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Hill & Knowlton Inc., a public relations unit of British advertising company WPP Group, said it bought Blanc & Otus Public Relations, a high-technology public relations firm based in San Francisco. Terms were not disclosed. Blanc & Otus, whose clients include Adobe Systems Inc., MCI WorldCom Inc., Sybase Inc. and Xerox Corp., said its revenue exceeded $8 million in 1998. New York-based Hill & Knowlton said the purchase of B&O; will allow it to expand its existing technology business across the Asia-Pacific region, Europe and North America.

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B.F. Goodrich Co. said it won a 12-year contract extension, valued at more than $2 billion, to supply parts to International Aero Engines for its V2500-A5 engine. IAE is a joint venture among United Technologies Corp.’s Pratt & Whitney unit, Rolls-Royce, DaimlerChrysler’s aerospace unit and Japan’s Aero Engines Corp. The V2500-A5 engine is used in single-aisle planes made by Airbus Industrie.

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Xerox Corp., one of the largest national producers of copiers, said it will raise its prices 5% on selected digital copier and printer products to commercial customers in the U.S., effective April 1. A spokeswoman told Reuters that the increases are in line with those made by competitors. Earlier this month, Xerox cut prices on personal printing products, including inkjet printers.

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Gillette Co.’s Duracell division said it will introduce alkaline batteries to power products such as compact disc players and digital cameras that will last 20% longer than existing batteries. The new batteries, part of the company’s Duracell Ultra line, will be available in June.

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