England centre Mike Tindall is to seek a second opinion before having surgery on a foot injury that could force him to miss the entire Six Nations. The Bath player was already out of the opener against Wales on 5 February because of a hand problem. "Mike had a specialist review on a fracture in his right mid foot," said England doctor Simon Kemp. "Before a final decision is made on surgery... medical teams have decided he should see a second specialist." England coach Andy Robinson is already without centre Will Greenwood and flanker Richard Hill while fly half Jonny Wilkinson is certain to miss at least the first two games. Robinson is expected to announce his new look England line up on Monday for the match at the Millennium Stadium. And Newcastle's 18 year old centre Mathew Tait is set to stand in for Tindall alongside club team mate Jamie Noon. Meanwhile, Tindall is targeting a return to action before the end of the regular Zurich Premiership season on 30 April. He will also aim to be back to full fitness before the Lions tour to New Zealand this summer.


Shares in Manchester United were up over 5% by noon on Monday following a new offer from Malcolm Glazer. The board of Man Utd is expected to meet early this week to discuss the latest proposal from the US tycoon that values the club at 800m ( 1.5bn). Manchester United revealed on Sunday that it had received a detailed proposal from Mr Glazer. A senior source at the club told the BBC: "This time it's different". The board is obliged to consider this deal. But the Man Utd supporters club urged the club to reject the new deal. Manchester United past and present footballers Eric Cantona and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, and club manager Sir Alex Ferguson, have lent their backing to the supporters' group, Shareholders United. They have all spoken out against the bid. A spokesman for the supporters club said: "I can't see any difference (compared to Mr Glazer's previous proposals) other than 200m less debt. "He isn't bringing any money into the club; he'll use our money to buy it." Mr Glazer's latest move is being led by Mr Glazer's two sons, Avi and Joel, according to the Financial Times. A proposal was received by David Gill, United's chief executive, at the end of last week, pitched at about 300p a share. David Cummings, head of UK equities for Standard Life Investments, said he believed a "well funded" 300p a share bid would be enough for Mr Glazer to take control of the club. "I do not think there is anything that Manchester United fans can do about it," he told the BBC. "They can complain about it but it is curtains for them. They may not want him but they are going to get him." The US tycoon, who has been wooing the club for the last 12 months, has approached the United board with "detailed proposals", it has confirmed. Mr Glazer, who owns the Tampa Bay Buccaneers team, hopes this will lead to a formal bid being accepted. He is believed to have increased the amount of equity in the new proposal, though it is not clear by how much. For his proposal to succeed, he needs the support of United's largest shareholders, the Irish horseracing tycoons JP McManus and John Magnier. They own 29% of United through their Cubic Expression investment vehicle. Mr Glazer and his family hold a stake of 28.1%. But it is not yet known whether Mr McManus and Mr Magnier would support a Glazer bid. NM Rothschild, the investment bank, is advising Mr Glazer, according to the Financial Times. His previous adviser, JPMorgan, quit last year when Mr Glazer went ahead and voted against the appointment of three United directors to the board, against its advice. But the FT said it thought JP Morgan may still have had some role in financing Mr Glazer's latest financial proposal.


Internet TV has been talked about since the start of the web as we know it now. But any early attempts to do it the UK's Home Choice started in 1992 were thwarted by the lack of a fast network. Now that broadband networks are bedding down, and it is becoming essential for millions, the big telcos are keen to start shooting video down the line. In the face of competition from cable companies offering net voice calls, they are keen to be the top IPTV dogs. Software giant Microsoft thinks IPTV Internet Protocol TV is the future of television, and it sits neatly with its vision of the "connected entertainment experience". "Telcos have been wanting to do video for a long time," Ed Graczyk, director of marketing for Microsoft IPTV, told the BBC News website. "The challenge has been the broadband network, and the state of technology up until not so long ago did not add up to a feasible solution. "Compression technology was not efficient enough, the net was not good enough. A lot of stars have aligned in the last 18 months to make it a reality." Last year, he said, was all about deal making and partnering up; shaping the "IPTV ecosystem". This year, those deals will start to play out and more services will come online. "2006 is where it starts ramping up and expanding to other geographies over time as broadband becomes more prevalent in South America, and other parts of Asia, it will expand," he added. What telcos really want to do is to send the "triple play" of video, voice, and data down one single line, be it cable or DSL (Digital Subscriber Line). Some are talking about "quadruple play", too, with mobile services added into the mix. It is an emerging new breed of competition for satellite and cable broadcasters and operators. According to technology analysts, TDG Research, there will be 20 million subscribers to IPTV services in under six years. Key to the appeal of sending TV programmes down the same line as the web data, whenever a viewer wants it, is that it uses the same technology as the internet. It means there is not just a one way relationship between the viewer and the "broadcaster". This allows for more DVD like interactivity, limitless storage and broadcast space, bespoke channel "playlists", and thousands of hours of programmes or films at a viewer's fingertips. It potentially lets operators target programmes to smaller, niche or localised audiences, sending films to Bollywood fans for instance, as well as individual devices. Operators could also send high definition programmes straight to the viewer, bypassing the need for a special broadcast receiver. Perhaps most compelling yet some might say insignificant is instantaneous channel flicking. Currently, there is a delay when you try to do this on satellite, cable or Freeview. With IPTV, the speed is 15 milliseconds. "That gets rounds of applause," according to Mr Graczyk. Microsoft is one of the companies that started thinking about IPTV some time ago. "We believe this will be the way all TV is delivered in the future but that is several years away," said Mr Graczyk. "As with music, TV has moved to digital formats. "The things software can do to integrate media into devices means a whole new generation of connected entertainment experiences that cross devices from the TV, to the mobile, to the gaming console and so on." The company intends its Microsoft's IPTV Edition software, an end to end management and delivery platform, to let telcos to do exactly that, seamlessly. It has netted seven major telcos as customers, representing a potential audience of 25 million existing broadband subscribers. Its deal with US telco SBC was the largest TV software deal to date, said Mr Graczyk. IPTV is about more than telcos, though. There are several web based offerings that aim to put control in the hands of the consumer by exploiting the net's power. Jeremy Allaire, chief of Brightcove, told the BBC News website that it would be a flavour of IPTV that was about harnessing the web as a "channel". "It is not just niches, but about exploiting content not usually viewed," he said. "We are focussed on the owners of video content who have rights to digitally distribute content, and who often see unencumbered distribution. "For them to do it through cable and so on is price prohibitive," he said. This type of IPTV service might also be a distribution channel for more established publishers who have unique types of content that they cannot offer through cable and satellite operators history channel archives, for instance. What is a clear sign that IPTV has a future is that Microsoft is not the only player in the field. There are a lot of other "middleware" players providing similar management services as Microsoft, like Myrio and C Cor. But it will up to the viewer to decide if it really is to be successful.


Spain won the Davis Cup for the second time in their history when Carlos Moya beat the USA's Andy Roddick in the fourth rubber in Seville. Moya won 6 2 7 6 (7 1) 7 6 (7 5) to give the hosts an unassailable 3 1 lead with only one singles rubber remaining. Roddick battled hard and had chances in the second set, but Moya's clay court expertise proved the difference. Mardy Fish beat Tommy Robredo 7 6 (8 6) 6 2 in the final dead rubber to cut Spain's winning margin to 3 2. Spain's only other Davis Cup title came in 2000, when they beat Australia in Barcelona. This time they chose to play the final in Seville and the city's Olympic Stadium was revamped to allow for a record crowd for a competitve tennis event of 27,000 spectators. And the home fans gave vociferous support to their players, with 18 year old Nadal and Moya winning both Friday's singles rubbers. American twins Mike and Bob Bryan gave the visitors hope with victory over Juan Carlos Ferrero and Tommy Robredo in Saturday's doubles. But it remained an uphill task for a US team far happier on hard courts than clay, and 1998 French Open champion Moya had too much for world number two Roddick. "This has been incredible the moment I've been waiting for for years," said Moya, who missed out in 2000 through injury. "I've prepared myself for this day. I knew that playing on clay I would have my chances to win. "The Davis Cup is my dream. I can't ask for more. There is nothing bigger than what I've lived today." Moya stormed into a 4 0 lead on his way to taking the first set against Roddick and recovered immediately from dropping serve in the second. The match came down to two tie breaks and Moya dominated both, clinching victory on his third match point. Wild celebrations followed, with an emotional Moya congratulated by his team mates, including Nadal, who at 18 years and 187 days becomes the youngest ever victor in Davis Cup history. "I think we put up a better fight here than in Paris two years ago," said Roddick, who was on the US team which lost to France in the 2002 semi finals at Roland Garros. "They were just better than us this weekend. I have nothing to be ashamed of, I gave it my all. "I am not going to walk out of here with my head down, that's for sure. "There's no miracle answer. We have to improve."


The EU embargo on arms exports to China is likely to be lifted in the next six months despite US objections, UK Foreign Secretary Jack Straw has said. The 15 year old ban was imposed in the aftermath of China's crackdown on protesters in Tiananmen Square. Mr Straw told a Commons select committee human rights concerns over China remained. But he said it was wrong to put China under the same embargo as countries such as Zimbabwe and Burma. In December, the EU pledged to work towards lifting the ban but said it was not ready to do so yet. The EU's move was welcomed at the time by Beijing, which described the embargo as a "product of the Cold War". German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and French President Jacques Chirac have repeatedly called for the embargo to be lifted. Britain has been more cautious on the issue, but on Wednesday Mr Straw said he also wanted it to end. "I have long understood China's argument, that to lump them in with, say, Burma and Zimbabwe is not appropriate and I don't think it is," he told the joint committee on Strategic Export Controls. He said "it is more likely than not" that the ban would be lifted before Britain takes over the presidency of the EU from Luxembourg in July. But he said an EU code of conduct would prevent an increase in the number of arms being exported to the country. "If it is lifted we will end up with as effective arms controls in relation to China as we have now." Mr Straw said the US government was suspicious of "the motives of some other countries within the EU" in wanting the ban lifted. But he said many of Washington's objections were based on a "lack of information and understanding" of how export control guidelines worked in EU countries. And "intense discussions" were taking place with US officials to convince them it was the right thing to do. Washington is thought to fear it would lead to a buying spree for arms that could be used by China to threaten its diplomatic rival Taiwan. US officials say they are not satisfied the mechanisms in the EU code of conduct are robust enough to prevent abuses. US Undersecretary of State John Bolton is meeting British officials this week to press the case for keeping the embargo.


Lawyers defending former WorldCom chief Bernie Ebbers against a battery of fraud charges have called a company whistleblower as their first witness. Cynthia Cooper, WorldCom's ex head of internal accounting, alerted directors to irregular accounting practices at the US telecoms giant in 2002. Her warnings led to the collapse of the firm following the discovery of an 11bn ( 5.7bn) accounting fraud. Mr Ebbers has pleaded not guilty to charges of fraud and conspiracy. Prosecution lawyers have argued that Mr Ebbers orchestrated a series of accounting tricks at WorldCom, ordering employees to hide expenses and inflate revenues to meet Wall Street earnings estimates. But Ms Cooper, who now runs her own consulting business, told a jury in New York on Wednesday that external auditors Arthur Andersen had approved WorldCom's accounting in early 2001 and 2002. She said Andersen had given a "green light" to the procedures and practices used by WorldCom. Mr Ebber's lawyers have said he was unaware of the fraud, arguing that auditors did not alert him to any problems. Ms Cooper also said that during shareholder meetings Mr Ebbers often passed over technical questions to the company's finance chief, giving only "brief" answers himself. The prosecution's star witness, former WorldCom financial chief Scott Sullivan, has said that Mr Ebbers ordered accounting adjustments at the firm, telling him to "hit our books". However, Ms Cooper said Mr Sullivan had not mentioned "anything uncomfortable" about WorldCom's accounting during a 2001 audit committee meeting. Mr Ebbers could face a jail sentence of 85 years if convicted of all the charges he is facing. WorldCom emerged from bankruptcy protection in 2004, and is now known as MCI. Last week, MCI agreed to a buyout by Verizon Communications in a deal valued at 6.75bn.


The European Parliament has thrown out a bill that would have allowed software to be patented. Politicians unanimously rejected the bill and now it must go through another round of consultation if it is to have a chance of becoming law. During consultation the software patents bill could be substantially re drafted or even scrapped. The bill was backed by some hi tech firms, saying they needed protections it offered to make research worthwhile. Hugo Lueders, European director for public policy at CompTIA, an umbrella organization for technology companies, said only when intellectual property was adequately protected would European inventors prosper. He said the benefits of the bill had been obscured by special interest groups which muddied debate over the rights and wrongs of software patents. Other proponents of the bill said it was a good compromise that avoided the excesses of the American system which allows the patenting of business practices as well as software. But opponents of the bill said that it could stifle innovation, be abused by firms keen to protect existing monopolies and could hamper the growth of the open source movement. The proposed law had a troubled passage through the European parliament. Its progress was delayed twice when Polish MEPs rejected plans to adopt it. Also earlier this month the influential European Legal Affairs Committee (JURI) said the law should be re drafted after it failed to win the support of MEPs. To become law both the European Parliament and a qualified majority of EU states have to approve of the draft wording of the bill. The latest rejection means that now the bill on computer inventions must go back to the EU for re consideration.


Microsoft has entered the desktop search fray, releasing a test version of its tool to find documents, e mails and other files on a PC hard drive. The beta program only works on PCs running Windows XP or Windows 2000. The desktop search market is becoming increasingly crowded with firms touting programs that help people find files. Search giant Google launched its desktop search tool in October, while Yahoo is planning to release similar software in January. "Our ambition for search is to provide the ultimate information tool that can find anything you're looking for," said Yusuf Mehdi, corporate vice president at Microsoft's MSN internet division. Microsoft's program can be used as a toolbar on the Windows desktop, the Internet Explorer browser and within the Outlook e mail program. The software giant is coming late to the desktop search arena, competing with a large number of rivals. Google has already released a desktop tool. Yahoo is planning to get into the game in January and AOL is expected to offer desktop searching early next year. Small firms such as Blinkx, Copernic, Enfish X1 Technologies and X Friend offer tools that catalogue the huge amounts of information that people increasingly store on their desktop or home computer. Apple will release a similar search system for its computers called Spotlight that is due to be released with the Tiger operating system.


Scotland's first minister has told a group of high school pupils that it is okay to get drunk "once in a while". Jack McConnell was speaking to more than 100 secondary pupils from schools in the Highlands about the problems of binge drinking and drink promotions. He has been criticised by the SNP for encouraging young people to get drunk. But the Scottish Executive has insisted Mr McConnell was speaking about adults and his comments were "a recognition that people will get drunk". The first minister's comments came in a question and answer session at Glenurquhart High School in Inverness, attended by pupils from a number of secondary schools. A Highland councillor who was at the event has also defended Mr McConnell. Margaret Davidson, the independent member for the Loch Ness West, said the first minister was speaking in a very general way and she was sure he was speaking about adults at the time. When one pupil asked Mr McConnell how the executive proposed to tackle under age drinking, began his response with the quip: "I'm sure there's no under age drinking in the Highlands." He went on to speak about the evils of binge drinking and railed against irresponsible drinks promotions. He said: "I hope I'm not going to be seen as preaching to anybody here but the really serious problem at the moment is binge drinking and the impact it has on people's health and their ability to control what's happening round about them." Mr McConnell said he regularly saw reports on the effects of binge drinking sprees which ended in assaults or even rapes, and on the health consequences of binge drinking. "The one thing we are going to do something really serious about is binge drinking and irresponsible drinks promotions that can help lead to that," he said. "Far too many pub chains in particular are selling far too much booze far too cheaply and encouraging people to drink it far too quickly. "We are go to clamp down on that and make those promotions illegal in the hope that people can enjoy a drink sensibly over the course of an evening." He added: "By all means get drunk once in a while but do not get into a situation where people are being encouraged to get completely incapable just to save some money and drink more quickly." SNP Holyrood leader Nicola Sturgeon said: "This is an incredible gaffe by Jack McConnell. "We all know that under age drinking is an issue in Scotland but it is quite staggering that any politician, particularly the First Minister, should encourage young people to get drunk. "The first minister should withdraw these remarks immediately." But an executive spokeswoman insisted Mr McConnell had made the remark with adults, not youngsters, in mind. "He was talking in the context of adults binge drinking and irresponsible drinks promotions which are for the over 18s," she said. "It was just a recognition that people will get drunk, but that binge drinking and drinks promotions that encourage it are not acceptable."


Users of Apple's music jukebox iTunes need to update the software to avoid a potential security threat. Hackers can build malicious playlist files which could crash the program and let them seize control of the computer by inserting Trojan code. A new version of iTunes is now available from the Apple website which solves the problem. Security firm iDefence, which notified users of the problem, recommended that users upgrade to iTunes version 4.7.1. The problem affects all users of iTunes Windows and Mac OS running versions 4.7 and earlier. Users can automatically upgrade iTunes by opening the "look for updates" window in the program. The security firm says users should avoid clicking on or accessing playlist files which have the file extension of .pls or .m3u which have come from unknown sources. Itunes is the world's most popular online music store with more than 200 million songs downloaded since it launched in 2003.


Stefan Koubek says he has been banned for three months by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) after testing positive for a banned substance. The world number 60 failed a routine drugs test at this year's French Open but now plans to lodge an appeal. Koubek believes an injection given to him by an Austrian doctor to treat a wrist injury is to blame for producing traces of the substance in his system. "I have acted correctly," the 27 year old Austrian said in a statement. Koubek, who defeated Britain's Greg Rusedski in the decisive rubber of the Davis Cup in September, is now set to miss the start of the season. He said, "A three month ban would mean that I not only will miss the Australian Open, but also the Davis Cup in Australia."


Brewing giant Inbev has agreed to buy Alfa Eco's stake in Sun Interbrew, Russia's second largest brewer, for up to 259.7m euros ( 353.3m; 183.75m). Alfa Eco, the venture capital arm of Russian conglomerate Alfa Group, has a one fifth stake in Sun Interbrew. The deal gives Inbev, the world's biggest beermaker, near total control over the Russian brewer. Inbev bought out another partner in August 2004. Inbev brands include Bass, Stella Artois, Hoegaarden and Staropramen. It employs 77,000 people, running operations in over 30 countries across the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific. The Leuven based brewery said it would own 97.3% of the voting shares and 98.8% of the non voting shares of Sun Interbrew. The deal is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2005. Inbev was formed in August 2004 when Belgium's Interbrew bought Brazilian brewer Ambev. Sun Interbrew, which employs 8,000 staff, owns breweries in eight Russian cities Klin, Ivanovo, Saransk, Kursk, Volzhsky, Omsk, Perm and Novocheboksarsk. There are also three breweries in Ukraine, in the cities of Chernigov, Nikolaev and Kharkov.


The next generation DVD format Blu ray is winning more supporters than its rival, according to its backers. Blu ray, backed by 100 firms including Sony, is competing against Toshiba and NEC backed HD DVD to be the format of choice for future films and games. The Blu Ray Association said on Thursday that games giants Electronic Arts and Vivendi would both support its DVD format. The next generation of DVDs will hold high definition video and sound. This offers incredible 3D like quality of pictures which major Hollywood studios and games publishers are extremely keen to exploit in the coming year. In a separate press conference at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Toshiba announced that DVD players for its technology would be on the market by the end of 2005. "As we move from standard definition video images to high definition images, we have a much greater need for storage," Richard Doherty, from Panasonic's Hollywood Laboratories, one of the pioneers of Blu ray, told the BBC news website. "So by utilising blue laser based technology we can make an optical laser disc that can hold six times as much as today's DVD." A Blu ray disc will be able to store 50GB of high quality data, while Toshiba's HD DVD will hold 30GB. Mr Doherty added that it was making sure the discs could satisfy all high definition needs, including the ability to record onto the DVDs and smaller discs to fit into camcorders. Both Toshiba and Blu ray are hopeful that the emerging DVD format war, akin to the Betamax and VHS fight in the 1980s, can be resolved over the next year when next generation DVD players start to come out. When players do come out, they will be able to play standard DVDs too, which is good news for those who have huge libraries of current DVDs. But the support from Vivendi and Electronics Arts is a big boost to Blu ray in the battle for supremacy. Gaming is a 20 billion industry worldwide, so is as crucial as the film industry in terms of money to be made. "The technical requirement for game development today demands more advanced optical disc technologies," said Michael Heilmann, chief technology officer for Vivendi Universal. "Blu ray offers the capacity, performance and high speed internet connectivity to take us into the future of gaming." EA, a leading games developer and publisher, added that the delivery of high definition games of the future was vital and Blu ray had the capacity, functionality and interactivity needed for the kinds of projects it was planning. Sony recently announced it would be using the technology in its next generation of PlayStations. Mr Doherty said gamers were "ravenous" for high quality graphics and technology for the next generation of titles. "Gamers, especially those working on PCs, are always focused on more capacity to deliver textures, deeper levels, for delivering higher resolution playback." He added: "The focus for games moving forward is on increased immersion. "Gaming companies really like to focus on creating a world which involves creating complicated 3D models and textures and increasing the resolution, increasing the frame rate all of these are part of getting a more immersive experience." Fitting these models on current DVD technologies means compressing the graphics so much that much of this quality is lost. As games move to more photo real capability, the current technology is limiting. "They are thrilled at the advanced capacity to start to build these immersive environments," said Mr Doherty. Currently, graphics intensive PC games also require multiple discs for installation. High definition DVDs will cut down on that need. Likewise, consoles rely on single discs, so DVDs that can hold six times more data mean much better, high resolution games. Blu ray has already won backing from major Hollywood studios, such as MGM Studios, Disney, and Buena Vista, as well as top technology firms like Dell, LG, Samsung and Phillips amongst others. While Toshiba's HD DVD technology has won backing from Paramount, Universal and Warner Bros. "The real world benefits (of HD DVD) are apparent and obvious," said Jim Cardwell, president of Warner Home Video. Mr Cardwell added that rapid time to market and dependability were significant factors in choosing to go with HD DVD. Both formats are courting Microsoft to be the format of choice for the next generation Xbox, but discussions are still on going. Next generation DVDs will also be able to store images and other data. CES is the largest consumer electronics show in the world, and runs from 6 to 9 January.


Fiat will meet car giant General Motors (GM) on Tuesday in an attempt to reach agreement over the future of the Italian firm's loss making auto group. Fiat claims that GM is legally obliged to buy the 90% of the car unit it does not already own; GM says the contract, signed in 2000, is no longer valid. Press reports have speculated that Fiat may be willing to accept a cash payment in return for dropping its claim. Both companies want to cut costs as the car industry adjusts to waning demand. The meeting between Fiat boss Sergio Marchionne and GM's Rick Wagoner is due to take place at 1330 GMT in Zurich, according to the Reuters news agency. Mr Marchionne is confident of his firm's legal position, saying in an interview with the Financial Times that GM's argument "has no legs". The agreement in question dates back to GM's decision to buy 20% of Fiat's auto division in 2000. At the time, it gave the Italian firm the right, via a 'put option', to sell the remaining stake to GM. In recent weeks, Fiat has reiterated its claims that this 'put' is still valid and legally binding. However, GM argues that a Fiat share sale made last year, which cut GM's holding to 10%, together with asset sales made by Fiat have terminated the agreement. Selling the Fiat's car making unit may not prove so simple, analysts say, especially as it is a company that is so closely linked to Italy's industrial heritage. Political and public pressure may well push the two firms to reach a compromise. "We are not expecting Fiat to exercise its put of the auto business against an unwilling GM at this point," brokerage Merrill Lynch said in a note to investors, adding that any legal battle would be protracted and damaging to the business. "As far as we are aware, the Agnelli family, which indirectly controls at least 30% of Fiat, has not given a firm public indication that it wants to sell the auto business. "Fiat may be willing to cancel the 'put' in exchange for money."


Australian brewer Fosters has bought a large stake in Australian winemaker Southcorp, sparking rumours of a possible takeover. Fosters bought 18.8% of Southcorp, the global winemaker behind the Penfolds, Lindemans and Rosemount brands, for 4.17 Australian dollars per share. A bid at that price would value the company at A 3.1bn ( 2.4bn; 1.25bn ). Fosters said it was currently in discussions "which may lead to a major corporate announcement". In a separate statement, Southcorp confirmed the brewer had asked for talks. Both firms asked the Sydney stock market to suspend trading in their shares until Monday. Southcorp's shares were suspended at A 4.25. Fosters bought the 18.8% stake from Reline Investments, the family investment firm for the Oatleys, who founded the Rosemount Estates label and sold it to Southcorp in 2001. Robert Oatley and his son Sandy Oatley have both resigned from Southcorp's board following the share deal. Southcorp employs 2,700 people and is the largest single investor in rural Australia, according to its website. The prospect of Fosters launching a major acquisition startled investors, as the brewer said last summer that it was not looking to expand through a big buy in the near future. It has cash available, after getting A 846m from selling property business Lensworth, but it has been widely expected to return cash to shareholders. "People will scratching their heads over this one. Fosters has done a back flip", said Shawn Burns, a fund manger at Deutsche Asset Management. Southcorp's shares have risen in recent months on speculation that it could become a takeover target. It spent two years in the red, returning to profit in 2004. Consolidation in the wine industry is being driven by Constellation, the world's biggest winemaker. It seized the top spot when it bought Australian firm BRL Hardy for just over 1bn in 2003. Since then, it has paid 1bn for US wine maker Robert Mondavi, bought last month. Fosters' main wine business is Beringer Blass Wine Estate. Its best known brand is Fosters lager, though it makes a clutch of beer brands, and spirits. Analysts were divided on Thursday about whether Fosters was more likely to go for a takeover or merely wanted to take a big enough chunk of Southcorp to prevent it falling to a rival. "Currently, I think the strategic position is more sensible rather than an outright takeover," said one analyst quoted by the Agence France Presse news agency. However, Matt Williams, a fund manager at Perpetual Trustees said taking the stake "is definitely a precursor to a takeover".


Marion Jones has filed a lawsuit for defamation against Balco boss Victor Conte following his allegations that he gave her performance enhancing drugs. The Sydney Olympic gold medallist says Conte damaged her reputation and she is seeking 25m ( 13m) in the suit. Conte, whose company is at the centre of a doping investigation, made the claims in a US television programme. He and three others were indicted in February by a federal grand jury for a variety of alleged offences. In an email to the Associated Press on Wednesday, Conte said: "I stand by everything I said". Jones won three gold medals and two bronzes in Sydney in 2000. Her lawsuit, filed in the US District Court in San Francisco, said the sprinter had passed a lie detector test and that she "has never taken banned performance enhancing drugs". Conte's statements, the suit added, were "false and malicious". After the ABC television program earlier this month, Jones' lawyer Richard Nicholls said: "Marion has steadfastly maintained her position throughout: she has never, ever used performance enhancing drugs. "Victor Conte is a man facing a 42 count federal indictment, while Marion Jones is one of America's most decorated female athletes. Mr Conte's statements have been wildly contradictory. "Mr Conte chose to make unsubstantiated allegations on television, while Marion Jones demanded to take and then passed a lie detector examination. "Mr Conte is simply not credible. We challenge him to submit to the same lie detector procedure that Marion Jones passed." The sport's ruling body, the IAAF, is taking a cautious approach to Conte's allegations but contacted the US Anti Doping Agency. Communications director Nick Davies said the IAAF would seek to contact Conte "for further information". But Davies stressed it would be up to the American authorities to decide whether they will take action against Jones in light of Conte's television interview and the world governing body would monitor the situation closely. "If it is felt there is case to answer, it would be for its national governing body (USA Track and Field) to take the appropriate disciplinary action," he added. "The US Anti Doping Agency has proved itself to be very diligent in its anti doping war. "And I am sure, like ourselves, they will be watching the television programme with great interest." Jones, who is under investigation for steroid use by the US Anti Doping Agency, has continually denied ever taking illegal substances since being investigated in the Balco scandal, although she praised a zinc supplement Conte marketed. Jones, who did not win any medals in Athens in August, has never failed a drugs test. Meanwhile, Conte, who has been charged along with three other men of distributing illegal steroids and money laundering, is due to face trial in March.


Unseeded Nicolas Almagro became the fifth Spaniard to reach the last eight at the Buenos Aires Open, ousting eighth seed Mariano Zabaleta. He showed admirable resolve to win a rain affected match 6 7 6 4 6 4. Compatriot and seventh seed Rafael Nadal also reached the last eight, beating Italian Potito Starace 6 1 6 3. Nadal, playing in the outdoor clay event for the first time, hit some powerful forehands to oust Starace in a match delayed over an hour by rain. "It's always a problem to have to stop for rain but one gets used to it," said Spanish teenager Nadal. "Luckily, I was able to keep my pace going throughout the match." He will now play Gaston Gaudio, who beat unseeded Brazilian Flavio Saretta 6 3 6 2 in the day's late match.


The explosion in consumer technology is to continue into 2005, delegates at the world's largest gadget show, in Las Vegas, have been told. The number of gadgets in the shops is predicted to grow by 11%, while devices which talk to each other will become increasingly important. "Everything is going digital," Kirsten Pfeifer from the Consumer Electronics Association, told the BBC News website. The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) featured the pick of 2005's products. "Consumers are controlling what they want and technologies like HDTVs high definition TVs , digital radio, and digital cameras will remain strong in 2005. "All the products on show really showed the breadth and depth of the industry." Despite showing diversity, some delegates attending complained that the showcase lacked as much "wow factor" as in previous years. The portable technologies on show also reflected one of the buzzwords of CES, which was the "time and place shifting" of multimedia content being able to watch and listen to video and music anywhere, at any time. At the start of last year's CES, the CEA predicted there would be an average growth of 4% in 2004. That figure was surpassed with the rise in popularity of portable digital music players, personal video recorders and digital cameras. It was clear also that gadgets are becoming a lot more about lifestyle choice, with fashion and personalisation becoming increasingly key to the way gadgets are designed. Part of this has been the rise in spending power of the "generation X ers" who have grown up with technology and who now have the spending power and desire for more devices that suit them. More than 57% of the consumer electronics market is made up of female buyers, according to CEA research. Hybrid devices, which combine a number of multimedia functions, were also in evidence on the show floor. "A lot of this is driven by just the ability to do it," said Stephen Baker, a consumer electronics analyst with retail research firm NPD Group. "Some of these functions cost next to nothing to add." As well as the show floor showcasing everything from tiny wearable MP3 players to giant high definition TVs, several keynote speeches were made by industry leaders, such as Microsoft chief Bill Gates. Despite several embarrassing technical glitches during Mr Gate's pre show speech, he announced several new partnerships mainly for the US market. He unveiled new ways of letting people take TV shows recorded on personal video recorders and watch them back on portable devices. He disappointed some, however, by failing to announce any details of the next generation of the Xbox games console. Another disappointment was the lack of exposure Sony's new portable games device, the PSP, had at the show. Sony said the much anticipated gadget would most likely start shipping in March for the US and Europe. It went on sale in Japan before Christmas. There were only two PSPs embedded in glass cabinets at the show though and no representatives to discuss further details. A Sony representative told the BBC News website this was because Sony did not consider it to be part of their "consumer technology" offering. Elsewhere at the show, there was a plethora of colour and plasma screens, including Samsung's 102 inch (2.6 metre) plasma the largest in the world. Industry experts were also excited about high definition technologies coming to the fore in 2005, with new formats for DVDs coming out which will hold six times as much data as conventional DVDs. With so many devices on the move there were a lot of products on show offering external storage, like Seagate's 5GB pocket sized external hard drive, which won an innovation for engineering and design prize. More than 120,000 trade professionals attended CES in Las Vegas, which officially ran from 6 to 9 January.


An artist critical of Welsh arts funding being brought under assembly government control has denied comparing the idea with dictatorships in Russia and Germany. Shani Rhys James is worried that the Arts Council of Wales may be taken over by the Welsh Assembly Government. Culture Minister Alun Pugh said it would be "crass and ignorant" to liken a quango review to Hitler's Germany. But Ms James emphasised she had actually said artists needed freedom. The future of the Arts Council of Wales has been in question since it was announced that most Welsh quangos would eventually be abolished. It was announced last July that three Welsh quangos, education and training body Elwa, the Wales Tourist Board and the Welsh Development Agency, would be brought under assembly government control. The Arts Council of Wales may be among the next to come under the assembly government's umbrella. But Ms James, who won the 30,000 Jerwood painting prize in 2003, said arts funding should be separate from government. Ms James told BBC Radio Wales: "It's quite dangerous when you involve politicians because it's not like the health service and it's not like the railways. "Free expression is absolutely vital in a democratic society. You need distance, you do not need government interference because it could be taken the wrong way." But she said reports that she had likened the assembly government to totalitarian regimes were inaccurate. She told Good Morning Wales: "Just to put the record straight, that business in the paper where it said I likened the government to Bolshevik Russia or Hitler's Germany, the actual quote I gave was: 'It is vital to a civilised society that we allow artists to express themselves without government control'. "As we know from past European history, i.e. Russia and Germany in the early 20th Century, artists will go underground or leave the country or rather than compromise their expression'. "Artists need a free voice to express themselves they reflect a truth through their own art forms.'" She said the assembly government was not best placed to run the arts in Wales. She added: "It would be a momentous change and devastating to the arts. It would set the arts scene back 60 years, because I really don't think the government has the expertise. "If you have the National Assembly taking control, I fear you are going to be going back to the dragons and leeks and the choirs. "Wales has moved on. It is international now. It is not set back in How Green Was My Valley?" Responding to Ms James' criticisms, Mr Pugh said: "The structure of unelected quangos is under review and we have made it clear that further announcements are due shortly. "Comparing the Welsh Assembly Government to Hitler's Germany is a crass and ignorant response to a real issue about democratic accountability." Ms James, whose father was Welsh, was born in Melbourne where her parents worked in the theatre. She moved to Powys nearly 20 years ago where she works from her studio near Llangadfan. She has won a number of arts prizes including the Wales Open in 1989 and the Mostyn Open in 1991.


Southampton's David Prutton faces a possible seven match ban when he goes before the Football Association. The 23 year old has admitted two charges of improper conduct following his dismissal against Arsenal. The first charge relates to his failure to leave the field promptly, pushing referee Alan Wiley and remonstrating with assistant referee Paul Norman. And the second charge is for using threatening words and/or behaviour to a match official during the 1 1 draw. Paolo di Canio was given a seven match suspension when he pushed referee Paul Alcock over in a Premiership game between Sheffield Wednesday and Arsenal in 1998. Prutton will be joined at Wednesday's hearing by Saints boss Harry Redknapp, who believes that the FA will throw the book at his player. Redknapp himself sprinted along the touchline to help physio Jim Joyce and coach Denis Rofe shepherd the enraged Prutton away from referee's assistant Norman. "David has made a big mistake and he knows it. I can't condone what he's done. He was out of order but he knows that," said Redknapp. "He's a decent lad. He over reacted badly for some reason he had a rush of blood from somewhere. Off the pitch you couldn't meet a nicer lad." Prutton has apologised publicly for his actions and to Arsenal's Robert Pires, who was injured in a wild tackle by the Saints' midfield man. He said: "It's an horrendous situation. I apologise to the ref and linesman, who were only doing their job. "I've also seen what happened to Pires' leg and I'm sorry for that as well." "I apologise for the people who saw it. I know you get lots of kids going to the match now and they don't pay money to see that sort of thing. "It's not a cop out, but it was all a bit of a blur. Sometimes you react and it's beyond your control, " added Prutton.


Martina Navratilova has defended her decision to prolong her tennis career at the age of 48. Navratilova, who made a comeback after retiring in 1994, will play doubles and mixed doubles events in 2005. "Women's tennis is really strong," she said, dismissing suggestions that the fact she could still win reflected badly on the women's game. "All I can say is I'm that damn good. I'm sorry but I really have to blow my own horn here. I'm still that good." Navratilova has won three Grand Slam mixed doubles titles since she came out of retirement. And she was so encouraged by her form that she decided to resume playing singles, winning two of her seven matches. She was knocked out in the first round of the French Open but reached the second round at Wimbledon. Navratilova will partner Nathalie Dechy in the doubles event at the Uncle Toby's Hardcourts tournament on Australia's Gold Coast, which begins on Sunday. She will then link up with Daniela Hantuchova for the Australian Open doubles, and play in the mixed doubles with Leander Paes. "I might be playing some singles events this season, depending on the surface," she added.


Business confidence among Japanese manufacturers has weakened for the first time since March 2003, the quarterly Tankan survey has found. Slower economic growth, rising oil prices, a stronger yen and weaker exports were blamed for the fall. December's confidence level was below that seen in September, the Bank of Japan said. However, September's reading was the strongest for 13 years. "The economy is at a pause but unlikely to fall", the economy minister said. "It will feel a bit slower (next year) than this year, and growth may be a bit more gentle but the situation is that the recovery will continue," said economy minister Heizo Takenaka. In the Bank of Japan's December survey, the balance of big manufacturers saying business conditions are better, minus those saying they are worse, was 22, down from 26 in September. Japan's economy grew by just 0.1% in the three months to September, according revised data issued this month. With the recovery slowing, the world's second biggest economy is now expected grow by 0.2% in 2004. The Tankan index is based on a survey of 10,227 firms. Big manufacturers were even more pessimistic about the first quarter of 2005; their views suggest the March reading could go as low as 15 still in positive territory, but weaker. The dollar's decline has strengthened the yen, making Japanese exports more expensive in the US. China's attempts to cool down its fast growing economy have also hit Japanese industry's sales abroad. Confidence among non manufacturers was unchanged in the final quarter of 2004, but it is forecast to drop one point in the March survey. Nonetheless, Japanese firms have been stepping up capital investment, and the survey found the pace is quickening. Companies reported they expect to invest 7.7% more in the year to March 2005 than the previous year up from expectations of 6.1% increase in the September Tankan.


The largest digital panoramic photo in the world has been created by researchers in the Netherlands. The finished image is 2.5 billion pixels in size making it about 500 times the resolution of images produced by good consumer digital cameras. The huge image of Delft was created by stitching together 600 single snaps of the Dutch city taken at a fixed spot. If printed out in standard 300 dots per inch resolution, the picture would be 2.5m high and 6m long. The researchers have put the image on a website which lets viewers explore the wealth of detail that it captures. Tools on the page let viewers zoom in on the city and its surroundings in great detail. The website is already proving popular and currently has more than 200,000 visitors every day. The image was created by imaging experts from the Dutch research and technology laboratory TNO which created the 2.5 gigapixel photo as a summer time challenge. The goal of the project was to be one of the first groups to make gigapixel images. The first image of such a size was manually constructed by US photographer Max Lyons in November 2003. That image portrayed Bryce Canyon National Park, in Utah, and was made up of 196 separate photographs. The panorama of Delft is a little staid in contrast to the dramatic rockscape captured in Mr Lyons' image. "He did it all by hand, which was an enormous effort, and we got the idea that if you use automatic techniques, it would be feasible to build a larger image," said Jurgen den Hartog, one of the TNO researchers behind the project. "We were not competing with Mr Lyons, but it started as a lunchtime bet." The Dutch team used already available technologies, although it had to upgrade them to be able to handle the high resolution image. "We had to rewrite almost all the tools," Me den Hartog told the BBC News website. "All standard Windows viewers available would not be able to load such a large image, so we had to develop one ourselves." The 600 component pictures were taken on July 2004 by a computer controlled camera with a 400 mm lens. Each image was made to slightly overlap so they could be accurately arranged into a composite. The stitching process was also done automatically using five powerful PCs over three days. Following the success of this project, and with promises of help from others, the TNO team is considering creating a full 360 degree panoramic view of another Dutch city, with even higher resolution.


Serena Williams has moved up five places to second in the world rankings after her Australian Open win. Williams won her first Grand Slam title since 2003 with victory over Lindsay Davenport, the world number one. Men's champion Marat Safin remains fourth in the ATP rankings while beaten finalist Lleyton Hewitt replaces Andy Roddick as world number two. Roger Federer retains top spot, but Safin has overtaken Hewitt to become the new leader of the Champions Race. Alicia Molik, who lost a three set thriller against Davenport in the quarter finals, is in the women's top 10 for the first time in her career. Her rise means Australia have a player in the top 10 of the men's and women's rankings for the first time in 21 years. And Britain's Elena Baltacha, who qualified and then reached the third round, has risen to 120 in the world a leap of 65 places and her highest ranking yet.


World 100m champion Kim Collins says suspended sprinter Dwain Chambers should be allowed to compete in the Olympics again. Chambers was banned for two years after testing positive for the anabolic steroid THG and his suspension runs out in November this year. But Collins says the British Olympic Association should reverse the decision to ban him from the Olympics for life. "It was too harsh," Collins told Radio Five Live. "They should reconsider." Chambers has been in America learning American football but has not ruled out a return to the track. Collins added: "He is a great guy and I have never had any problems with him. We are friends. "I would like to see Dwain come back and compete again. He is a good person. "Even though he made a mistake he understands what he did and should be given a chance once more."


The Bank of England has left interest rates on hold at 4.75% for a sixth month in a row. The Bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decided to take no action amid mixed signals from the economy. But some economists predict a further rise in the cost of borrowing will come later this year. Interest rates rose five times between November 2003 and August 2004 as soaring house prices and buoyant consumer data sparked inflation fears. Bank of England governor Mervyn King has recently warned against placing too much weight on one month's economic data, suggesting the MPC is waiting for a clearer picture to emerge. Economists see next week's inflation report from the MPC as key in assessing whether a further interest rate rise is necessary to keep the economy in check. Slower consumer spending and a quieter housing market are likely to have convinced the MPC that rates should be left unchanged in recent months. Inflation, however, has been rising faster than expected, hitting an annual rate of 1.6% in December its highest level in six months. Data on Wednesday also showed manufacturing output rose at its fastest rate since May last month, reinforcing a view that economic growth was stronger than forecasts. And recent house surveys from the Halifax and Nationwide have indicated prices are still rising, albeit at a slower pace than in recent years. Philip Shaw, chief economist at Investec Securities, said he believed rates would remain at 4.75% for the rest of the year although strong economic data could lead to a further hike. "The economic landscape has changed quite considerably over the last couple of months, " he said. "Growth appears stronger and the MPC may become more concerned about inflation trends." Howard Archer, economist at Global Insight said the MPC "may well consider that the balance of risks to the growth and inflation outlook have moved from the downside to the upside". Business groups welcomed the MPC's widely expected move to leave rates on hold and cautioned against further rises. The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said it was "concerned by the clamour in some quarters" for early interest rate increases. "We believe that these demands should be firmly resisted," said David Frost, BCC director general. "Manufacturing still faces extremely serious problems and is performing poorly, in spite of the recent revised figures." Ian McCafferty, chief economist at the CBI, said the MPC faced an "interesting" challenge. "Consumers appear to have pulled in their horns over the holiday period, and exporters are struggling with the strength of sterling," he said. "However, the broader economy continues to show healthy growth, and the tight labour market and buoyant commodity prices are nudging inflation higher."


Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has signed a new contract to stay at the club until May 2008. Wenger has ended speculation about his future by agreeing a long term contract that takes him beyond the opening of Arsenal's new stadium in two years. He said: "Signing a new contract just rubber stamps my desire to take this club forward and fulfil my ambitions. "I still have so much to achieve and my target is to drive this club on. These are exciting times for Arsenal." The 55 year old Frenchman told Arsenal's website "My intention has always been clear. I love this club and am very happy here." Wenger has won the title and the FA Cup three times each during his reign. Chairman Peter Hill Wood said: "We are absolutely delighted that Arsene has signed an extension to his contract. "Since his arrival in 1996, he has revolutionised the club both on and off the pitch. "As well as the six major honours he's won during his time here, Arsene has been a leading influence behind all the major initiatives at the club including the construction of our new training centre and also our new stadium. "The club has continued to reap the benefits of Arsene's natural eye for unearthing footballing talent. "We currently have a fantastic crop of young players coming through the ranks together with a number of world class players who are playing a wonderful brand of football." Meanwhile, Arsenal director Danny Fiszman is looking for Wenger to stay beyond 2008. "When we come towards the end of his contract we will both review the situation. I'm sure we will want him to stay on and I hope he will too," said Fiszman.


Double Olympic champion Hicham El Guerrouj is set to make a rare appearance at the World Cross Country Championships in France. But the Moroccan, who has not raced over cross country for 15 years, will not decide until two weeks before the event which starts on 19 March. "If I am to compete in it, it is only if I feel I can win," said the 30 year old, who is retiring in 2006. "Otherwise there is not much point in me going." El Guerrouj achieved a lifetime ambition last August when he clinched his first Olympic titles over 1500m and 5,000m. But the four time world 1500m champion is still hungry for more success before calling time on his career. The 30 year old has set his sights on clinching the world 5,000m crown in Helsinki this summer. And he is aiming to break 10,000m Olympic champion Kenenisa Bekele's 5,000m and 10,000m world records. El Guerrouj could meet Bekele in March as the Ethiopian is the defending world cross country champion over both the long and short courses. But the Moroccan will not commit himself to the St Galmier event until he assesses how well his winter training is going. "The return to training was very difficult because I accepted a lot of invitations these past few months," said El Guerrouj. "I am almost a month behind but I am on the right track." Britain's Paula Radcliffe has also not ruled out competing in the World Cross Country Championships. "I haven't quite decided what events I will compete in prior to London but the World Cross Country is an event which is also special to me and is a definite possibility," said the two time champion.


Michael Howard has backed stem cell research, saying it is important people are not frightened of the future. The controversial issue was a feature of the recent US presidential election, where George Bush opposed extending it. But the Tory leader argued there was a moral case for embracing science which could help victims of Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Motor Neurone disease. "I believe we have a duty to offer hope to the millions of people who suffer devastating illnesses," he said. The use of embryonic stem cells in the UK is already allowed. Stem cells are master cells that have the ability to develop into any of the body's tissue types. Scientists hope that by growing such cells in the laboratory they can programme them to form specific tissue such as kidney, heart or even brain tissue. Mr Howard acknowledged there were genuine concerns about stem cell research. But he argued: "We mustn't be frightened of change or nostalgic about the past we must be optimistic about the future. "Politicians must create the right framework so that the great potential of science can be harnessed for the benefit of mankind. "With the life expectancy of the average Briton now around the mid 70s, society has a responsibility to enhance the quality of people's lives as they grow older. "I know many people are concerned about stem cell research. They are fearful of meddling with what they see as the stuff of souls. "I respect those concerns. But I also believe we have a duty to offer hope to the millions of people who suffer devastating illnesses like Parkinson's, Multiple Sclerosis, Motor Neurone Disease, Alzheimer's and as we saw in the papers today now possibly heart problems." Mr Howard acknowledged there were "no easy answers" over such an issue but it was necessary to "have the courage to do what we know to be morally right". He added: "Of course, stem cells are still a recent discovery. More research needs to be done. But we must look at their potential in a responsible and grown up way. The hopes of millions of people rest on what could be achieved." Former Superman actor the late Christopher Reeve was an advocate for the research after he was paralysed in a horse riding accident. Mr Howard made his remarks during a speech in Westminster to the Conservative National Women's Committee on ambitions and values.


Vodafone has drafted in its UK chief executive William Morrow to take charge of its troubled Japanese operation. Mr Morrow will succeed Shiro Tsuda as president of Vodafone KK, Japan's number three mobile operator, in April. Mr Tsuda, who will become chairman, was appointed president only two months ago but the business has struggled since then, losing customers in January. Vodafone had pinned its hopes on the launch of its 3G phones in November but demand for them has been slow. While it has more than 15 million customers in Japan, Vodafone has found it difficult to satisfy Japan's technologically demanding mobile users. It suffered a net loss of more than 58,000 customers in January, its second monthly reverse in the last year. "Vodafone is going to need to put a lot of money into Japan if it wants to rebuild the business," Tetsuro Tsusaka, a telecoms analyst with Deutsche Bank, told Reuters. "I do not know if it will be worth it for them to spend that kind of money just for Japan."


The "myth that ageing is a barrier" to contributing to society needs to be "exploded", the work and pensions minister has said. This was why the government was considering scrapping the retirement age entirely, Alan Johnson said. It was also committed to "stamping out" age discrimination and would outlaw it, he told a conference on ageing. All three parties have been wooing older voters with both the Tories and Lib Dems pledging higher pensions. Mr Johnson told Age Concern's Age Agenda in London the government was "seriously considering" introducing pensions based on residency rather than national insurance contributions. This idea has been adopted by the Lib Dems as policy, while the Tories have pledged to boost pensions by restoring the link between earnings and pensions. Mr Johnson's speech comes after he last week unveiled plans to find a consensus on how to reform the country's pension system. This would be based on a series of principles including tackling pensioner poverty and fairer pensions for women, he said. Speaking at the London conference he said: "Generalised stereotypes of people past state pension age as dependant, incapable and vulnerable are a particularly pernicious form of age discrimination". The government wanted to tackle this by moving to a culture where retirement ages were "increasingly consigned to the past". "We're sweeping them away entirely for people under 65, and we're giving those above that age a right to request to work past 65 which their employers will have to engage with seriously. "And the review in 2011, which will look at whether it is time to sweep retirement ages away entirely, is to be tied to evidence ... showing that retirement ages are increasingly outmoded". Mr Johnson said his department had a long term aspiration of moving towards an 80% employment rate. This would involve an extra one million older people joining the work force, he said.


Apple has expanded its iPod family with the release of its next generation of the digital music players. Its latest challenges to the growing digital music gadget market include an iPod mini model which can hold 6GB compared to a previous 4GB. The company, which hopes to keep its dominant place in the digital music market, also said the gold coloured version of the mini would be dropped. A 30GB version has also been added to the iPod Photo family. The latest models have a longer battery life and their prices have been cut by an average of 40. The original iPod took an early lead in the digital music player market thanks to its large storage capacity and simple design. During 2004 about 25 million portable players were sold, 10 million of which were Apple iPods. But analysts agree that the success is also down to its integration with the iTunes online store, which has given the company a 70% share of the legal download music market. Mike McGuire, a research director at analyst Gartner, told the BBC News website that Apple had done a good job in "sealing off the market from competition" so far. "They have created a very seamless package which I think is the idea of the product the design, function and the software are very impressive," he said. He added that the threat from others was always present, however. "Creative, other Microsoft partnered devices, Real, Sony and so on, are ratcheting up the marketing message and advertising," he said. Creative was very upbeat about how many of its Creative Zen players it had shipped by the end of last year, he said. Its second generation models, like the Creative Zen Micro Photo, is due out in the summer. It will have 5GB of memory on board. Digital music players are now the gadget of choice among young Americans, according to recent research by the Pew Internet and American Life Project. One in 10 US adults 22 million people now owns a digital music player of some sort. Sales of legally downloaded songs also rose more than tenfold in 2004, according to the record industry, with 200 million tracks bought online in the US and Europe in 12 months. The IFPI industry body said that the popularity of portable music players was behind the growth. Analysts say that the ease of use and growth of music services available on the net will continue to drive the trend towards portable music players. People are also starting to use them in novel ways. Some are combining automatic syncing functions many of them have with other net functions to automatically distribute DIY radio shows, called podcasts. But 2005 will also see more competition from mobile phone operators who are keen to offer streaming services on much more powerful and sophisticated handsets. According to Mr McGuire, research suggests that people like the idea of building up huge libraries of music, which they can do with high capacity storage devices, like iPods and Creative Zens. Mobiles do not yet have this capacity though, and there are issues about the ease of portability of mobile music. Mr McGuire said Apple was ensuring it kept a foot in the mobile music door with its recent deal with Motorola to produce a version of iTunes for Motorola phones.


The controversial sell off of a Ukrainian steel mill to a relative of the former president was illegal, a court has ruled. The mill, Krivorizhstal, was sold in June 2004 for 800m ( 424m) well below other offers. President Viktor Yushchenko, elected in December, is planning to revisit many of Ukraine's recent privatisations. Krivorizhstal is one of dozens of firms which he says were sold cheaply to friends of the previous administration. On Wednesday, Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko said as many as 3,000 firms could be included on the list of firms whose sale was being reviewed. Mr Yushchenko had previously said the list would be limited to 30 40 enterprises. More than 90,000 businesses in all, from massive corporations to tiny shopfronts, have been sold off since 1992, as the command economy built up when Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union was dismantled. Analysts have suggested that the government needs to avoid the impression of an open ended list, so as to preserve investor confidence. Thursday's ruling by a district court in Perchesk overturned a previous decision in a lower court permitting the sale. The consortium which won the auction for the mill was created by Viktor Pinchuk, son in law of former President Leonid Kuchma, and Rinat Akhmetov, the country's richest man. The next step is for the supreme court to annul the sale altogether, opening the way for Krivorizhstal to be resold. Mr Yushchenko has suggested a fair valuation could be as much as 3bn. One of the foreign bidders who lost out, steel giant LNM, told BBC News that it would be interested in any renewed sale.


It could cost 80m to run a UK referendum on the European constitution, ministers have revealed. In a written parliamentary answer, Constitutional Affairs Minister Chris Leslie said the poll was likely to cost the same as a general election. Mr Leslie said the cost could not be compared with the only previous British referendum, held 30 years ago. Ministers say the constitution would make the European Union work better but critics fear creating a "super state". Labour MP John Cryer, whose question revealed the price estimate, said the cost surprised him but was not a central factor as it was important people had their say. But he said it would have been better to have rejected the constitution so avoiding the need for a referendum. The 2001 election cost 80m. No date for the vote has been set but Foreign Secretary Jack Straw has suggested it is unlikely to be held until early 2006 after the predicted date for the next election. Most voters said the UK should stay in the Common Market in the 1975 referendum.


Rich Templeton, the head of giant chip maker Texas Instruments, has given his backing to the growing sector of Voice over Internet Telephony (Voip) Voip allows PC users, and in some cases those with just a broadband connection, to make telephone calls via the net. Mr Templeton said Voip would be the next major application to drive broadband connections into homes. Internet service provider Wanadoo has announced it is launching its own broadband telephony service in the UK. Subscribers to Wanadoo's broadband service will be able to use the service to make free evening and weekend calls to any UK landline, and free calls at any time to other Wanadoo users. The service will cost an extra 4 a month and will come with a free Livebox, the broadband hub which Wanadoo plans will be used in future to provide video on demand and home security services. The secondary phone line will mean customers can have an extra home phone number and will also provide wireless internet access around the home. Eventually the service will replace existing landline services as Wanadoo goes head to head with BT. "Voice over broadband is a key trend across Europe and is set to have a dramatic impact on the telecommunications industry, " Eric Abensur, Wanadoo's chief executive told the BBC News website. Mr Templeton said he agreed. "Voice over packet is going to be the second killer application after broadband internet access," he said. The world's largest maker of chips for mobile phones believes the technology will grow rapidly from the relatively small user base it has currently. Almost 83 million people have downloaded the software that powers the Skype Voip service, according to the net telephony firm's website. Skype lets people make free calls to other Skype users and also make low cost calls to ordinary phone numbers. US firm Vonage also offers a Voip service, but one which lets people plug an ordinary phone into a broadband router to make calls. Bill Simmelink, general manager of TI's Voip business, said the technology would only take off when people were making net calls with the ease of making a normal call. "It's not about the pipe, if you will, or the silicon per se, it's about the application," he said. "We want to communicate freely, effortlessly and economically wherever we are." In a sign that Voip is seeping into the mainstream, giant ISP AOL announced on Tuesday that it had plans to launch a net based phone service for some of its members within the month. Customers will continue to use their traditional phones, but they will plug them into adapters connected to their broadband source rather than the jack provided by the telephone company. Calls are received and placed just like on the old telephone network. "We can help mass market adoption of Voip," said AOL chief executive Jonathan Miller. "We can utilise our national footprint. We can help the entire industry become well known."


Mobile phones are still enjoying a boom time in sales, according to research from technology analysts Gartner. More than 674 million mobiles were sold last year globally, said the report, the highest total sold to date. The figure was 30% more than in 2003 and surpassed even the most optimistic predictions, Gartner said. Good design and the look of a mobile, as well as new services such as music downloads, could go some way to pushing up sales in 2005, said analysts. Although people were still looking for better replacement phones, there was evidence, according to Gartner, that some markets were seeing a slow down in replacement sales. "All the markets grew apart from Japan which shows that replacement sales are continuing in western Europe," mobile analyst Carolina Milanesi told the BBC News website. "Japan is where north America and western European markets can be in a couple of years' time. "They already have TV, music, ringtones, cameras, and all that we can think of on mobiles, so people have stopped buying replacement phones." But there could be a slight slowdown in sales in European and US markets too, according to Gartner, as people wait to see what comes next in mobile technology. This means mobile companies have to think carefully about what they are offering in new models so that people see a compelling reason to upgrade, said Gartner. Third generation mobiles (3G) with the ability to handle large amounts of data transfer, like video, could drive people into upgrading their phones, but Ms Milanesi said it was difficult to say how quickly that would happen. "At the end of the day, people have cameras and colour screens on mobiles and for the majority of people out there who don't really care about technology the speed of data to a phone is not critical." Nor would the rush to produce two or three megapixel camera phones be a reason for mobile owners to upgrade on its own. The majority of camera phone models are not at the stage where they can compete with digital cameras which also have flashes and zooms. More likely to drive sales in 2005 would be the attention to design and aesthetics, as well as music services. The Motorola Razr V3 phone was typical of the attention to design that would be more commonplace in 2005, she added. This was not a "women's thing", she said, but a desire from men and women to have a gadget that is a form of self expression too. It was not just about how the phone functioned, but about what it said about its owner. "Western Europe has always been a market which is quite attentive to design," said Ms Milanesi. "People are after something that is nice looking, and together with that, there is the entertainment side. "This year music will have a part to play in this." The market for full track music downloads was worth just 20 million ( 10.5 million) in 2004, but is set to be worth 1.8 billion ( 9.4 million) by 2009, according to Jupiter Research. Sony Ericsson just released its Walkman branded mobile phone, the W800, which combines a digital music player with up to 30 hours' battery life, and a two megapixel camera. In July last year, Motorola and Apple announced a version of iTunes online music downloading service would be released which would be compatible with Motorola mobile phones. Apple said the new iTunes music player would become Motorola's standard music application for its music phones. But the challenge will be balancing storage capacity with battery life if mobile music hopes to compete with digital music players like the iPod. Ms Milanesi said more models would likely be released in the coming year with hard drives. But they would be more likely to compete with the smaller capacity music players that have around four gigabyte storage capacity, which would not put too much strain on battery life.


Shares in storage and delivery firm Exel closed up 9% at a two and a half year high on Tuesday on speculation it is to receive an imminent takeover bid. The talk in the City is that US giant United Parcel Services (UPS) is the most likely bidder for the firm. Yet other names mentioned in connection to buying Exel are DHL owner Deutsche Post and finance firm GE Capital. With its shares closing Tuesday at 873p, Bracknell based Exel is currently valued at 2.6bn ( 6.3bn). Exel employs 109,000 people in more than 120 countries and has itself been active in the consolidation of the logistics sector, paying 328m to buy fellow UK firm Tibbett Britten last August. Its customers include Boots, Burberry, Mothercare and consumer products giant Procter Gamble. Andrew Beh, of brokers ING, said UPS and Deutsche Post were the most likely bidders and an offer of 950p a share would be fair if a bidding battle did not break out. "It's a great strategic fit for both companies," he said. "Both are interested in expanding in logistics and you can make a decent case for cost synergies which could justify the premium and that's before you make any argument about revenue synergies."


For gaming fans, the word GoldenEye evokes excited memories not only of the James Bond revival flick of 1995, but also the classic shoot em up that accompanied it and left N64 owners glued to their consoles for many an hour. Adopting that hallowed title somewhat backfires on this new game, for it fails to deliver on the promise of its name and struggles to generate the original's massive sense of fun. This however is not a sequel, nor does it relate to the GoldenEye film. You are the eponymous renegade spy, an agent who deserts to the Bond world's extensive ranks of criminal masterminds, after being deemed too brutal for MI6. Your new commander in chief is the portly Auric Goldfinger, last seen in 1964, but happily running around bent on world domination. With a determination to justify its name which is even less convincing than that of Tina Turner's similarly titled theme song, the game literally gives the player a golden eye following an injury, which enables a degree of X ray vision. Rogue Agent signals its intentions by featuring James Bond initially and proceeding to kill him off within moments, squashed by a plummeting helicopter. The notion is of course to add a novel dark edge to a 007 game, but the premise simply does not get the juices flowing like it needs to. Recent Bond games like Nightfire and Everything Or Nothing were very competent and did a fine job of capturing the sense of flair, invention and glamour of the film franchise. This title lacks that aura, and when the Bond magic shines through, it feels like a lucky accident. The central problem is that the gameplay just is not good enough. Quite aside from the bizarre inability to jump, the even more bizarre glaring graphical bugs and dubious enemy AI, the levels simply are not put together with much style or imagination. Admittedly the competition has been tough, even in recent weeks, with the likes of Halo 2 and Half Life 2 triumphing in virtually every department. What the game is good at is enveloping you in noisy, dynamic scenes of violent chaos. As is the trend of late, you are made to feel like you are in the midst of a really messy and fraught encounter. Sadly that sense of action is outweighed by the difficulty of navigating and battling within the chaos, meaning that frustration is often the outcome. And irregular save points mean you have to backtrack each time you are killed. A minute red dot passes for a crosshair, although the collision detection is so suspect that the difficulties of aiming weapons are compensated for. Shooting enemies from a distance can be tricky, and you will not always know you have picked them off, since dead enemies vanish literally before they have fully hit the floor, and they do so in some woefully uninspiring death animations. It is perhaps indicative of a lack of confidence that the game maker's allow you several different weapons almost immediately and throw you quickly into raging firefights no time is risked with a measured build up. By far the most satisfying element of the game is seeing old favourites like Dr No, Goldfinger, hat fiend Oddjob and crazed Russian sex beast Xenia Onatopp resurrected after all these years, and with their faces rendered in an impressively recognisable fashion. There is a real thrill from doing battle with these legendary villains, and it is a testament to the power of the Bond universe that they can cut such a dash. But the in game niggles, combined with a story and presentation that just do not feel sufficiently well thought through, will make this a disappointment for most. Diehard fans of Bond will probably find enough here to make it a worthwhile purchase and try to ignore the failings. The game is weak, not completely unplayable. Then again, 007 fanatics may also take umbrage at the cavalier blending of characters from different eras. Given James Bond's healthy pedigree in past games, there is every reason to hope that this is just a blip, a commendable idea that just has not worked, that will be rectified when the character inevitably makes his return. GoldenEye: Rogue Agent is out now


An English hospital has suspended plans to stop treating Welsh patients who have waited more than three months. Hereford County Hospital had earlier said that from the new year patients waiting longer than this would be taken off waiting lists for hip and knee operations. GPs in Wales had feared patients could be pushed to the back of another queue. But after talks with Powys Health Board the hospital called off its plan until health chiefs meet early in January. Hereford Hospital Trust caused an outcry when it sent out a letter telling patients that for financial and administrative reasons it planned to turn down some orthopaedic patients. Shocked health officials in Powys said this meant they would be left with the prospect of patients and doctors having to find new appointments in other hospitals. Andy Williams, chief executive of Powys Local Health Board, had said it was "a totally unacceptable way to behave". Mr Williams had said he did not think it was a Welsh English issue, but said Hereford hospital was "struggling financially and trying to pass the problem back to Powys". He had told BBC Radio Wales: "I have written straight back to the trust... to insist they withdraw this threat and treat the patients I am paying them to treat." But after the hospital had agreed to the suspension, Mr Williams said he was optimistic a compromise could be reached which would ensure Welsh patients continued to be treated there. He said the problem had been caused by the difference in waiting time targets between England and Wales. The target is 12 months for Welsh patients, but just three months in England. The contract with the Powys health board was worth 7m a year for the hospital and accounts for 12% of its patients. In a statement before the suspension of the idea, the Welsh Assembly Government said the situation was "unacceptable". "But Powys Local Health Board is committed to ensuring our patients receive the care that is appropriate," said the assembly government. "Although we will be challenging Hereford's decision we will put in place appropriate care for our patients. They will be contacted by their GPs in the next week." Earlier, David Rose, Chief Executive of Hereford Hospitals NHS Trust, had said: "It is with real regret that we have taken this step. "We want to continue providing an excellent and fast service to Powys people but can only do this if we are paid to provide the service. "In 2005 our waiting time will fall to a maximum of 6 months and we want Powys people to ask to be referred to our modern hospital. "We appeal to Powys Local Health Board to allow Powys people to choose Hereford for their treatment."


Tennis star Kim Clijsters will make her return from a career threatening injury at the Antwerp WTA event in February. "Kim had considered returning to action in Paris on 7 February," a statement on her website said. "She's decided against this so that she does not risk the final phase of her recovery. If all goes well, Kim will make her return on February 15." The 21 year old has not played since last October after aggravating a wrist injury at the Belgian Open. Back then, a doctor treating the Belgian feared that her career may be over, with the player having already endured an operation earlier in the season to cure her wrist problem. "I hope she comes back, but I'm pessimistic," said Bruno Willems. Clijsters was also due to marry fellow tennis star Lleyton Hewitt in February but the pair split "for private reasons" back in October.


Kostas Kenteris' lawyer has called for the doping charges against the Greek sprinter to be dropped. Gregory Ioannidis has submitted new evidence to a Greek athletics tribunal which he claims proves the former Olympic champion has no case to answer. Kenteris and compatriot Katerina Thanou were given provisional suspensions in December for failing to take drugs tests before the Athens Olympics. The Greek tribunal is expected to give its verdict early next week. Kenteris and Thanou withdrew from the Athens Olympics last August after missing drugs tests on the eve of the opening ceremony. They were also alleged to have avoided tests in Tel Aviv and Chicago before the Games. But Ioannidis said: "Everything overwhelmingly shows that the charges should be dropped." Ioannidis also said he has presented evidence that will throw a different light on the events leading up to the pair's sensational withdrawal from the Athens Games. The lawyer added that he has proof the authorities "knew" Kenteris was in Germany at the time he was alleged to have missed a test in Chicago. Nick Davies, spokesman for athletics' ruling body the IAAF, which handed out the provisional bans, said: "We can't comment because we were not present at the hearing and don't know what was said behind closed doors. "We expect a verdict from the Greek Athletics Federation before the end of February and will obviously be making a statement then." Kenteris won 200m gold at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, while Thanou won silver in the 100m.


German unemployment rose for the 11th consecutive month in December making the year's average jobless total the highest since reunification. The seasonally adjusted jobless total rose a higher than expected 17,000 to 4.483 million, the Bundesbank said. Allowing for changes in calculating statistics, the average number of people out of work was the highest since 1990 or a rate of 10.8%. Bad weather and a sluggish economy were blamed for the rise. The increase "was due primarily to the onstart of winter", labour office chief Frank Juergen Weise said. Unadjusted, the figures showed unemployment rose 206,900 to 4.64 million with many sectors such as construction laying off workers amid bad weather. "The three years of stagnation in the German economy came to an end in 2004. But the upturn is still not strong enough" to boost the labour market, Mr Weise added. News of the rise came as government welfare reforms came into force, a move that is expected to see unemployment swell still further in coming months. Under the Hartz IV changes, the previous two tier system of benefits and support for the long term unemployed has been replaced with one flat rate payout. In turn, that means more people will be classified as looking for work, driving official figures higher. "Be prepared for a nasty figure for January 2005, about five million unemployed on a non seasonally adjusted basis," warned HVB Group economist Andreas Rees. But he did add that the numbers should "subside" throughout the year, to remain near 2004's level of 4.4 million jobless. "I don't expect a strong and lasting turnaround until 2006," German Economy minister Wolfgang Clement said. By 2010, however, the Hartz IV reforms should help cut the average jobless rate to between 3% and 5%, he added. Europe's biggest economy has been too weak to create work as it struggles to shake off three years of economic stagnation. In recent months companies such as Adam Opel the German arm of US carmaker General Motors and retailer KarstadtQuelle have slashed jobs.


Strong growth in subscriptions to mobile phone network Orange has helped boost profits at owner France Telecom. Orange added more than five million new customers in 2004, leading to a 10% increase in its revenues. Increased take up of broadband telecoms services also boosted France Telecom's profits, which showed a 5.5% rise to 18.3bn euros ( 23.4bn; 12.5bn). France Telecom is to spend 578m euros on buying out minority shareholders in data services provider Equant. France Telecom, one of the world's largest telecoms and internet service providers, saw its full year sales rise 2.2% to 47.2bn euros in 2004. Orange enjoyed strong growth outside France and the United Kingdom its core markets swelling its subscriber base to 5.4 million. France Telecom's broadband customers also increased, rising to 5.1 million across Europe by the end of the year. The firm said it had met its main strategic objectives of growing its individual businesses and further reducing its large debt. An ill fated expansion drive in the late 1990s saw France Telecom's debt soar to 72bn euros by 2002. However, this has now been reduced to 43.9bn euros. "Our results for 2004 allow us to improve our financial structure while focusing on the innovation that drives our strategy," said chief executive Thierry Breton. Looking ahead, the company forecast like for like sales growth of between 3% and 5% over the next three years. France Telecom is consolidating its interest in Equant, which provides telecoms and data services to businesses. Subject to approval by shareholders of the two firms, it will buy the shares in Equant it does not already own. France Telecom said it would fund the deal by selling an 8% stake in telephone directory company PagesJaunes.


The first convictions for piracy over peer to peer networks have been handed down in the US. New Yorker William Trowbridge and Texan Michael Chicoine have pleaded guilty to charges that they infringed copyright by illegally sharing music, movies and software. The two men faced charges following raids in August on suspected pirates by the FBI. The pair face jail terms of up to five years and a 250,000 ( 130,000) fine. In a statement the US Department of Justice said the two men operated the central hubs in a piracy community organised across the Direct Connect peer to peer network. The piracy group called itself the Underground Network and membership of it demanded that users share between one and 100 gigabytes of files. Direct Connect allows users to set themselves up as central servers that act as co ordinating spots for sharers. Users would swap files, such as films and music, by exchanging data over the network. During its investigation FBI agents reportedly downloaded 84 movies, 40 software programs, 13 games and 178 "sound recordings" from the five hubs that made up the larger piracy group. The raids were organised under the umbrella of Operation Digital Gridlock which was aimed at fighting "criminal copyright theft on peer to peer networks". In total, six raids were carried out in August. Five were on the homes of suspected copyright thieves and one on a net service firm. The Department of Justice said that both men pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit felony copyright infringement. They also pleaded guilty to acting for commercial advantage. The two men are due to be sentenced on 29 April.


The number of mortgages approved in the UK has risen for the first time since May last year, according to lending figures from the Bank of England. New loans in December rose to 83,000, slightly higher than November's nine year low of 77,000. Mortgage lending rose by 7.1bn in December, up from a 6.4bn rise in November. The figures contradict a survey from the British Bankers' Association, which said approvals were at a five year low. Analysts say the figures show the market may be stabilising but still point to further house price softness. "The modest rise in mortgage approvals and lending in December reinforces the impression that the housing market is currently slowing steadily rather than sharply," said Global Insight analyst Howard Archer, commenting on the BoE's figures. The BBA believes that the property market is continuing to cool down. Changes to mortgage regulation may have artificially depressed figures in November, thus flattering the December figures, analysts said. In October last year, new rules came into force, which meant some lenders were forced to withdraw mortgage products temporarily in November and defer some lending until they had made sure they had complied with the rules properly. Separately, the Bank of England said that consumer credit rose by 1.5bn in December, more than the 1.4bn expected and above the 1.4bn reported in the previous month.


Yahoo, one of the net's most iconic companies, is celebrating its 10th anniversary this week. The web portal has undergone remarkable change since it was set up by Stanford University students David Filo and Jerry Yang in a campus trailer. The students wanted a way of keeping track of their web based interests. The categories lists they devised soon became popular to hundreds of people and the two saw business potential in their idea. Originally dubbed "Jerry's Guide to the World Wide Web" the firm adopted the moniker Yahoo because the founders liked the dictionary definition of a yahoo as a rude, unsophisticated, uncouth person. The term was popularised by the 18th Century satirist Jonathan Swift in his classic novel, Gulliver's Travels. "We were certainly not sophisticated or civilised," Mr Yang told reporters ahead of the anniversary, which will be officially recognised on 2 March. They did have business brains however, and in April 1995 persuaded venture capitalists Sequoia Capital, which also invested in Apple Computer and Cisco Systems, to fund Yahoo to the tune of 2m ( 1.04m). A second round of funding followed in the autumn and the company floated in April 1996 with less than 50 employees. Now the firm employs 7,600 workers and insists its dot com culture of "work hard, play hard" still remains. It is one of just a handful of survivors of the dot com crash although it now faces intense rivalry from firms such as Google, MSN and AOL. Jerry Yang, who remains the firm's "Chief Yahoo", is proud of what the company has achieved. "In just one decade, the internet has changed the way consumers do just about everything and it's been a remarkable and wonderful experience," he said. Through it all, we wanted to build products that satisfied our users wants and needs, but it's even more than that it's to help every one of us to discover, get more done, share and interact."


Climate change could be completely out of control within several decades, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency is warning a committee of MSPs. Experts are giving evidence on the subject to the Scottish Parliament's environment committee. Officials believe nuclear energy and wind farms may be better options than trying to tackle global warming. Solutions suggested by conservationists include reducing internal UK air travel and boosting electric trains. The evidence is part of the committee's inquiry into the impact of climate change in Scotland. Sepa is attempting to curb global warming gases, as pollution from transport emissions increases. Ecologists are warning MSPs that Scotland may have to accept "significant intrusion" from wind farms. It is likely also that nuclear power will be needed for possibly several decades. Sepa predict that the two methods will remain as energy sources until climate change is under control. Experts studying the seas off Scotland's west coast have already forecast more devastating weather of the type which caused havoc across the country last month. They predicted that damaging storms will become more frequent. Researchers from the University of the Highlands and Islands and Southampton have been looking at wave heights in the Atlantic over the last nine years. The project was conducted jointly by the Environmental Research Institute in Thurso, which is part of the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) Millennium Institute network, and the Southampton Oceanography Centre. Scientists carried out a series of studies, including the use of satellites to assess wave heights in the seas around the west coast and the Hebrides.


Consumers are very concerned about the use of radio frequency ID (RFID) tags in shops, a survey says. More than half of 2,000 people surveyed said they had privacy worries about the tags, which can be used to monitor stock on shelves or in warehouses. Some consumer groups have expressed concern that the tags could be used to monitor shoppers once they had left shops with their purchases. The survey showed that awareness of tags among consumers in Europe was low. The survey of consumers in the UK, France, Germany and the Netherlands was carried out by consultancy group Capgemini. The firm works on behalf of more than 30 firms who are seeking to promote the growth of RFID technology. The tags are a combination of computer chip and antenna which can be read by a scanner each item contains a unique identification number. More than half (55%) of the respondents said they were either concerned or very concerned that RFID tags would allow businesses to track consumers via product purchases. Fifty nine percent of people said they were worried that RFID tags would allow data to be used more freely by third parties. Ard Jan Vetham, Capgemini's principal consultant on RFID, said the survey showed that retailers needed to inform and educate people about RFID before it would become accepted technology. "Acceptance of new technologies always has a tipping point at which consumers believe that benefits outweigh concerns. "With the right RFID approach and ongoing communication with consumers, the industry can reach this point." He said that the survey also showed people would accept RFID if they felt that the technology could mean a reduction in car theft or faster recovery of stolen items. The tags are currently being used at one Tesco distribution centre in the UK the tags allow the rapid inventory of bulk items. They are also in use as a passcard for the M6 Toll in the Midlands, in the UK. Mr Vetham said the majority of people surveyed (52%) believed that RFID tags could be read from a distance. He said that was a misconception based on a lack of awareness of the technology. At least once consumer group Consumers Against Supermarket Privacy Invasion and Numbering (Caspian) has claimed that RFID chips could be used to secretly identify people and the things they are carrying or wearing. All kinds of personal belongings, including clothes, could constantly broadcast messages about their whereabouts and their owners, it warned.