'American Sniper' tops this week's TV ad spend

In this week's edition of the Variety Movie Commercial Tracker, powered by iSpot.tv, "American Sniper" held the top ad spend position last week, with an estimated $9.8 million spent across 985 national airings on 46 networks, led by MTV and Comedy Central....

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Maura Healey may sue drug cos. to rein in Rx abuse

Attorney General-elect Maura Healey said she would consider taking legal action against pharmaceutical companies to help rein in prescription drug abuse that can lead to heroin addiction. Healey pointed to a lawsuit brought by Kentucky against Purdue...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

France drops its super tax on millionaires

PARIS — It was supposed to force millionaires to pay tax rates of up to 75 percent: "Cuba without the sun," as described by a critic from the banking industry. Socialist President Francois Hollande's super tax was rejected by a court, rewritten and ultimately...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Apple devices dominate at christmas

The holidays were filled with a lot of Apples lighting up for the first time. Mobile devices made by Apple accounted for 51% of the devices being activated around the world on Dec. 25, according to Yahoo-owned research firm Flurry. The iPhone 6 was...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Chipotle apologizes for NY worker's police protest

NEW YORK — Two Chipotle chief executives have apologized to New York City police officers who were greeted by a restaurant employee making the "hands up, don't shoot" gesture popular with protesters. Co-Chief Executive Officers Steve Ells and Monty...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Alert issued after likely HIV porn set infection

LOS ANGELES — California public health officials issued an alert Monday after finding "very strong evidence" that an adult film actor became infected with HIV as a result of unprotected sex on an out-of-state film shoot. The Department of Public Health...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Developer serves up plan for building behind Back Bay tennis club

Developers are proposing a 10-story mixed-use, glass-faced building that would rise above a 1902 Beaux Arts building on Boston's Boylston Street, across from the Hynes Convention Center. The $40 million project by Boston-based Hamlen Co. would replace...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

No health insurance? Penalties to rise in 2015

WASHINGTON — The cost of being uninsured in America is going up significantly next year for millions of people. It's the first year all taxpayers have to report to the Internal Revenue Service whether they had health insurance for the previous year,...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Somerville program helps young adults develop skills for employment

A Somerville workforce development program has teamed up with a jobs website to match low-income young adults with local businesses. Although anyone can post or apply for one-off jobs or part-time work for free on HelpAroundTown.com, young adults age...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Forecasting 2015: Digital world will smarten up

The "Internet of Things," "organic" TV and personal drones are among the high-tech items that you can expect to see in 2015. "We will see a lot more of the 'Internet of Things,' meaning smart devices that we have in our houses that can do various things...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Pringo not for everyone, but still cute

Pringo Pocket Wi-Fi Photo Printer ($149.99, Amazon.com) With all the advancements in smartphone technology, we still haven't mastered portable printing. Enter the Pringo, by Taiwanese manufacturer Hiti. Hoping to cash in on our incessant Instagram-ing,...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Amazon quick-delivery plans threaten small stores

Bay State convenience stores could be in for a world of pain in 2015 if Amazon speeds up and expands its same-day delivery services. All signs point to Amazon vastly growing its Massachusetts footprint in the next year, and CEO Jeff Bezos has made no...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Mass. skiing awaits cold

Massachusetts ski areas are awaiting this week's forecasted return of colder weather to make more snow and kick the season up a notch. Wachusett Mountain Ski Area in Princeton, which opened Nov. 21, had one of its strongest and earliest launches in...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Can Mass. casinos compete?

The state's gaming czar says local casinos are ready to weather mounting competitive pressures in New York and Connecticut in 2015, as his commission gears up to regulate its first gambling facility in Plainville and grapples with uncertainty over whether...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Hospital closes, leaves emergency room open

QUINCY — An emergency room is all that remains of a 124-year-old hospital in Quincy. After reaching an agreement with state regulators, Quincy Medical Center officially closed its doors at midnight, replaced on Saturday by the 24-hour satellite emergency...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Short-sellers get last-minute gift with debt relief extension

WASHINGTON — For David Foster of Chicago, it was a stunning and welcome early Christmas present for him, his wife and three young children. The Senate's 11th-hour extension of the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act through Dec. 31 will save Foster,...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Union Wharf duplex location can’t be beat

This brick-and-beam duplex on Union Wharf was completely redone three years ago, incorporating original granite details with contemporary finishes, including a wine cellar. Unit 101 is a first-floor and basement-level corner duplex with wood-beam ceilings...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Insurer to rescue Connector

A Massachusetts health plan, citing widespread bewilderment over the Health Connector's latest attempts to sign up Obamacare recipients, said it will offer last-minute insurance to Bay Staters who missed key deadlines. "The bottom line is many members...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

The Ticker

Dow, S&P, Russell 2000
 set new records again Wall Street's "Santa Claus" rally kept delivering gifts a day after Christmas. The Dow Jones industrial average, Standard & Poor's 500 index and the Russell 2000 index of small-company stocks closed...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Hacks are security wake-up call

Businesses are re-examining their security controls and wondering where the next attack will come from after the Sony Pictures hack and a subsequent cyberattack that crippled the Xbox and Sony PlayStation networks on Christmas morning. "It is the new...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Post-Christmas shopping spree

A perfect post-Christmas shopping storm of blowout sales and gift card mania is brewing, according to retail analysts. Expect stores and malls across the region and nationwide to be flooded today and parking lots packed as eager buyers hunt for the...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

High-end digs dominate Boston in ’14

Real estate in Greater Boston this year has been somewhat of a paradox. The market saw a huge influx of luxury apartment complexes, with high rents and lots of amenities, and construction is under way on some of the city's most expensive condos. Yet...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Booting Up: Sony runs with chance to test new marketing model

Sony Pictures has pioneered a new model for marketing films, bypassing big theaters and instead looking to a startup and streaming services to distribute the movie that sparked an unprecedented North Korean cyber attack. Reversing its decision to pull...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Sony says online PlayStation disrupted

TOKYO — Sony's online PlayStation store and Microsoft's Xbox site suffered disruptions to users on Christmas Day in the latest possible cyber-attacks on the companies. The PlayStation Store Twitter feed said Friday that some users were having trouble...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Mayor Marty Walsh makes Dorchester tour

It was a merry Christmas Eve day in Dorchester yesterday as the mayor and police commissioner went on a goodwill tour of businesses. The event began with a gathering at the Teen Center at St. Peter's where neighborhood kids received presents from police...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Sony tries to save face with 'Interview' flip-flop

ATLANTA — Sony's flip-flop on releasing "The Interview" shows the studio is working furiously to try to chart the right course through political and public-opinion minefields. Although analysts don't believe the decision will have any effect on Sony's...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Honda recalls 1,252 Crosstours over side air bags

NEW YORK — Honda is recalling 1,252 Crosstour vehicles due to a faulty side air bag made by troubled air bag supplier Takata. The Honda recall is for 2015 model year Crosstours. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says the side air bag...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Quincy residents to be left with emergency facility only

The long-struggling Quincy Medical Center will permanently close its doors tomorrow, leaving Quincy residents without an official health facility sooner than originally planned, which could spur legal action from the Attorney General's office. "Because...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Bitcoin now available at local stores

You can now pick up some bitcoin with that bottle of soda and bag of chips at the store down the street. LibertyX, a company that originally made and operated bitcoin vending kiosks, has expanded to let any store sell bitcoin for cash at the register,...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

The Ticker

Pier 4 owner cashes out Pier 4 master developer New England Development has cashed out of the 1-million-square-foot South Boston waterfront project, selling 130 and 140 Northern Ave. to the deeper-pocketed Tishman Speyer, the New York owner of properties...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Single-family home sales fall in Nov.

Single-family home sales fell last month while the median price rose, particularly in Greater Boston, driven by a continuing shortage of inventory, according to the Massachusetts Association of Realtors. Statewide, the number of closed sales dropped...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Sony tries to save face with 'Interview' flip-flop

ATLANTA — Sony's flip-flop on releasing "The Interview" shows the studio is working furiously to try to chart the right course through political and public-opinion minefields. Although analysts don't believe the decision will have any effect on Sony's...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Sony threatens legal action against Twitter after users post hacked emails

Sony Pictures Entertainment is threatening Twitter with legal action and is calling on the social media platform to prevent its users from posting emails exposed during the recent hack of the studio. In a letter sent to Twitter's general counsel by...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Business Protocol: Toe the line in kissing under mistletoe at holiday parties

Hung over a doorway during Christmas, mistletoe remains one of the season's most beloved traditions. They say mistletoe has spiritual and healing powers. It is also said to be a sexual symbol and an aphrodisiac. One legend states couples kissing underneath...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Two top execs leaving MassChallenge

Two members of MassChallenge's executive team are stepping down. In emails yesterday, Akhil Nigam, president and co-founder of the Boston-based startup accelerator and competition, and Karl Buttner, chief mentorship officer, said they will remain advisers...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Netflix cuts CEO Reed Hastings salary

Netflix said co-founder and CEO Reed Hastings' baseline salary would be $1 million in 2015 -- down from $3 million this year -- in a regulatory filing. At the same time, Hastings had an annual stock-option allowance worth up to $13.7 million of shares,...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

'The Interview' fallout: theater owners angry at Sony for shifting blame

Theater owners are incensed that Sony Pictures Entertainment has insisted in public statements that they are the major reason the studio canceled the release of "The Interview." Exhibitors believe that they are being made the scapegoat for the cancellation...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Cambridge frets over business climate

Two of Cambridge's top priorities — supporting biotech companies and being green — are in a tug-of-war as the city mulls tougher emissions standards for new construction. A city task force has been meeting for nearly a year to come up with a way for...

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More