The Federal Trade Commission urged an administrative...

The Federal Trade Commission urged an administrative judge to set a trial date of Dec. 7 in its antitrust case against Intel Corp., but the computer chip giant proposed a Feb. 18 trial date, saying it needs more time to prepare a defense against complex claims. Intel said the FTC had not clearly defined the microprocessor market it accuses Intel of monopolizing and said a broad interpretation could force it to seek a huge amount of information from scores of companies.

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The Federal Communications Commission ruled that Ameritech Corp. bought the alarm-monitoring assets of three companies in violation of the 1996 Telecommunications Act and gave the Baby Bell 30 days to convince the agency that it should be allowed to keep the businesses. Ameritech had no immediate comment.

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Seven of 10 managers of Liberty National Life Insurance who claimed they were harassed into quitting because the company wanted younger employees in an effort to cut costs were awarded $19 million by a federal jury in Tampa, Fla. The men had also said they were told not to hire applicants older than 55. Liberty, a unit of Torchmark Corp., said it will appeal.