5.0 billion in the last two years to increase its customer base in Africa as its domestic market is saturated. Saudi Arabia has mobile phone penetration rate of around 70 percent compared with an average of 118 percent in the six Gulf Cooperation Council states. In addition to it the average revenue per user in Saudi Arabia is as high as around $35 a month. Fixed line penetration in the country remains around 16 percent. Moreover, Saudi Arabia is the Middle East’s fastest growing telecom market with total revenues from both mobile and land phones reaching SR34.2 billion ($9.1 billion) in 2005. Projections indicate that the number of mobile phone and Internet subscribers is expected to be doubled in the next five years. The experts are of the view that the new licenses will push additional investment in the fixed local access infrastructure, spark off growth in the mobile market and accommodate future trends in convergence. The licence is expected to be the last mobile licence to be auctioned off in the country, which would definitely trigger further rapid mobile growth. Moreover, the Communications and Information Technology Commission, the telecom regulator, have said that the determination of the winner required cabinet approval. MTC, which has been Vodafone’s partner since 2002, had failed to win a bid battle for Saudi’s second mobile licence.

Intel Corp., the world’s largest semiconductor maker, has confirmed that it is planning to build its first computer-chip factory in China. The firm is likely to invest $2.5 billion in a country that assembles 50 percent of the world’s personal computers. However, the approval of the project required years of planning and negotiations with Chinese officials and authorities. The leading semiconductor maker will be benefited in more delicate ways as the firm is widely perceived as a more substantial player in China’s economy. The project is expected to be announced on Monday by Chief Executive Paul Otellini in an unusual event at the Great Hall of the People, a site usually used for government meetings, representing a remarkable change in the Chinese policies. The new plant will produce 12-inch (300-millimetre) integrated wafer. Intel at present operates such factories in the U.S., Ireland and Israel. Intel has already made investment to the tune of about one billion U.S. dollars in China so far. The firm already operates assembly and test operations in the eastern municipality of Shanghai and Chengdu City in the southwest. Construction on the fab, known as fab 68, has been planned to start later this year, with production expected to begin in the first half of 2010. The plant will be located in China’s Dalian and to begin with the plant will produce chipsets. The facility in the northeastern city of Dalian has marked the Intel’s first factory in Asia that will manufacture wafers, the thin silicon platters on which dozens of chips are etched. The move has also reflected China’s growing importance as a market for high-tech products. In addition to it, the planned plant will boost the Santa Clara, California-based company’s investments in China somewhere close to $4 billion. However, the project has already sparked off concerns the United States about technology transfer and the continued buildup of higher-end production work and jobs overseas.