Reluare joi, 4 ianuarie 1996

THE MEDIA BUSINESS;Disney and ABC Shareholders Solidly Approve Merger Deal

Date: 05 January 1996

By Geraldine Fabrikant

Geraldine Fabrikant

Shareholders of the Walt Disney Company and Capital Cities/ABC approved a merger yesterday, and Disney executives said they expected the deal to clear the final hurdle of Government approval in the next few weeks. Speaking to a packed shareholder meeting at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, Disney's chief of operations, Sandy Litvak, said the merger was scheduled for a vote by the Federal Communications Commission on Jan. 18 but because of the Government shutdown, the vote could be postponed. If the F.C.C. votes on schedule, Justice Department approval could come shortly afterward, which would make the merger final.

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To Control the Media: Click the 'Off' Button

Date: 05 January 1996

To the Editor: Re Senator Alan Simpson's advice to the press in "I Have Been Sound-Bit" (Op-Ed, Dec. 31):

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NEWS SUMMARY

Date: 05 January 1996

InternationalA3-9

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NEWS SUMMARY

Date: 04 January 1996

International A3-13

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COMPANY NEWS;EUROPEAN AMERICAN BUYS LEASING COMPANY

Date: 04 January 1996

Bloomberg Business News

Bloomberg News

European American Bank said yesterday that it had acquired the American Equipment Leasing Company, a leasing and finance company, for more than $200 million. The acquisition is part of a strategy by the bank, a unit of the Dutch bank ABN Amro Holding N.V., to expand its lending business by acquiring finance and leasing companies. European American, based in Uniondale, L.I., said the price included cash and the repayment of outstanding debt held by American Equipment, which is based in Reading, Pa.

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COMPANY NEWS;OILFIELD EQUIPMENT COMPANY TO CHANGE HANDS

Date: 05 January 1996

Bloomberg Business News

Bloomberg News

The Tuboscope Vetco International Corporation said yesterday that it would acquire Drexel Oilfield Services, a maker of oilfield equipment, for stock valued at about $102.3 million at Wednesday's closing price. In a related transaction, SCF Partners, an investment group that is the largest shareholder in Drexel, will purchase Tuboscope stock and warrants for $31 million. SCF Partners will hold a 23 percent stake in Tuboscope after the acquisition of Drexel, which is privately held. L. E. Simmons, who founded Houston-based SCF Partners, is also chairman of Drexel, and he will become chairman of Tuboscope, which provides products and services for oil and gas pipelines. The shares of Tuboscope, which is based in Houston, were up $1.125, at $7.25, in Nasdaq trading. Tuboscope will acquire Drexel for 16.7 million Tuboscope shares.

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COMPANY NEWS;ORDERS BEAT EXPECTATIONS, BUT DELIVERIES SLIP

Date: 05 January 1996

Reuters

The Boeing Company said yesterday that it had won 346 orders for new airplanes, worth $31.2 billion, last year, exceeding its projection and giving it 69.7 percent of the world market. Boeing, the world's largest maker of commercial airplanes, said the total included new orders for 85 airplanes that had not been previously announced or that had been announced only as intended orders. The company said it delivered 36 commercial jets in the fourth quarter, bringing its total for the year to 206. That was down from 271 deliveries in 1994. Boeing executives had planned to deliver 65 planes in the fourth quarter, but that figure was reduced because of the 10-week strike by the machinists' union.

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COMPANY NEWS;PRESSTEK DISMISSES AUDITOR IN DISPUTE OVER REPORT

Date: 05 January 1996

Bloomberg Business News

Bloomberg News

Presstek Inc. has dismissed its auditor after a dispute over how the company disclosed an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission. In a filing with the S.E.C., Presstek, a maker of printing equipment in Hudson, N.H., said its board voted to dismiss Deloitte & Touche, though it had no disagreements with the auditor over financial results. Presstek said in the filing that mentioning the investigation in a 1994 report was unnecessary because it was disclosed elsewhere in the report. Presstek later added the mention to the financial statement notes as well. In November 1994, the S.E.C. began an inquiry into possible manipulation of Presstek's shares. Officials for Presstek and Deloitte could not be reached for comment. Shares of Presstek fell $10.75 yesterday, to $83.5, before trading on the Nasdaq market was halted late in the afternoon.

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COMPANY NEWS;ENRON UNIT BUYS A STAKE IN HANOVER COMPRESSOR

Date: 05 January 1996

Bloomberg Business News

Bloomberg News

A unit of the Enron Corporation said yesterday that it had acquired a 10.5 percent stake in the Hanover Compressor Company, which leases gas equipment, and added that it would provide Hanover with a $100 million line of credit to help it expand. Enron Capital and Trade Resources paid $30 million for its stake in Hanover, a privately held company based in Houston. An investment partnership that includes the Pritzker family of Chicago and Daniel W. Lufkin, a founder of Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette, owns 44.8 percent of Hanover.

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COMPANY NEWS;I.B.M. REPORTED READY TO REPLACE BUTTERFLY NOTEBOOK

Date: 05 January 1996

Bloomberg Business News

Bloomberg News

The International Business Machines Corporation is considering abandoning its best-selling Butterfly notebook computer and replacing it with a new ultra-lightweight, much more powerful model, analysts and retailers said yesterday. The computer, a Thinkpad notebook that got its nickname for its two-part expandable keyboard, was introduced by the I.B.M. PC Company in March and racked up the most first-day sales of any product in the unit's history. "If you don't see Butterfly anymore, it'll be because you'll see something better," a company spokesman, Mike Corrado, said, adding that I.B.M. had not made a decision.

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