CMGI files to spinoff AltaVista
PALO ALTO, Calif. — Following the path of competitors Yahoo! and Excite, Silicon Valley search engine AltaVista has announced plans to go public. In a filing late Friday with the Securities and Exchange Commission, AltaVista’s parent investor CMGI Inc. of Andover, Mass., which bought a majority share of the company four months ago, said it hoped to raise up to $300 million from an initial public offering. While the actual structure of the offering remained undisclosed, tentative figures were released and the company said the IPO will be led by Morgan Stanley Dean Witter. AltaVista launched an aggressive marketing campaign in late October in an effort to build its brand. In late November, AltaVista bought the Raging Bull online financial community in a move that was widely seen as a bulking up of the search engine in advance of an offering.
Harvard Pilgrim loses NCQA accreditation
BOSTON — Financially ailing Harvard Pilgrim Health Plan has had its accreditation suspended by the nonprofit that measures the quality of managed care plans in the United States, the HMO announced in a press release. Harvard Pilgrim received a letter from the National Committee for Quality Assurance announcing its accreditation had been suspended, according to Harvard spokesman Alan Raymond. The reason for the suspension, Raymond said, is that the HMO had pulled out of Rhode Island, leaving its affiliate under the control of the Rhode Island Department of Business Regulation. “Because we’re no longer in control of the Rhode Island operations, we can no longer vouch for the quality of care in Rhode Island,” Raymond said. NCQA also said Harvard Pilgrim had not met certain notification requirements in a timely manner, Raymond said.
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Professors sue Ask Jeeves for alleged patent law
BOSTON — Ask Jeeves, the Web site where users can ask questions in plain English — not keywords — will soon be providing some answers about where they got their technology. That’s because two MIT artificial intelligence experts are suing the popular Web site, saying Ask Jeeves relies on software tools that were stolen from them. Patrick Winston and Boris Katz, both researchers in the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, filed the suit recently in U.S. District Court in Boston. The lawsuit alleges Ask Jeeves violated patent laws by using natural language systems patented by Katz and Winston in 1994 and 1995. The suit claims Ask Jeeves and its offshoot site for children, AJKids, wrongly appropriated technology that allows users to type in questions in sentence forms, rather than keywords. The site uses a fictional butler, Jeeves, as a Web-surfing helper to track down information for computer users. Ask Jeeves, based in Emeryville, Calif., has been aware of the alleged violation since Feb. 23, but has not stopped using the technology, court papers alleged.
Papa Gino’s sues Pizza Hut for $5 million
BOSTON — Papa Gino’s is suing rival Pizza Hut, claiming it was given false financial information while negotiating for the D’Angelo’s Sandwich Shop chain in 1997. In a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court, Papa Gino’s claims Pizza Hut, based in Dallas, overvalued D’Angelo’s by claiming it was “highly desirable and profitable.” Papa Gino’s bought the 200-store chain for $55.5 million, but now claims the price was $2.5 million too high, and that Pizza Hut overstated the sandwich-makers’ 1996 earnings by about $1.5 million. In court papers, Dedham-based Papa Gino’s claimed Pizza Hut refused to give “free and complete” access to financial reports that would have allowed for more accurate accounting. Papa Gino’s also wants an additional $1 million to compensate for damage by a gas-leak in a Brockton D’Angelo’s just five days after it purchased the chain. Pizza Hut has filed a countersuit asking for $900,000 from Papa Gino’s, the Boston Herald reported. Pizza Hut spokesman Jay Allison refused comment on the suit
or countersuit, but said: “We dispute their claims and we believe that we will prevail in court.”
American Eagle to begin service from Boston
BOSTON — American Airlines announced its regional affiliate American Eagle will offer jet service between Boston and two Virginia cities, Richmond and Norfolk, starting in March and April. Three daily nonstop flights between Boston and Richmond will begin March 21. The service between Boston and Norfolk, also three daily nonstop flights, will begin April 3. American also will launch service between Boston and Nashville, Tenn. starting March 21, with two daily nonstop flights. All the new flights will use 37-seat, twin-engine ERJ-135 jets, American said.
Intel to invest $800 million at Hudson plant
HUDSON, Mass. — Computer chip manufacturer Intel Corporation will invest $800 million and add 450 new jobs at its plant here, the company announced. The money will be used to upgrade tools and technology at the plant, a process that will begin in January and continue through mid-2002, the company said. The company will also hire 250 technicians and 200 employees to do manufacturing work. All the positions, which include facilities management, automation and industrial engineering, will be added in the next two years. Intel, based in Santa Clara, Cal., is the world’s largest maker of computer chips, also known as microprocessors. The chips are what make computers run. Intel currently employs 1,200 people in manufacturing at its Hudson plant, which it bought two years ago from Digital Equipment Corp.
Company, owner charged after fatal accident
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — A Berkshire County grand jury has indicted a North Adams plating company and its owner for criminal environmental violations in the wake of a fatal accident. Indictments named Modern Aluminum Anodizing Company and its president, Frank Sigsbury. State Attorney General Tom Reilly said they were charged with improper handling of hazardous waste. The investigation dates back to a 1996 accident. Sigsbury’s son, Douglas, and another worker, Richard Parkhurst, were killed when toxic gas formed inside a pit where they were working. The company applies protective films to metal objects like cranes and walkers.
Massachusetts’ hospital costs soar
BOSTON — Hospital costs in Massachusetts are 42 percent above the national average, and rose more than 7 percent in just one year — more than double the national average, a new report says. Hospital costs in the state rose last year to $1,678 per capita, compared to the national average of $1,179, according to the report from the Boston University School of Public Health. The reasons for the rise in hospital costs are not clear, said Alan Sager, who co-authored the report. He said possible factors could be the increase in advertising in an era of hospital competition, and more paper work in an era of complicated insurance reimbursement. Andrew Dreyfus of the Massachusetts Hospital Association said the state’s health care system is in trouble, not because of high costs but because of insufficient state and federal funding to support quality care.
