Business, in brief

INTERNET

Immunity ruling won by MySpace

Federal law gives MySpace.com immunity from a lawsuit over the alleged sexual assault of a teenage girl by a man she met on the social networking website, a federal appeals court ruled.

The U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit that a Texas girl's family filed against MySpace and its parent company, News Corp. The family said MySpace didn't protect young users from sexual predators.



Web tracking plan draws fire

Cable company Charter Communications Inc. should delay plans to track customers' Internet use because of privacy concerns, two members of Congress said.

Collecting data about Web surfing habits "raises substantial questions" about compliance with privacy law, Reps. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) and Joe Barton (R-Texas) said in a letter to Charter President and Chief Executive Neil Smit.

Charter, which has 2.8 million Internet customers, plans to begin the service as a test project in June with "a couple of hundred" customers in four markets, a spokeswoman for the St. Louis-based company said.

Charter plans to share the data with a Web marketing company.

MEDIA

Parsons likely to leave Time

Time Warner Inc. Chairman Richard Parsons said he would probably step down after this year, a move that would allow Chief Executive Jeffrey Bewkes to take over the position at the world's biggest media company.

"I know I am leaving the company in good hands," said Parsons, 60, at the New York company's annual shareholder meeting in Atlanta.

Bewkes, 55, became CEO in January. He has a contract that allows him to retire if he isn't named chairman after one year.

ENTERTAINMENT

Paramount to launch in Spain

Paramount Pictures International is revving up its overseas presence with a Spanish operation and a 12-picture deal with a veteran Spanish producer, a trade paper reported.

The operation, to launch in July, will be headed by Pierre Auger, former Paramount Home Entertainment marketing chief in Madrid, Paramount Pictures International President Andrew Cripps told the Hollywood Reporter.

SECURITIES

Lehman poised to trim workers

Lehman Bros. Holdings Inc. will begin to cut about 5% of its staff on Monday as part of a plan to streamline its balance sheet amid further turbulence in the financial markets, said a person familiar with the plan.

About 1,400 employees out of 28,000 will be informed next week that they have lost their jobs, the person said.

Separately, Morgan Stanley cut 1,500 jobs this week in its investment banking, trading and asset management businesses, a person familiar with the situation said. That would be a 5% reduction of non-broker employees.

RETAIL

Abercrombie earnings rise

Teen retailer Abercrombie & Fitch Co. said its first-quarter profit rose 3% from a year earlier on stronger sales.

New Albany, Ohio-based Abercrombie & Fitch said it earned $62.1 million, or 69 cents a share, compared with $60.1 million, or 65 cents, a year earlier. Sales increased 8% to $800.1 million.

From Times Wire Services