IN THE COURTS

TIVO WINS DAMAGES IN SUIT VS. ECHOSTAR

A federal jury awarded TiVo Incorporated nearly $74 million in damages yesterday in a swift ending to a patent-infringement lawsuit against EchoStar Communications Corporation, the parent of the Dish satellite television provider.

TiVo got most of the $87 million in damages it sought in a case that one of its lawyers called “life or death” for the company that was among the first to sell devices to pause and rewind live television.

The case in U.S. District Court in Marshall was closely watched on Wall Street, with some analysts even dropping in during the two-week trial. They said a victory would help TiVo win other royalty deals.

– Associated Press

SKILLING SAYS GOVERNMENT IGNORED, MISREPRESENTED ENRON FACTS

Former Enron Corporation Chief Executive Jeffrey Skilling struggled to hold his temper yesterday at being pegged a liar and a crook by federal prosecutors, telling jurors in his criminal trial that he was devastated the company he cherished became a symbol for scandal.

“I think they have purposely not looked at facts they should have looked at if they wanted to come to a more balanced and accurate conclusion,” Mr. Skilling declared with hardened eyes and a stiff jaw.

His comments came as defense lawyer Daniel Petrocelli led him through the government’s indictment, which accuses him of minimizing bad news in 2001 so investors and Wall Street would remain bullish on failing Enron ventures in broadband and retail energy.

He and his co-defendant, Enron founder Kenneth Lay, have complained that witnesses who could corroborate their claim that no fraud occurred at Enron won’t step forward for fear of being targeted by prosecutors

– Associated Press

EARNINGS

GE’S FIRST-QUARTER PROFIT RISES ON ENGINES, FINANCE

General Electric Company’s first-quarter earnings rose 14%, driven by demand for financing, engines and health-care products. GE shares fell the most since February as profit from entertainment and energy equipment dropped.

Profit from continuing operations increased to $4.04 billion, or 39 cents a share, from $3.56 billion, or 33 cents, a year earlier, the Fairfield, Connecticut-based company said in a statement today. Revenue at GE, the world’s no. 2 company by stock market value, climbed 10% to $37.8 billion.

– Bloomberg News

TRIBUNE, NEW YORK TIMES, McCLATCHY PROFITS DECLINE

New York Times Company and McClatchy Company reported lower first-quarter profits as newspaper chains struggled to retain advertisers and readers.

Tribune, the second-largest American newspaper publisher, said net income fell 28% to $102.8 million, or 33 cents a share. New YorkTimes, ranked third, said net income fell 69% to $35 million, or 24 cents. No. 6 McClatchy’s net income dropped to 14% to $27.7 million, or 59 cents.

– Bloomberg News

WIRELESS

SPRINT OFFERS LOCATION-TRACKING SERVICE TO PARENTS

Sprint Nextel Corporation, the no. 3 mobile-phone services company, began selling a service to help families keep track of their children.

The phones let parents locate their children by using global positioning system technology and follows a similar offering by Walt Disney Company last week. Sprint’s location service costs about $10 a month and is available on 17 Sprint phones, the Reston, Virginia-based company said today in a statement.

Sprint may benefit from demand for products that ease parental concerns about the whereabouts and activities of their children. Disney’s service also uses Sprint’s network to track location as well as voice, text, picture and download usage. The new Sprint service may help raise the company’s average monthly revenue from $63 per subscriber phone in the fourth quarter.

– Bloomberg News