rolling out next generation s net the body that oversees how the net works  grows and evolves says it has coped well with its growth in the last 10 years  but it is just the start.   in a sense  we have hardly started in reaching the whole population   the new chair of the internet engineering task force (ietf)  brian carpenter  says. the ietf ensures the smooth running and organisation of the net s architecture. with broadband take-up growing  services like voice and tv will open up interesting challenges for the net.  i think voip (voice-over internet protocol  allowing phone calls to be made over the net) is very important - it challenges all the old cost models of telecoms   says dr carpenter.  second  it challenges more deeply the business model that you have to be a service provider with a lot of infrastructure. with voip  you need very little infrastructure.   a distinguished ibm engineer  dr carpenter spent 20 years at cern  the european laboratory for particle physics. as the new chair of the ietf  his next big challenge is overseeing ipv6  the next generation standard for information transfer and routing across the web. at cern  dr carpenter helped pioneer advanced net applications during the development of the world wide web  so he is well-placed to take on such a task. the net s growth and evolution depend on standards and protocols  and ensuring the architecture works and talks to other standards is a crucial job of the ietf. the top priority is to ensure that the standards that make the net work  are open and free for anyone to use and work with.  the net is built on a protocol called tcp/ip  which means transmission control protocol  and internet protocol. when computers communicate with the net  a unique ip address is used to send and receive information. the ietf is a large international community of network designers  operators  vendors  and researchers working on the evolution of the net s architecture and the way this information is sent and received. they make sure it all knits together leaving no gaps.  we ve seen some interesting effects over last few years   explains dr carpenter.  the net was growing at a fantastic rate at the end of the 90s. then there was a bit of a glitch in 2000.  we are now seeing a very clear phase of consolidation and renewed growth.   that renewed growth is also being buoyed by emerging economies  like china  which are showing fast uptake of broadband net and other technologies. the number of broadband subscribers via dsl (digital subscriber line) doubled in a year to 13 million  according to figures released at the end of 2004.  the challenges we face are about continuing to produce standards to allow for that growth rate   explained dr carpenter.  given it [the net] was designed for the whole community  it has done well to reach millions. if you want to reach the whole population  you have to make sure it can scale up.  ipv6  the standard that will replace the existing ipv4  will allow for billions more addresses on the net  and it is gradually being worked into network infrastructure across the world.  the actual number of addresses with ipv4 is limited to four billion ip addresses.  that clearly is not enough when you have 10 billion people to serve  so there is technical solution  the new version of ip - ipv6.  it has much larger address space possibilities with no practical limits   said dr carpenter. standards are vital to something as complex as the net  and making sure standards are open and can work with across networks is a big task. the difference this next generation standard  ipv6  will make to the average net user is almost invisible.  our first goal is that it [ipv6] should make no difference - people should not notice a difference.  it is like when the london telephone numbers got longer. a lot of the process will be invisible.  people are usually given an ip address without knowing it.  technically deployment has started and the standards for are just about settled  said dr carpenter.  the one problem with the net that may never disappear completely is security. to dr carpenter  the solution comes out of technological and human behaviour. people have to be educated about  sensible behaviour  he says  such as ignoring e-mails that claim you have won something.   i don t think it is going to get worse. people will remain concerned about security and they probably should do - just as you would be concerned walking along a dark street.  we have to do work to make sure there are better security internet standards. it is a never-ending battle in a sense.  but  he adds:  even if security has improved  you still worry a bit. unfortunately  it is just part of life. we have a duty to do what we can.


warning over tsunami aid website net users are being told to avoid a scam website that claims to collect cash on behalf of tsunami victims.  the site looks plausible because it uses an old version of the official disasters emergency committee webpage. however  dec has no connection with the fake site and says it has contacted the police about it. the site is just the latest in a long list of scams that try to cash in on the goodwill generated by the tsunami disaster.  the link to the website is contained in a spam e-mail that is currently circulating. the message s subject line reads  urgent tsunami earthquake appeal  and its text bears all the poor grammar and bad spelling that characterises many other phishing attempts. the web address of the fake site is decuk.org which could be close enough to the official www.dec.org.uk address to confuse some people keen to donate. patricia sanders  spokeswoman for the disaster emergency committee said it was aware of the site and had contacted the computer crime unit at scotland yard to help get it shut down. she said the spam e-mails directing people to the site started circulating two days ago shortly after the domain name of the site was registered. it is thought that the fake site is being run from romania. ms sanders said dec had contacted us net registrars who handle domain ownership and the net hosting firm that is keeping the site on the web.  dec was going to push for all cash donated via the site to be handed over to the official organisation. bt and dec s hosting company were also making efforts to get the site shut down  she said.  ms sanders said sending out spam e-mail to solicit donations was not dec s style and that it would never canvass support in this way. she said that dec hoped to get the fake site shut down as soon as possible. all attempts by the bbc news website to contact the people behind the site have failed. none of the e-mail addresses supplied on the site work and the real owner of the domain is obscured in publicly available net records. this is not the first attempt to cash in on the outpouring of goodwill that has accompanied appeals for tsunami aid. one e-mail sent out in early january came from someone who claimed that he had lost his parents in the disaster and was asking for help moving an inheritance from a bank account in the netherlands. the con was very similar to the familiar nigerian forward fee fraud e-mails that milk money out of people by promising them a cut of a much larger cash pile. other scam e-mails included a link to a website that supposedly let people donate money but instead loaded spyware on their computers that grabbed confidential information. in a monthly report anti-virus firm sophos said that two e-mail messages about the tsunami made it to the top 10 hoax list during january. another tsunami-related e-mail is also circulating that carries the zar worm which tries to spread via the familiar route of microsoft s outlook e-mail program. anyone opening the attachment of the mail will have their contact list plundered by the worm keen to find new addresses to send itself to.


qpr keeper day heads for preston queens park rangers keeper chris day is set to join preston on a month s loan.  day has been displaced by the arrival of simon royce  who is in his second month on loan from charlton. qpr have also signed italian generoso rossi. r s manager ian holloway said:  some might say it s a risk as he can t be recalled during that month and simon royce can now be recalled by charlton.  but i have other irons in the fire. i have had a  yes  from a couple of others should i need them.   day s rangers contract expires in the summer. meanwhile  holloway is hoping to complete the signing of middlesbrough defender andy davies - either permanently or again on loan - before saturday s match at ipswich. davies impressed during a recent loan spell at loftus road. holloway is also chasing bristol city midfielder tom doherty.


lasers help bridge network gaps an indian telecommunications firm has turned to lasers to help it overcome the problems of setting up voice and data networks in the country.  tata teleservices is using the lasers to make the link between customers  offices and its own core network. the laser bridges work across distances up to 4km and can be set up much faster than cable connections. in 12 months the lasers have helped the firm set up networks in more than 700 locations.   in this particular geography getting permission to dig the ground and lay the pipes is a bit of a task   said mr r. sridharan  vice president of networks at tata.  heavy traffic and the layout under the ground mean that digging is uniquely difficult   he said. in some locations  he said  permission to dig up roads and lay cables was impossible to get. he said it was far easier to secure permission for putting networking hardware on roofs. this has led chennai-based tata to turn to equipment that uses lasers to make the final mile leap between tata s core network and the premises of customers. the lightpointe laser bridges work over distances of up to 4km and are being used to route both voice and data from businesses on to the backbone of the network. the hardware works in pairs and beam data through the air in the form of laser pulses.  the laser bridges can route data at speeds up to 1.25gbps (2 000 times faster than a 512kbps broadband connection) but tata is running its hardware at more modest speeds of 1-2mbps. the lasers are also ideal for india because of its climate.  it s particularly suitable as the rain rate is a little low and it s hardly ever foggy   he said. in places where rain is heavy and fog is common laser links can struggle to maintain good connection speeds. the laser links also take far less time to set up and get working  said mr sridharan.  once we get the other permissions  normal time period for set up is a few hours   he said. by contrast  he said  digging up roads and laying cables can take weeks or months. this speed of set up has helped tata with its aggressive expansion plans. just over 12 months ago the firm had customers in only about 70 towns and cities. but by the end of march the firm hopes to reach more than 1 000.  speed is very important because of the pace of competition   said mr sridharan.


fockers retain film chart crown comedy meet the fockers has held on to the number one spot at the north american box office for a second week.  it took $42.8m (£23.7m) at the weekend  making its overall takings more than $163m (£90m) in 12 days  according to studio estimates. it took $19.1m (£9.9m) on christmas day alone  the highest takings on that day in box office history. the sequel to the ben stiller comedy meet the parents stars robert de niro  dustin hoffman and barbra streisand. the success of meet the fockers could help produce record box office revenue for 2004  said paul dergarabedian  president of the industry s tracker exhibitor relations.  we ve had a much stronger than anticipated final week of the year that helped the industry end on a high note   said mr dergarabedian.  meet the fockers also broke the box office records for the most money taken on new year s eve  when it made $12.2m (£6.2m)  and new year s day  when it took $18m (£9.4m). the previous new year s eve record was set in 2000 by cast away with $8.5m (£4.5m). the lord of the rings: the return of the king had held the new year s day title with $12.8m (£6.7m). however  christmas takings were down 26.5% on 2003 s figures - which was blamed on christmas falling over a weekend this year. this weekend s top 12 films took an estimated $125.4m (£65.8m)  a 4.3% increase on the same weekend last year. but there were no major releases last week to provide competition to meet the fockers or lemony snicket s a series of unfortunate events  which finished in second place with $14.7m (£7.7m). the aviator  starring leonardo dicaprio as howard hughes  ended up in third position after taking $11.2m (£5.9m). comedy fat albert - co-written by bill cosby - moved down the chart to fourth place after taking $10.7m (£5.6m).


ericsson sees earnings improve telecoms equipment supplier ericsson has posted a rise in fourth quarter profits thanks to clients like deutsche telekom upgrade their networks.  operating profit in the three months to 31 december was 9.5bn kronor (£722m; $1.3bn) against 6.3bn kronor last year. shares tumbled  however  as the company reported a profit margin of 45.6%  less than the 47.3% forecast by analysts and down from 47.1% in the third quarter. ericsson shares dropped 5.9% to 20.7 kronor in early trading on thursday. however  the company remained optimistic about its earnings outlook after sales in the fourth quarter rose 9% to 39.4bn kronor.  long-term growth drivers of the industry remain solid   ericsson said in a statement.  chief executive carl-henric svanberg explained that about  27% of the world s population now has access to mobile communications .  this is exciting for a company with a vision of an all-communicating world   he added. mr svanberg  however  warned that the extra demand that had driven 2004 sales had already dissipated and it was  business as usual . he added that sales in the first three months of 2005 would be subject to  normal seasonality . for the whole of 2004  ericsson returned a net profit of 19bn kronor  compared with a loss of 10.8bn kronor in 2003. sales climbed to 131.9 billion kronor from 117.7bn kronor in 2003.


bbc  should allow more scrutiny  mps have urged the bbc to give watchdogs more freedom to scrutinise how £2bn in licence fee money is spent.  the public accounts committee called for the national audit office to be given a  free hand  to investigate how the bbc offers value for money. although six areas are to be opened up to scrutiny the audit office should have more power to choose what it investigated  the mps said. the call was made in a report into the bbc s freeview digital service.  our aim is not to rewrite the storyline of eastenders but simply to ensure that the bbc is as accountable to parliament as any other organisation spending public money   said the committee chairman  mp edward leigh.  the bbc s spending is not subject to the full independent scrutiny  and accountability to parliament.  parliament requires television owners to pay a licence fee and expects the comptroller and auditor general  on behalf of parliament  to be able to scrutinise how that money  over £2 billion a year  is used.   a bbc spokeswoman said:  we share the committee s interest in ensuring the public money we receive is spent well. though in its infancy  we think the arrangements with the nao are working well and should be given time to mature.  the report said the freeview digital service has had an  impressive  take up since its launch but the bbc must still dispel confusion about the service. the committee found the bbc had succeeded in ensuring subscription-free access to digital channels following the collapse of itv digital in 2002. but the fact that one in four homes could not access freeview remained a problem.  the report said that while gaps in the coverage were largely due to landscape issues  there was need for detailed explanations on the freeview website and on promotional literature as to why it was not available in specific areas. the government has proposed switch off of the analogue television signal  with 2012 the most recently proposed date. the bbc launched freeview in 2002 as an alternative to satellite subscription services such as sky  to allow its digital channels such as bbc three and news 24 to be seen. there have been an estimated five million freeview set-top boxes sold since the launch and prices have fallen considerably. the corporation plans to spend up to £138m on freeview before 2014 to ensure people can receive the service throughout the uk  and are aware of it.


high fuel prices hit ba s profits british airways has blamed high fuel prices for a 40% drop in profits.  reporting its results for the three months to 31 december 2004  the airline made a pre-tax profit of £75m ($141m) compared with £125m a year earlier. rod eddington  ba s chief executive  said the results were  respectable  in a third quarter when fuel costs rose by £106m or 47.3%. ba s profits were still better than market expectation of £59m  and it expects a rise in full-year revenues.  to help offset the increased price of aviation fuel  ba last year introduced a fuel surcharge for passengers.  in october  it increased this from £6 to £10 one-way for all long-haul flights  while the short-haul surcharge was raised from £2.50 to £4 a leg. yet aviation analyst mike powell of dresdner kleinwort wasserstein says ba s estimated annual surcharge revenues - £160m - will still be way short of its additional fuel costs - a predicted extra £250m. turnover for the quarter was up 4.3% to £1.97bn  further benefiting from a rise in cargo revenue. looking ahead to its full year results to march 2005  ba warned that yields - average revenues per passenger - were expected to decline as it continues to lower prices in the face of competition from low-cost carriers. however  it said sales would be better than previously forecast.  for the year to march 2005  the total revenue outlook is slightly better than previous guidance with a 3% to 3.5% improvement anticipated   ba chairman martin broughton said. ba had previously forecast a 2% to 3% rise in full-year revenue.  it also reported on friday that passenger numbers rose 8.1% in january. aviation analyst nick van den brul of bnp paribas described ba s latest quarterly results as  pretty modest .  it is quite good on the revenue side and it shows the impact of fuel surcharges and a positive cargo development  however  operating margins down and cost impact of fuel are very strong   he said. since the 11 september 2001 attacks in the united states  ba has cut 13 000 jobs as part of a major cost-cutting drive.  our focus remains on reducing controllable costs and debt whilst continuing to invest in our products   mr eddington said.  for example  we have taken delivery of six airbus a321 aircraft and next month we will start further improvements to our club world flat beds.  ba s shares closed up four pence at 274.5 pence.


uk  discriminated against roma  the government s immigration rules racially discriminated against roma (gypsies) seeking entry into the uk  the law lords have ruled.  it follows a home office move to cut asylum claims by stopping people  mostly roma  from boarding flights to britain from the czech capital  prague. civil rights group liberty said it exposed  racism at the heart of the government s asylum policy . the home office said it had not meant to discriminate against anyone. it said it would look at the implications of the ruling  but pointed out the controls were no longer in place because czechs are now entitled to free movement across europe.  the screening took place at the airport in july 2001  at a time of concern about the number of asylum seekers entering britain.  those refused  pre-clearance  were effectively prevented from travelling to the uk  because no airline would carry them. lady hale  sitting with lords bingham  steyn  hope and carswell  said many roma had good reason to want to leave the czech republic because of persecution. but she said they were treated more sceptically than non-roma passengers by immigration officers  acting on racial grounds . lady hale said immigration officers should have treated all would-be passengers in the same way  only using more intrusive questioning if there was a specific reason.  liberty said statistics suggested roma czechs were 400 times more likely to be stopped by british immigration officials at prague airport than non-roma czechs. it took up the case of six unnamed roma czechs refused entry to britain  and that of the european roma rights centre  which said the measures unfairly penalised roma people. it lost a high court action in october 2002 when a judge said the system was  no more or less objectionable  than a visa control system. he ruled there was no obligation on britain not to take steps to prevent a potential refugee from approaching its border to claim asylum.  the court of appeal then decided the practice almost inevitably discriminated against roma  but that this was justified because they were more likely to seek asylum. immigration law allows officials to discriminate against citizens from named countries  but it does not allow officers to go further than that.  responding to the ruling  a home office spokesman said:  the scheme was operated two years ago as a short-term response to the high levels of passengers travelling from prague who are subsequently found to be ineligible for entry to the uk.   welcoming the ruling  maeve sherlock  chief executive of the refugee council  said:  human rights abuses against the roma in eastern europe are well documented  and it is hugely troubling that the government sought to deny entry to such a vulnerable group.  amnesty international s jan shaw said:  that the government s own asylum policy was being operated discriminatorily is bleakly ironic given that discrimination often lies at the heart of serious human rights abuse  not least in the czech republic.  but the chairman of migration watch uk  sir andrew green  said the house of lords decision was a  step in the wrong direction .  the basic point is that the government has a duty to control our borders and this decision appears to extend the race relations legislation beyond sensible limits.


yachvili savours france comeback france scrum-half dimitri yachvili praised his team after they fought back to beat england 18-17 in the six nations clash at twickenham.  yachvili kicked all of france s points as they staged a second-half revival.  we didn t play last week against scotland and we didn t play in the first half against england   he said.  but we re very proud to beat england at twickenham. we were just defending in the first half and we said we had to put them under pressure. we did well.  yachvili admitted erratic kicking from england s charlie hodgson and olly barkley  who missed six penalties and a drop goal chance between them  had been decisive.  i know what it s like with kicking. when you miss some it s very hard mentally  but it went well for us   he said. france captain fabien pelous insisted his side never doubted they could secure their first win against england at twickenham since 1997. france were 17-6 down at half-time  but pelous said:  no-one was down at half-time  we were still confident.  we said we only had 11 points against us  which was not much.  the plan was to keep hold of possession and pressure england to losing their composure.  france coach bernard laporte accepted his side had not played well.  we know we have to play better to defend the title   he said.  i m not happy we didn t score a try but we re happy because we won.


parmalat founder offers apology the founder and former boss of parmalat has apologised to investors who lost money as a result of the italian dairy firm s collapse.  calisto tanzi said he would co-operate fully with prosecutors investigating the background to one of europe s largest financial scandals. parmalat was placed into bankruptcy protection in 2003 after a 14bn euro black hole was found in its accounts. more than 130 000 people lost money following the firm s collapse. mr tanzi  66  issued a statement through his lawyer after five hours of questioning by prosecutors in parma on 15 january.  prosecutors are seeking indictments against mr tanzi and 28 others - including several members of his family and former parmalat chief financial officer fausto tonna - for alleged manipulation of stock market prices and making misleading statements to accountants and italy s financial watchdog. two former parmalat auditors will stand trial later this month for their role in the firm s collapse.   i apologise to all who have suffered so much damage as a result of my schemes to make my dream of an industrial project come true   mr tanzi s statement said.  it is my duty to collaborate fully with prosecutors to reconstruct the causes of parmalat s sudden default and who is responsible.  mr tanzi spent several months in jail in the wake of parmalat s collapse and was kept under house arrest until last september. parmalat is now being run by a state appointed administrator  enrico bondi  who has launched lawsuits against 80 banks in an effort to recover money for the bankrupt company and its shareholders. he has alleged that these companies were aware of the true state of parmalat s finances but continued to lend money to the company. the companies insist they were the victims of fraudulent book-keeping. parmalat was declared insolvent after it emerged that 4 billion euros (£2.8bn; $4.8bn) it supposedly held in an offshore account did not in fact exist. the firm s demise sent shock waves through italy  where its portfolio of top-selling food brands and its position as the owner of leading football club parma had turned it into a household name.


radcliffe will compete in london paula radcliffe will compete in the flora london marathon this year after deciding her schedule for 2005.  the 31-year-old won the race in 2002 on her marathon debut  defended her title 12 months later and will now seek a third title in the 17 april race.  it doesn t get any better than this for the 25th anniversary   said race director david bedford.  after announcing the greatest men s field ever we now have the greatest women s distance runner ever.  three years ago radcliffe smashed the women s world record in two hours 18 minutes 15 seconds.  the bedford star returned to london 12 months later  lowering her mixed-race world record of 2:17:18  which she set in chicago in october 2003  by one minute 53 secs. radcliffe s career took a setback when she failed to complete the olympic marathon and later dropped out of the athens 10 000m last august. but the 31-year-old bounced back to win the new york marathon in november. radcliffe  however  passed up the chance to go for the  big city  marathon grand slam. with wins in chicago  london and new york  only the boston marathon remains to be conquered but that takes place a day after london.  boston is definitely a race i want to do at some point  but london is very special to me   said radcliffe.  i don t pick races thinking about things like pressure. i pick the ones in my heart i really want to do.  i love the atmosphere  crowds and course and know it will always be a great quality race.  it is also the 25th anniversary this year which adds to the occasion.


go-ahead for new internet names the internet could soon have two new domain names  aimed at mobile services and the jobs market.  the internet corporation for assigned names and numbers (icann) has given preliminary approval to two new addresses - .mobi and .jobs. they are among 10 new names being considered by the net s oversight body. others include a domain for pornography  an anti-spam domain as well as .post and .travel  for the postal and travel industries.  the .mobi domain would be aimed at websites and other services that work specifically around mobile phones  while the .jobs address could be used by companies wanting a dedicated site for job postings. the process to see the new domain names go live in cyberspace could take months and icann officials warned that there were no guarantees they would ultimately be accepted. applicants paid £23 000 apiece to have their proposals considered. the application for .mobi was sponsored by technology firms including nokia  microsoft and t-mobile.  of the 10 currently under consideration  the least likely to win approval is the .xxx domain for pornographic websites. there are currently around 250 domain names in use around the globe  mostly for specific countries such as .fr for france and .uk for britain. perhaps unsurprisingly  .com remains the most popular address on the web.


anti-spam screensaver scrapped a contentious campaign to bump up the bandwidth bills of spammers by flooding their sites with data has been dropped.  lycos europe s make love  not spam campaign began in late november but its tactics proved controversial. lycos has shut down the campaign saying it had been started to stimulate debate about anti-spam measures and had now achieved this aim. the anti-spammer screensaver came under fire for encouraging vigilante activity and skirting the edge of the law.  through the make love  not spam website  users could download a screensaver that would endlessly request data from the net sites mentioned in many junk mail messages. more than 100 000 people are thought to have downloaded the screensaver that lycos europe offered.  the company wanted to keep the spam sites running at near total capacity to make it much less financially attractive to spammers to operate the sites. but the campaign was controversial from the moment it kicked off and many net veterans criticised it for using spamming-type tactics against the senders of junk mail. some net service firms began blocking access to the lycos europe site in protest at the action. monitoring firm netcraft found that the anti-spam campaign was proving a little too successful. according to response-time figures gathered by netcraft  some of the sites that the screensaver targeted were being knocked offline by the constant data requests. in a statement from lycos europe announcing the scrapping of the scheme  the company denied that this was its fault.  there is nothing to suggest that make love  not spam has brought down any of the sites that it has targeted   it said.  at the time that netcraft measured the sites it claims may have been brought down  they were not in fact part of the make love  not spam attack cycle   it added. the statement issued by lycos also said that the centralised database it used ensured that traffic to the target sites left them with 5% spare capacity.  the idea was simply to slow spammers  sites and this was achieved by the campaign   the company said. many security organisations said users should not participate in the lycos europe campaign. the closure comes only days after the campaign was suspended following the outbreak of criticism.


house prices drop as sales slow house prices fell further in november and property sale times lengthened as rate rises took their toll  the royal institute of chartered surveyors found.  a total of 48% of chartered surveyor estate agents reported lower prices in the three months to november - the highest level in 12 years. meanwhile the number of sales dropped 32% to an average of 22 per surveyor. the amount of unsold properties on their books rose for the sixth month in a row to an average of 67 properties.  the slowdown occurring in the market has given buyers more power to negotiate  but this time of year is traditionally a quiet one   rics housing spokesman ian perry said.  the decision by the bank of england not to increase interest rates further and the healthy economy is allowing confidence to consolidate.   the figures support recent data from the government and other bodies which all point to a slowdown in the housing market. on monday  the council of mortgage lenders  british bankers association and building societies association all said mortgage lending was slowing. the figures were published as another survey by property website rightmove said the average asking price of a home fell by more than £600 from £190 329 in november to £189 733 in december. around the uk  the midlands and south saw the biggest price falls  while london prices fell but at less than the national rate. in scotland  where prices have remained on an upward path  increases were more  moderate   rics added. but the news failed to dent confidence that sales will recover in future  with surveyors at their most optimistic in a year - as new purchase inquiries stabilised despite holding at lower levels.  sales usually pick up in the new year and i am confident this year will be no exception   mr perry added. looking ahead  the group is anticipating a quiet start to 2005 with the market picking up in the second half - prompting a 3% rise in prices over the coming 12 months.


asia shares defy post-quake gloom thailand has become the first of the 10 southern asian nations battered by giant waves at the weekend to cut its economic forecast.  thailand s economy is now expected to grow by 5.7% in 2005  rather than 6% as forecast before tsunamis hit six tourist provinces. the full economic costs of the disaster remain unclear. in part  this is because of its scale  and because delivering aid and recovering the dead remain priorities. but indonesian  indian and hong kong stock markets reached record highs on wednesday  suggesting that investors do not fear a major economic impact.  the highs showed the gap in outlook between investors in large firms and individuals who have lost their livelihoods.  investors seemed to feel that some of the worst-affected areas - such as aceh in indonesia - were so under-developed that the tragedy would little impact on asia s listed companies  according to analysts.  obviously with a lot of loss of life  a lot of time is needed to clean up the mess  bury the people and find the missing. but it s not necessarily a really big thing in the economic sense   said abn amro chief asian strategist eddie wong. india s bombay stock exchange inched slightly above its previous record close on wednesday. expectations of strong corporate earnings in 2005 drove the indonesian stock exchange in jakarta to a record high on wednesday. in hong kong  the hang seng index may be benefiting in part from the potential for its listed property companies to gain from rebuilding contracts in the tsunami-affected regions of south east asia. in sri lanka  some economists have said that as much as 1% of annual growth may be lost. sri lanka s stock market has fallen about 5% since the weekend  but it is still 40% higher than at the start of 2004.  thailand may lose 30bn baht (£398m; $768m) in earnings from tourism over the next three months  according to tourism minister sontaya kunplome.  in the affected provinces  he expects the loss of tourism revenue to be offset by government reconstruction spending. thailand intends to spend a similar sum - around 30bn baht - on the rebuilding work.  it will take until the fourth quarter of next year before tourist visitors in phuket and five other provinces return to their normal level   said naris chaiyasoot  director general at the ministry s fiscal policy office. in the maldives the cost of reconstruction could wipe out economic growth  according to a government spokesman.  our nation is in peril here   said ahmed shaheed  the chief government spokesman. he estimated the economic cost of the disaster at hundreds of millions of dollars. the maldives has gross domestic product of $660m.  it won t be surprising if the cost exceeds our gdp   he said.  in the last few years  we made great progress in our standard of living - the united nations recognised this. now we see this can disappear in a few days  a few minutes.  shaheed noted that investment in a single tourist resort - the economic mainstay - could run to $40m. between 10 and 12 of the 80-odd resorts have been severely damaged  and a similar number have suffered significant damage. however  many experts  including the world bank  have pointed out that it is still difficult to assess the magnitude of the disaster and its likely economic impact.


john peel replacement show begins the permanent replacement for late dj john peel s bbc radio 1 show goes on air on tuesday  with three hosts chosen to fill the legendary presenter s slot.  rock dj huw stephens will go on air in the 2300 slot every tuesday  with black music champion ras kwame on wednesdays and dance dj rob da bank on thursdays. rob da bank filled in after peel had a heart attack aged 65 in october. all three will play  diverse  unpredictable and non-commercial  songs under the banner of the onemusic show.  radio 1 said the station was not trying to replace peel  but would rise to the  challenge  of  keeping his legacy alive  with unpredictable music. the three djs were chosen for their  in-depth musical knowledge across a variety of musical genres   the station said.  rob da bank is one of the hosts of the blue room  an early morning weekend show which plays electronic and dance music. huw stephens has been one half of the thursday night show bethan and huw in wales  which explores new music  especially up-and-coming acts in wales. and ras kwame is host of 100% homegrown on radio 1 s digital station 1xtra  dedicated to showcasing the best hip-hop and garage. another change to the station line-up will see sara cox return after maternity leave. she will host the lunchtime show on saturdays from this week.  good luck to all three of them  not one dj could fill peels boots so it s probably a good idea to get them all contributing. this time next year i hope we are saying how well these djs have done  but i fear this time next year we will really realise how much john peel will be forever missed.  very good idea to continue the legacy without attempting to replace john peel. also  there will surely be a wider spectrum for international music as three top radio djs unite under the one world name. congratulations!  the whole glory of john peel was the fact he was not commited to one genre. he played what he liked across the range of music.... this is not going to be the same  and all they seem to be doing is what they already have. bring back steve lamacq.  the obvious heir to john peel is the marvellous  wonderful and talented claire kember from totallyradio.com. this lady is young and fresh and is one of the most knowledgeable and likeable people in british broadcasting today. everyone who listens to her show understands and compares her to the ledgendary john peel. bbc radio should seek out the real talent from internet radio stations  people who are making a real impact on the world of music and the world in general.


blair backs  pre-election budget  tony blair has backed chancellor gordon brown s pre-budget report amid opposition claims he was too bullish about the state of the uk economy.  in a speech in edinburgh  the prime minister said thursday s report reinforced stability and opportunity. and that would be central to labour s next election campaign  planning for which was already well advanced. mr brown earlier denied his economic forecasts were too optimistic - but refused to rule out future tax rises.  he told bbc radio 4 s today programme:  no politician should make the mistake that john major and his colleagues made in 1992 of saying no matter what the circumstances are  they can make all sorts of guarantees on every individual thing.   that is not what politicians should do  it would not be responsible to do.  mr brown insisted his spending plans were  affordable  and he could afford to be optimistic because britain was now a stable  low-inflation economy and house prices were now stabilising. mr blair praised his chancellor for his role in creating economic stability  which he said was the  cornerstone  of labour s programme.  in a speech at edinburgh s napier university  he said labour would publish over the next few months  a rich agenda for future policy in any possible third term .   in every area of work there is a detailed plan for the future  much clearer than those in 1997 or 2001. all of it fits together around common themes of opportunity  security and stability for all   mr blair said. in his pre-budget report  mr brown surprised some city experts by forecasting uk growth at between 3% and 3.5% for next year. many believe the figure is more likely to be under 3% - and fear tax rises or spending cuts  saying tax receipts have been overestimated. carl emmerson  from the institute for fiscal studies  told bbc news:  he thinks everything will come out in the wash and it will  in fact  be ok. we re not so sure.  david page  of investec securities  said:  his forecast that he will meet the golden rule with a margin of £8bn is way too optimistic.  it s going to take a significant turnaround in the economy to meet these targets.   conservative shadow chancellor oliver letwin said:  i can t find a single economic forecaster from the imf to the institute of fiscal studies who believes anything other than the chancellor has got a black hole in his finances.  in order to deal with that he will have to raise taxes after the next general election.  mr letwin accused the chancellor of using  fancy statistics  to hide public service failures. vincent cable  for the liberal democrats  called on mr brown to open up the government s books to the national audit office  to see if he had met his  golden rule .  it is very clear that there are some serious loose ends in government public spending   mr cable told mps.


top of the pops leaves bbc one the bbc s flagship pop music programme top of the pops is to move from bbc one on fridays to sundays on bbc two.  the new programme will combine with archive show totp2  mixing new music with footage of classic bands. the corporation said the new show  aims to appeal to a diverse audience of music lovers . the move is the biggest shake-up in the history of the show  which was first broadcast in 1964 and has always been on bbc one. top of the pops was relaunched in a blaze of publicity in december last year in an attempt to reverse a long-term decline in audience figures.  the all new top of the pops was fronted by newcomer tim kash and was put together by producer andi peters  who was brought back to the bbc from channel 4 to revitalise the series.  about three million people a week were watching the show on fridays - less than half the total it was attracting in the mid-1990s - as the programme went up against popular itv soap coronation street. but despite the relaunch audience figures failed to rise and still remain around the three million mark. tim kash has since been replaced as host by fearne cotton. the new show will launch in spring next year in an extended format. bbc two controller roly keating:  it s an exciting new era for top of the pops. we want to make it bigger and better so that it becomes the ultimate pop music show for music lovers of every generation.  mr keating described bbc two as the  natural home  of top of the pops. he added:  the addition of top of the pops will also extend bbc two s offering to younger audiences.   a bbc spokeswoman said andi peters would continue as executive producer on the show. she said that issues over the exact format of the programme and a time slot were still to be decided. the programme will have a close relationship with the bbc radio 1 chart show  which suggests the relaunched show may be transmitted at about 1900 on sundays.  hopefully the audience for top of the pops will find it on bbc two.  we think that the new slot will create a buzz around the programme as for the first time viewers will discover the news of who is number one as it happens.


mcleish ready for criticism rangers manager alex mcleish accepts he is going to be criticised after their disastrous uefa cup exit at the hands of auxerre at ibrox on wednesday.  mcleish told bbc radio five live:  we were in pole position to get through to the next stage but we blew it  we absolutely blew it.  there s no use burying your head in the sand  we know we are going to get a lot of criticism.  we have to take it as we have done in the past and we must now bounce back.  mcleish admitted his team s defending was amateurish after watching them lose 2-0 to guy roux s french side.   i m very disappointed because we didn t give ourselves a chance  losing the first goal from our own corner. it was amateur   he added.  the early goal in the second half gave us a mountain to climb and we never created the same kind of chances as we did in the first half.  it s difficult to take positives from the game. we ve let the fans down.


qatar and shell in $6bn gas deal shell has signed a $6bn (£3.12bn) deal with the middle eastern sheikhdom of qatar to supply liquid natural gas (lng) to north america and europe.  the uk-dutch group will own 30% of the project  with qatar s state oil firm owning the rest. the agreement is the latest in a string of deals reached by qatar  which is trying to make itself a regional leader in natural gas. us oil giant exxonmobil signed up for a $12.8bn deal earlier on sunday. france s total is expected to join the exxonmobil scheme  dubbed qatargas-2  on monday  taking 5 million tonnes of lng a year. exxonmobil will be taking some 15 million tonnes each year for 25 years from the end of 2007 under the deal. shell s agreement  under the name qatargas-4  foresees the building of new facilities to handle 1.4 billion cubic feet of gas  and 7.8 million tonnes of lng each year from 2011 onwards.


johnson announces june retirement former england captain martin johnson has announced he is to retire from rugby union at the end of the season.  johnson  who captained england to world cup glory in 2003  will play his final match in june. johnson won 84 england caps and quit test rugby at the start of 2004  just two months after leading sir clive woodward s team to victory in sydney. the 34-year-old leicester lock s final match will be his testimonial at twickenham on 4 june.  i m confident i have made the right decision to retire   said johnson.  i m sure there will be times next season when i ll wish i was out there playing for the tigers  but you know when the time is right to go and i feel this is the right time.  i feel physically that i could play for another season  but playing week in and week out in the premiership is a full-time occupation and i only want to be out there for the right reasons.  johnson will always be revered by england fans for captaining england to their dramatic world cup win against australia in sydney  but his list of achievements does not stop at that.  he is the only man to captain the lions twice and he also led england to a six nations grand slam. johnson also had huge success as captain of leicester  guiding the tigers to back to back heineken cup victories and several premiership titles. apart from his marvellous captaincy johnson was also one of the finest second rows to ever play the game. teak tough and physically intimidating  he ruled the rucks and mauls for the best part of a decade and was integral in england s rise to the top of the world game. his final appearance will be in his testimonial at twickenham  where he will lead a team against a side captained by new zealand winger jonah lomu. the all black is aiming to return to action after a kidney transplant and johnson expects it to be a memorable occasion.  this game against jonah will be a great way to end the season and end my career   said johnson. lomu  rugby union s first global superstar after his exploits in the 1995 world cup  said he was proud to be part of johnson s farewell.  we hold him in such high esteem   said lomu.  he is such a great leader and i am just honoured to be on the same pitch.


golden rule  intact  says ex-aide chancellor gordon brown will meet his golden economic rule  with a margin to spare   according to his former chief economic adviser.  formerly one of mr brown s closest treasury aides  ed balls hinted at a budget giveaway on 16 march. he said he hoped more would be done to build on current tax credit rules. any rate rise ahead of an expected may election would not affect the labour party s chances of winning  he added. last july  mr balls won the right to step down from his treasury position and run for parliament  defending the labour stronghold of normanton in west yorkshire.  mr balls rejected the allegation that mr brown had been sidelined in the election campaign  saying he was playing a  different  role to the one he played in the last two elections. he rejected speculation that mr brown was considering becoming foreign secretary  saying his recent travels had been linked to efforts to boost international development. gordon brown s decision to announce the date of the budget while on a trip to china was a  sensible thing to do   since he was talking about skills and investment at the time  mr balls told the bbc. commenting on speculation of an interest rate rise  he said it was not within the remit of the bank of england s monetary policy committee (mpc) to factor a potential election into its rate decisions. expectations of a rate rise have gathered pace after figures showed that house prices are still rising. consumer borrowing rose at a near-record pace in january.  i don t believe it would be a big election issue in britain or a problem for labour   mr balls said. prime minister tony blair has yet to name the date of the election  but most pundits are betting on 5 may as the likely day.


no ads for passion oscar campaign producer mel gibson will not be using paid advertisements to promote the passion of the christ to voters in next year s academy awards.  gibson and his icon productions partner bruce davey said they would not be campaigning in print  radio or tv for success at the oscars in february.  this film should be judged on its artistic merit  not who spends more money on advertising   davey said. but dvds will be sent to oscar voters  who will be invited to screenings. icon spent very little on advertising the film  which deals with the last hours of jesus christ s life  when it was released earlier this year - instead  it made the film available for special screenings at churches. it went on to gross over $600m (£322m) in ticket sales worldwide. over recent years  marketing films to the members of the academy of motion picture arts and sciences has become a multi-million dollar industry. last year  the academy formed a committee to tighten the rules after the campaigns spilled over into personal attacks between studios. academy president frank pierson praised gibson s move for working to restore the oscars as a  celebration and appreciation of excellence   and resisting the  crass commercialisation that was threatening the integrity of the award .


rescue hope for borussia dortmund shares in struggling german football club borussia dortmund slipped on monday despite the club agreeing a rescue plan with creditors on friday.  the club  which has posted record losses and racked up debts  said last week that it was in  a life-threatening profitability and financial situation . creditors agreed on friday to suspend interest payments until 2007. news of the deal had boosted shares in the club on friday  but the stock slipped back 7% during monday morning.  in addition to the interest-payment freeze  borussia dortmund also will get short-term loans to help pay salaries. it estimated that it needs almost 30m euros ($39m; £21m) until the end of june if it is to pay its bills. the football club is hoping that all its creditors will agree to defer rent payments on its westfalen stadium. borussia officials met with almost all the banks involved in its financing on friday and over the weekend. three creditors have yet to agree to the deal struck last week. on 14 march  one of these creditors - property investment fund molsiris which owns the club s stadium - holds its agm at which it will discuss the rescue plan. chief executive gerd niebaum stepped down last week and creditors have been pushing for a greater say in how the club is run. borussia dortmund also is facing calls to appoint executives from outside the club. the club posted a record loss of 68m euros in the 12 months through june. adding to its woes  borussia dortmund was beaten 5-0 by bayern munich on saturday.


mansfield 0-1 leyton orient an second-half goal from andy scott condemned mansfield to a ninth successive game without a win.  early in the second half wayne carlisle s cross was met by scott and he blasted the ball home from just outside the penalty area. as orient chased a second  mansfield had to clear alan white s header off the line and kevin pilkington saved well from michael simpson. by the end mansfield fans were chanting for the head of chairman keith haslam.  pilkington  talbot  buxton  dimech  artell  corden  murray  curtis  neil  warne  barker. subs not used: white  mcintosh  wood  lloyd  herron.  harrison  lockwood  donny barnard  white mackie  scott  saah  simpson  carlisle  lee barnard  ibehre. subs not used: morris  wardley  newey  zakuani  mcmahon.  scott 51.  3 803  s mathieson (cheshire).


bees handed potential man utd tie brentford face a home tie against holders manchester united in the fa cup sixth round if they can come through their replay against southampton.  the league one side held the saints at st mary s in their fifth-round tie and were rewarded with a potential draw against sir alex ferguson s side. newcastle will be at home to either tottenham or nottingham forest. bolton host arsenal or sheffield united and leicester will visit the winners of the burnley and blackburn replay. the ties will be played on the weekend of 12-13 march.  was delighted to be paired with united  although he admitted they still have plenty of work to do to set up a dream tie.  we ve got our work cut out next tuesday but you can t deny it s exciting   he said.   it would be a sell-out. it will probably be on television. we have financial problems and the revenue it could bring in would certainly help our situation.  we re happy to be in the draw but we ve still got to beat a premiership team.  we ve got to beat southampton first and that s going to be a hard game but if we do there will be some celebration.   welcomed the opportunity to face united.  we re not counting on anything yet   he said.  it is obviously going to be a difficult replay judging by the way brentford came back at us on saturday and the fact that united have come out of the hat will give them even more incentive.  but i ve been drawn against united so many times in cups and beaten them at both bournemouth and west ham.  there are no easy ties in the fa cup and i m sure nobody is counting on one.   newcastle v tottenham or nottingham forest  southampton or brentford v manchester united  bolton v arsenal or sheffield united  burnley or blackburn v leicester


us interest rate rise expected us interest rates are expected to rise for the fifth time since june following the us federal reserve s latest rate-setting meeting later on tuesday.  borrowing costs are tipped to rise by a quarter of a percentage point to 2.25%. the move comes as a recovery in the us economy  the world s biggest  shows signs of robustness and sustainability. the dollar s record-breaking decline  meanwhile  has spooked markets and along with high oil prices has raised concerns about the pace of inflation.  we are seeing evidence that inflation is moving higher   said ken kim  an analyst at stone & mccarthy research.  it s not a risk  it s actually happening.  mr kim added that borrowing costs could rise further.  the fed has said that it will move in a  measured  way to combat price growth and lift interest rates from their 40-year lows that were prompted by sluggish us and global growth.  with the economic picture now looking more rosy  the fed has implemented quarter percentage point rises in june  august  september and november. although the us economy grew at an annual rate of 3.9% in the three months to september  analysts warn that fed has to be careful not to move too aggressively and take the wind out of the recovery s sails. earlier this month figures showed that job creation is still weak  while consumer confidence is subdued.  i think the fed feels it has a fair amount of flexibility   said david berson  chief economist at fannie mae.  while inflation has moved up  it hasn t moved up a lot.   if economic growth should subside... the fed would feel it has the flexibility to pause in its tightening.  but if economic growth picked up and caused core inflation to rise a little more quickly  i think the fed would be prepared to tighten more quickly as well.


euronext  poised to make lse bid  pan-european group euronext is poised to launch a bid for the london stock exchange  uk media reports say.  last week  the lse rejected a takeover proposal from german rival deutsche boerse - the 530 pence-a-share offer valued the exchange at about £1.35bn. the lse  which saw its shares rise 25%  said the bid undervalued the business. euronext - formed after the brussels  paris and amsterdam exchanges merged - is reportedly working with three investment banks on a possible offer. the lse  europe s biggest stock market  is a key prize  listing stocks with a total capitalisation of £1.4 trillion.  euronext already has a presence in london due to its 2001 acquisition of london-based options and futures exchange liffe. trades on the lse are cleared via clearnet  in which euronext has a quarter stake.  euronext  which also operates an exchange in lisbon  last week appointed ubs and abn amro as additional advisors. it is also working with morgan stanley. despite the rejection of the deutsche boerse bid last week  werner seifert  chief executive of the frankfurt-based exchange  may well come back with an improved offer. it has long wanted to link up with london  and the two tried and failed to seal a merger in 2000. responding to the lse s rebuff  deutsche boerse - whose market capitalisation is more than £3bn - said it believed it could show its proposal offered benefits  and that it still hoped to make a cash bid.  last week the lse said not only was the bid undervalued  but that it had  been advised that there can be no assurance that any transaction could be successfully implemented . however  it has indicated it is open for further talks. meanwhile  german magazine der spiegel said part of mr seifert s negotiations with the lse were about where to base the future board of any merged exchange. while mr seifert has suggested a merged company would be run out of london  the mayor of frankfurt has raised concerns that such a move could cost german jobs. many analysts believe german boerse has more financial firepower than euronext if it came to a bidding war.


german economy rebounds germany s economy  the biggest among the 12 countries sharing the euro  grew at its fastest rate in four years during 2004  driven by strong exports.  gross domestic product (gdp) rose by 1.7% last year  the statistical office said. the economy contracted in 2003. foreign sales increased by 8.2% last year  compared with a 0.3% slide in private consumption. concerns remain  however  over the strength of the euro  weak domestic demand and a sluggish labour market. the european central bank (ecb) left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 2% on thursday. it is the nineteenth month in a row that the ecb has not moved borrowing costs. economists predict that an increase is unlikely to come until the second half of 2005  with growth set to sputter rather than ignite.   during 2004 we profited from the fact that the world economy was strong   said stefan schilbe  analyst at hsbc trinkaus & burkhardt.  if exports weaken and domestic growth remains poor  we cannot expect much from 2005.  many german consumers have been spooked and unsettled by government attempts to reform the welfare state and corporate environment. major companies including volkswagen  daimlerchrysler and siemens have spent much of 2004 in tough talks with unions about trimming jobs and costs. they have also warned there are more cost cutting measures on the horizon.


dutch bank to lay off 2 850 staff abn amro  the netherlands  largest bank  is to cut 2 850 jobs as a result of falling profits.  the cuts - amounting to 3% of the bank s workforce - will result in a one-off charge of 790m euros ($1.1bn). about 1 100 jobs will go in investment banking while 1 200 and 550 will go in it and human resources respectively. abn amro is the third large european bank to announce cutbacks in the past month following deutsche bank and credit suisse group.  its profitability has been hit by a fall in mortgage lending in the united states - the bank s largest single market - following recent interest rate rises. abn amro s operations in the netherlands and the united kingdom will be hardest hit. jobs will also be lost in the us - which accounted for 46% of profit in the first half of 2004 - and across its operations in the americas and asia-pacific regions.  the restructuring is designed to improve efficiency by reducing administrative costs and increasing focus on client service. the bank said it was on course for a 10% rise in net income this year but operating profits are set to fall because of a fall in us revenues. abn amro currently has more than 100 000 staff.  to get any profit growth in the coming years  they will have to lower costs  so shedding jobs makes total sense   ivo geijsen  an analyst with bank oyens & van eeghen  told bloomberg. europe s leading banks seem set for a period of retrenchment. deutsche bank said earlier this month it would reduce its german workforce by 1 920 while as many as 300 jobs will be lost at credit suisse first boston.


tories leave door open for archer the conservative party would deal  sympathetically  with any application by disgraced peer lord archer to rejoin its ranks  its co-chairman has said.  dr liam fox told bbc one s breakfast with frost programme there was no place for  vindictiveness  in politics. lord archer spent two years in prison after being convicted of perjury and perverting the course of justice. the former tory deputy chairman s five-year suspension from the party has just elapsed.  a jury ruled that lord archer lied during a libel trial against the daily star at the high court in london in 1987.  he won damages after the newspaper printed allegations about involvement with a prostitute. dr fox was asked if he would say yes or no if lord archer applied to rejoin.  i m sure that in line with people having served their sentence and having done some reparations for what they did wrong  we would look at that sympathetically.  i don t believe in vindictiveness  i don t think that has any place in politics  unlike the prime minister and alastair campbell.   tory peer lord tebbit said he agreed with dr fox s view  and said the case should be looked at on its merits.  after all  he is far from being the worst perjurer in the world   he added. meanwhile  senior conservative mp sir teddy taylor warned that moves bring lord archer back into the fold could be controversial. he said:  i suppose  on a sunday in particular  we should always make provision for forgiving sinners. but there is no doubt it would be controversial.  lord archer  who was not available for comment  remains a popular figure among constituency tory parties and is a successful fundraiser. he has not been seen in the house of lords since his release from prison in july 2003  although there is nothing in the rules to prevent him from attending.


gangsters dominate gaming chart video games on consoles and computers proved more popular than ever in 2004.  gamers spent more than £1.34bn in 2004  almost 7% more than they did in 2003 according to figures released by the uk gaming industry s trade body. sales records were smashed by the top title of the year gta: san andreas - in which players got the job of turning central character cj into a crime boss. the game sold more than 1 million copies in the first nine days that it was on sale. this feat made it the fastest selling video game of all time in the uk. although only released in november the sprawling story of guns  gangsters game beat off strong competition and by year end had sold more than 1.75 million copies. there were also records set for the number of games that achieved double-platinum status by selling more than 600 000 copies. five titles  including sony eyetoy play and ea s need for speed: underground 2  managed this feat according to figures compiled by chart-track for the entertainment and leisure software publishers association (elspa). electronic arts  the world s biggest games publisher  had 9 games in the top 20.  2004 was a  stellar year  said roger bennett  director general of elspa.  in a year with no new generation consoles being released  the market continued to be buoyant as the industry matured and the increasingly diverse range of games reached new audiences and broadened its player base - across ages and gender   he said. part of the success of games in 2004 could be due to the fact that so many of them are sequels. 16 out of the top 20 titles were all follow-ups to established franchises or direct sequels to previously popular games. halo  the sims  driver  need for speed  fifa football  burnout were just a few that proved as popular as the original titles. despite this fondness for older games  doom 3 did not make it to the top 20. movie tie-ins also proved their worth in 2004. games linked to shrek  the incredibles  spider-man  harry potter and lord of the rings were all in the top 20. elspa noted that sales of xbox games rose 37.9% during the year. however  sony s playstation 2 was the top seller with 47% of the £1.34bn spent on games in 2004 used to buy titles for that console. despite winning awards and rave reviews half-life 2 did not appear in the list. this was because it was only released on pc and  compared to console titles  sold in relatively small numbers. also the novel distribution system adopted by developer valve meant that many players downloaded the title rather than travel to the shops to buy a copy. valve has yet to release figures which show how many copies of the game were sold in this way.


news corp eyes video games market news corp  the media company controlled by australian billionaire rupert murdoch  is eyeing a move into the video games market.  according to the financial times  chief operating officer peter chernin said that news corp is  kicking the tyres of pretty much all video games companies . santa monica-based activison is said to be one firm on its takeover list. video games are  big business   the paper quoted mr chernin as saying. we  would like to get into it .  the success of products such as sony s playstation  microsoft s x-box and nintendo s game cube have boosted demand for video games. the days of arcade classics such as space invaders  pac-man and donkey kong are long gone. today  games often have budgets big enough for feature films and look to give gamers as real an experience as possible. and with their price tags reflecting the heavy investment by development companies  video games are proving almost as profitable as they are fun.  mr chernin  however  told the ft that news corp was finding it difficult to identify a suitable target.  we are struggling with the gap between companies like electronic arts (ea)  which comes with a high price tag  and the next tier of companies   he explained during a conference in phoenix  arizona.  these may be too focused on one or two product lines.  activision has a stock market capitalisation of about $2.95bn (£1.57bn)  compared to ea s $17.8bn. some of the games industry s main players have recently been looking to consolidate their position by making acquisitions. france s ubisoft  one of europe s biggest video game publishers  has been trying to remain independent since electronic arts announced plans to buy 19.9% of the firm. analysts have said that industry mergers are likely in the future.


kirwan demands italy consistency italy coach john kirwan has challenged his side to match the performance they produced in pushing ireland close when they meet wales on saturday.  despite losing 28-17 in sunday s six nations encounter  the italians confirmed their continuing improvement.  our goal is to match every side we face and against ireland we showed we could do that   said kirwan.  but the most important thing is that we build on that performance when we play wales on saturday.  italy s half-backs had a mixed afternoon  with recalled scrum-half alessandro troncon impressing but fly-half luciano orquera having an off-day with the boot. kirwan said:  i was very happy with troncon. he had an incredible game - he was very good in attack and defence.  orquera s kicking was off but he showed great courage in defence.  he also followed the game plan. we have to give him confidence because he has the capability to do well.


blair  pressing us on climate  tony blair is pressing the us to cut greenhouse gases despite its unwillingness to sign the kyoto protocol  downing street has indicated.  officials have confirmed climate change was discussed when influential senator john mccain recently visited mr blair. climate change was an issue the prime minister  wanted to progress  during the uk s presidency of the g8 and eu in 2005  said a spokesman. but he played down reports mr blair was considering a new us-friendly treaty.  according to the times  the uk leader wants to end us isolation with a  kyoto-lite  agreement on the scale and nature of the threat from climate change. he is said to have discussed the idea with mr mccain during his time at number 10. the prime minister is said to believe the united states  refusal to sign the kyoto protocol on emissions is undermining other countries  resolve to cut carbon dioxide production. so far the us has refused to sign up to the kyoto treaty - which aims to cut emissions - branding it politically motivated and not based on science. president bush s advisers have repeatedly denied global warming is taking place.  europe  which disputes the claim  has also signalled it wants to press ahead with talks about longer term climate change action in a way which involves both the united states and developing countries. mr blair s reported treaty would also establish an international programme to develop technology needed for renewable energy and the reduction of carbon emissions  says the times. but there is still apparently  little prospect  of america agreeing to cut emissions  which could further provoke environmental campaigners already angry at the lack of progress. mr blair was left blushing on wednesday when it emerged his manifesto target of a 20% cut to the 1990 greenhouse gas level by 2010 was set to be missed.


usher leads soul train shortlist chart-topping r&b star usher is leading the field at this year s soul train awards  with five nominations.  the singer  whose album confessions has sold close to eight million copies in the us alone  is already in the running for eight grammy awards. newcomer ciara - who recently beat elvis presley to the uk number one spot - has four nominations  while alicia keys has three. the soul train awards ceremony will take place in hollywood on 28 february.  usher has already swept the board at the american music awards with four titles  including two best album awards. his soul train nominations include best male r&b-soul album and best male r&b-soul single for confessions part ii. usher s work with rappers ludacris & lil jon won him nominations for best r&b-soul or rap music video and best r&b-soul or rap dance cut for the song yeah!  while his duet with keys  my boo  earned the pair a nod for best r&b-soul single. keys  album the diary of alicia keys was also up for best r&b-soul album by a female. her song if i ain t got you received a best single nomination in the female r&b-soul category. newcomer ciara s four nominations include best female r&b-soul album and best r&b-soul or rap by a new artist. beyonce  prince  destiny s child  jill scott and new edition all received two nominations each. the soul train music awards  which started 18 years ago  celebrates artists in r&b  hip-hop  rap and gospel music.


campbell to extend sprint career darren campbell has set his sights on running quicker than ever after deciding not to retire from sprinting.  campbell  who won olympic 4x100m relay gold  had been unsure about his future. but he told five live s sportsweek:  i had to get back into training before i could decide because if i didn t have the same hunger i d have to walk away.  i ve started back and i m thoroughly enjoying it. i m looking forward to it. i ve got to run under 10 seconds (for 100m) and under 20 seconds (for 200m).  campbell was part of the british quartet who shocked the americans to win relay gold in athens in august.  the newport-based athlete and team-mates jason gardener  marlon devonish and mark lewis-francis were rewarded with mbes in the new year honours list. campbell s relay triumph made up for his disappointing displays in the individual 100m and 200m events in athens  when he failed to reach the finals. the 31-year-old  who won olympic 200m silver in sydney in 2000  said during the games that a hamstring injury had stopped him from running at his best.  he was criticised at the time by former olympic champion michael johnson  who cast doubt on campbell s injury claims.  to go to athens and finally get the gold i ve been trying to get for 24 years was a big relief   said campbell.  it was a chance for me to prove that if i d been fit i would have been challenging for the (individual) medals.  every season i go and challenge for the medals so why would last season have been any different   it s just unfortunate that i picked up that injury just before the olympics.  campbell set his 100m personal best of 10.04secs when he won the european title in budapest in 1998. and he ran 20.13secs in the quarter-finals of the 200m in sydney on the way to olympic silver.


radcliffe yet to answer gb call paula radcliffe has been granted extra time to decide whether to compete in the world cross-country championships.  the 31-year-old is concerned the event  which starts on 19 march in france  could upset her preparations for the london marathon on 17 april.  there is no question that paula would be a huge asset to the gb team   said zara hyde peters of uk athletics.  but she is working out whether she can accommodate the worlds without too much compromise in her marathon training.  radcliffe must make a decision by tuesday - the deadline for team nominations. british team member hayley yelling said the team would understand if radcliffe opted out of the event.  it would be fantastic to have paula in the team   said the european cross-country champion.  but you have to remember that athletics is basically an individual sport and anything achieved for the team is a bonus.  she is not messing us around. we all understand the problem.  radcliffe was world cross-country champion in 2001 and 2002 but missed last year s event because of injury. in her absence  the gb team won bronze in brussels.


spain coach faces racism inquiry spain s football federation has initiated disciplinary action against national coach luis aragones over racist comments about thierry henry.  if found guilty aragones could lose his job or face a fine of about £22 000. the federation had initially declined to take action against aragones after comments he made during a national team training session in october. but its president angel maria villar changed his mind after a request by spain s anti-violence commission. aragones insisted the comments  made to henry s arsenal club-mate jose antonio reyes  were meant to motivate the player  and were not intended to be offensive.   i never intended to offend anyone  and for that reason i have a very easy conscience   he said at the time.  i m obliged to motivate my players to get the best results.  as part of that job  i use colloquial language  with which we can all understand each other within the framework of the football world.   england s players made a point of wearing anti-racism t-shirts when training before their friendly against spain in madrid last month.  but the storm increased following racist chanting by spanish fans at england s black players during the game  which spain won 1-0. spain s minister of sport jaime lissavetzky was quick to give his backing to the federation s decision.  everyone who has a public function has to consider their declarations  and make sure they do not give a negative image   he said.  we are going to have zero tolerance in questions of racism.


pandas benefit from wireless net the world s dwindling panda population is getting a helping hand from a wireless internet network.  the wolong nature reserve in the sichuan province of southwest china is home to 20% of the remaining 1 500 giant pandas in the world. a broadband and wireless network installed on the reserve has allowed staff to chronicle the pandas  daily activities. the data and images can be shared with colleagues around the world. the reserve conducts vital research on both panda breeding and bamboo ecology.  using the network  vets have been able to observe how infant pandas feed and suggest changes to improve the tiny cubs  chances of survival.   digital technology has transformed the way we communicate and share information inside wolong and with the rest of the world   said zhang hemin  director of the wolong nature reserve.  our researchers now have state-of-the-art digital technology to help foster the panda population and manage our precious surroundings.  the network has been developed by intel  working closely with the staff at wolong. it includes a 802.11b wireless network and a video monitoring system using five cameras to observe pandas around the clock.  before the new infrastructure arrived at the panda park  staff walked or drove to deliver floppy disks across the reserve. infant panda health was recorded on paper notebooks and research teams in the field had little access to the data. to foster cultural links across the globe  a children s learning lab has been incorporated in the network  in collaboration with globio (federation for global biodiversity education for children)  an international non-profit organisation. it will enable children at local primary schools to hook up with their peers in portland  oregon in the us.  digital technology brings this story to life by enabling a global dialogue to help bridge cultures around the world   said globio founder gerry ellis.


warning over us pensions deficit taxpayers may have to bail out the us agency that protects workers  pension funds  leading economists have warned.  with the pension benefit guaranty corporation (pbgc) some £23bn (£12m) in deficit  the financial economists roundtable (fer) wants congress to act. instead of taxpayers having to pick up the bill  the fer wants congressmen to change the pbgc s funding rules. the fer says firms should not have been allowed to reduce the insurance premiums they pay into the pbgc fund. the fer blames this on a 2004 law  in a statement signed by several members  who include nobel economics laureate william sharpe. it said it was  dismayed  at the situation and wants congress to overturn the legislation.  cash-strapped us companies  including those in the airline  car-making and steel industries  had argued in favour of the 2004 rule change  claiming that funding the insurance premiums adequately would force them to have to cut jobs.  with a little firmer hand on the pensions issues in the us  i think that congress could avoid having to turn to the taxpayer and instead turn the obligations back onto the companies that deserve to pay them   said professor dennis logue  dean of price college of business at the university of oklahoma. the pbgc was founded in 1974 to protect workers  retirement rights. its most recent action came last week when it took control of the pilots  pension scheme at united airlines. with united battling bankruptcy  the carrier had wanted to use the money set aside for pensions to finance running costs. the company has an estimated $2.9bn hole in its pilots  pension scheme  which the pbgc will now guarantee.


voters  reject eu by two to one  british voters would reject the european constitution by two to one  according to a poll posing the question the government will put to the country.  the daily telegraph poll suggests that 45% of people would vote against the constitution and 24% in favour. however the yougov poll  which questioned 1 943 british adults online  found 25% did not know how they would vote if forced to decide tomorrow. only 51% of those polled had made up their minds about the constitution. another 7% said they would not vote at all. the poll is believed to be the first to pose the question which the government has chosen for the upcoming referendum  expected in 2006. the constitution will be incorporated into uk law if there is a yes vote.  ballot papers in the poll will ask:  should the united kingdom approve the treaty establishing a constitution for the european union   the government unveiled the question which will be asked earlier in the week.  the treaty was signed by all 25 current eu members in rome last october and is due to come into force in november 2006  providing it is ratified by all member states - several of which will hold a referendum. critics say the constitution is a further step towards a federal europe  but advocates say it ensures effective operation of the enlarged 25-state eu.  if we reject this treaty  britain will be isolated and weak in europe   said foreign secretary jack straw  after the question was unveiled. mr straw  along with the rest of the cabinet  will back a  yes  vote. meanwhile  conservative shadow foreign secretary michael ancram said the referendum question  seems straightforward . but he accused the government of trying to confuse the issue by putting the eu referendum question in the same bill as the ratification of the constitution  when they should be treated as  two separate issues .


franz ferdinand s art school lesson scottish rock band franz ferdinand  who shot to prominence in 2004  have won two brit awards.  with their self-titled debut  franz ferdinand have achieved what most rock bands crave - high credibility and critical acclaim while also selling stacks of cds. they have risen to the head of the uk s art rock ranks with an album of songs that are catchy  creative and original enough to sound fresh. with a cool  spiky  fun sound previously associated with bands like talking heads  they hit upon a style that had been out of fashion for a while and so was ripe for another airing. their first uk single hit number three last january  followed by two more top 20 hits  while the album has sold more than 600 000 copies in 11 months on release. in september it was named album of the year winning the prestigious mercury music prize.  on the festivals circuit  they have been one of the main attractions for huge crowds at glastonbury  t in the park and reading/leeds. they have also found success in japan  europe and the us. by september the album had sold 500 000 in the states and total sales were pushing two million worldwide. they have been nominated for three grammy awards in the us as well as the us music industry s shortlist award  but lost the shortlist prize to us band tv on the radio. nevertheless franz ferdinand were the only uk band to win an mtv video music award this year  taking the breakthrough video crown for take me out.  the four-piece met two years ago when drummer paul thomson was working at the glasgow art school where bassist bob hardy was studying. singer alex kapranos was studying english at university but had friends at art school  and the line-up was completed when guitarist nick mccarthy moved from munich  germany  to the city. at the turn of the year  kapranos told bbc news online the band were fed up with serious bands in  that post-rock thing that seemed to be doing its damndest to avoid any bloody tune .   we want people to go away from the gigs humming the tunes that we were singing. but at the same time bringing an edge to it.  franz ferdinand had a question they asked themselves every time they wrote a song  kapranos said.  where s the fun in that   they pondered at every stage  making enjoyment the top priority and ensuring they did not disappear up their own muso posteriors. the band started out with a diy ethic that saw them take over a disused art-deco warehouse in glasgow and rename it the chateau. the venue soon became legendary - so well-known that the police spent a month trying to find it  eventually raiding it and arresting kapranos. but the charges of running an illegal bar and contravening health and safety  fire hazard and noise abatement laws were dropped.  the band took over an abandoned victorian courtroom and jail instead  and named that the chateau. the buzz about the band soon spread around the music industry and 40 record labels turned up to one gig in glasgow - which the band thought was  totally ridiculous .  i m really glad it was almost comical because we weren t overwhelmed by the seriousness of it   kapranos said. they signed with independent label domino  home of smog  sebadoh and four tet  in june 2003.


watchdog probes vivendi bond sale french stock market regulator amf has filed complaints against media giant vivendi universal  its boss and another top executive.  it believes the prospectus for a bond issue was unclear and that executives may have had privileged information. amf has begun proceedings against vivendi  its chief executive jean-rene fourtou and chief operating officer jean-bernard levy. vivendi advisor deutsche bank was also the subject of a complaint filing. deutsche bank  which was responsible for selling the convertible bonds to investors  could face penalties if the complaint is upheld.  vivendi has said it believes there is  no legal basis  for the complaints. the watchdog is said to believe the executive pair were party to  privileged information  surrounding the issue of the bonds. both men bought some of the bonds  the associated press news agency reported. amf is investigating claims that the duo were aware of an interest in vivendi s us assets from investor marvin davis  at the time of the bond sale. vivendi  however  has said that the information was public knowledge as mr davis  offer for the us assets had already been rejected by vivendi s board. amf is also looking into whether the executives knew that vivendi was considering exercising its right to buy british telecom s shares in cegetel. vivendi has rejected the charge  saying the decision to buy the cegetel shares was  no more than a possibility  of which the public was perfectly aware  at the time of the bond issue. back in december  vivendi and its former chief executive jean-marie messier were each fined 1m euros ($1.3m; £690 000) by amf. the fines came after a 15-month probe into allegations that the media giant misled investors after a costly acquisition programme went wrong.


greek pair set for hearing kostas kenteris and katerina thanou will fight the provisional two-year bans imposed on them by the iaaf at an independent tribunal this weekend.  athletics  ruling body took action against the pair for failing to take drugs tests before the athens olympics. an independent tribunal of the greek track and field federation will meet to decide whether to ratify the sanction. the sprint duo face charges of failing to give information on their location and refusing to submit to a drugs test. kenteris  lawyer gregory ioannidis told bbc sport:  we refute both charges as unsubstantiated and illogical.  there have been certain breaches in the correct application of the rules on behalf of the sporting authorities and their officials  and these procedural breaches have also violated my client s rights.  there is also evidence that proves the fact that my client has been persecuted.  ioannidis  who is a law lecturer at the university of buckingham  added:  one of the important rights and foundations of law and justice - that the accused should be presumed innocent unless proved otherwise - has been tarnished.  the panel will also decide on the two-year ban imposed on the athletes  controversial coach christos tzekos by the iaaf. kenteris  the 2000 olympic 200m champion  and thanou  the women s 100m silver medallist from the same games in sydney  quit the olympics on 18 august after failing to give samples on the eve of the opening ceremony.  testers could not find them at the olympic village and the duo were later admitted to hospital after claiming to have been involved in a motorcycle accident. they also missed tests in tel aviv  chicago and athens before the games. in imposing two-year suspensions on the duo on 22 december  the iaaf described their explanations for missing the tests as  unacceptable . whatever the findings of the independent tribunal  all parties will have the right to appeal to the court of arbitration for sport. the tribunal hearing will take place at the hellenic olympic committee building. it will start at 1200 gmt on saturday and is expected to finish early next week. the tribunal panel will consist of five members - president konstantinos panagopoulos and panagiotis dimakos  haralabos hrisanthakis  stilianos perakis and ioannis karmis. kenteris and thanou also face criminal charges in greece for allegedly faking the motorcycle accident. eight criminal charges have been laid against the sprinters as well as tzekos  an eyewitness to the accident and hospital officials. but there has been speculation that the charges could be dropped.


durex maker ssl awaits firm bid uk condom maker ssl international has refused to comment on reports it may be subject to a takeover early in 2005.  a financial times report said business intelligence firm gpw was understood to be starting due diligence work on ssl international  for a corporate client. an spokesman for ssl  which makes the famous durex brand of condom  would not to comment on  market speculation . however the news sent shares in ssl  which also makes scholl footwear  up more than 6%  or 16.75 pence to 293.5p.  the ft said most the high-profile firm that might woo ssl was anglo-dutch household products group reckitt benckiser. eighteen months ago reckitt benckiser was at the centre of a rumoured takeover bid for ssl - but that came to nothing. other firms that have been seen as would-be suitors include kimberly-clark  johnson & johnson  and private equity investors. analysts have seen ssl as a takeover target for years. it sold off its surgical gloves and antiseptics businesses for £173m to a management team in may. ssl was formed by a three-way merger between seton healthcare  footwear specialists scholl and condom-maker london international group. its other brands include syndol analgesic  meltus cough medicine  sauber compression hosiery and deodorant products  and mister baby.


schools to take part in mock poll record numbers of schools across the uk are to take part in a mock general election backed by the government.  some 600 schools have already signed up for the y vote mock elections 2005 run by the hansard society and aimed at boosting interest in politics. pupils in the schools taking part will learn the skills of speech writers  canvassers and political candidates. schools minister stephen twigg said engaging young people s interest was  essential  to the future of democracy.  he added: said  young people who are engaged and motivated by the political process are essential to the future health of our democracy.  the mock elections initiative provides an opportunity for pupils to develop their own understanding of how the democratic process works and why it matters.  by experiencing the election process first hand - from running a campaign to the declaration of the final result - we hope that young people will develop the enthusiasm to take part in the future.  the hansard society  the electoral commission and the department for education and skills are running the programme. pupils will stand as party candidates  speech writers and canvassers. michael raftery  project manager at the hansard society  said:  the y vote mock elections for schools mirror the excitement and buzz of a real election  raising awareness of citizenship  and the benefits of active democracy.  the mock votes will take place around 5 may  widely expected to be the date of the general election. information packs  including ballot papers and manifesto guides  with elections happening in early may were sent out to the 3 000 schools invited to take part.


text messages aid disaster recovery text messaging technology was a valuable communication tool in the aftermath of the tsunami disaster in asia.  the messages can get through even when the cell phone signal is too weak to sustain a spoken conversation. now some are studying how the technology behind sms could be better used during an emergency. sanjaya senanayake works for sri lankan television. the blogging world  though  might know him better by his online name  morquendi. he was one of the first on the scene after the tsunami destroyed much of the sri lankan coast. cell phone signals were weak. land lines were unreliable. so mr senanayake started sending out text messages. the messages were not just the latest news they were also an on-the-ground assessment of  who needs what and where . blogging friends in india took mr senanayake s text messages and posted them on a weblog called dogs without borders. thousands around the world followed the story that unfolded in the text messages that he sent.  and that s when mr senanayake started to wonder if sms might be put to more practical use.  sms networks can handle so much more traffic than the standard mobile phone call or the land line call   he says.   in every rural community  there s at least one person who has access to a mobile phone  or has a mobile phone  and can receive messages.  half a world away  in the caribbean nation of trinidad and tobago  taran rampersad read morquendi s messages. mr rampersad  who used to work in the military  knew how important on the ground communication can be in times of disaster. he wondered if there might be a way to automatically centralise text messages  and then redistribute them to agencies and people who might be able to help. mr rampersad said:  imagine if an aid worker in the field spotted a need for water purification tablets  and had a central place to send a text message to that effect.  he can message the server  so the server can send out an e-mail message and human or machine moderators can e-mail aid agencies and get it out in the field.  he added:  or  send it at the same time to other people who are using sms in the region  and they might have an excess of it  and be able to shift supplies to the right places.   mr rampersad and others had actually been thinking about such a system since hurricane ivan ravaged the caribbean and the southern united states last september. last week  he sent out e-mail messages asking for help in creating such a system for asia.  in only 72 hours  he found dan lane  a text message guru living in britain. the pair  along with a group of dedicated techies  are creating what they call the alert retrieval cache. the idea is to use open-source software - software can be used by anyone without commercial restraint - and a far-flung network of talent to create a system that links those in need with those who can help.  this is a classic smart mobs situation where you have people self-organizing into a larger enterprise to do things that benefit other people   says paul saffo  a director at the california-based institute for the future.  you may be halfway around the world from someone  but in cyberspace you re just one click or one e-mail away   he said   that s put a whole new dimension on disaster relief and recovery  where often people halfway around the world can be more effective in making something happen precisely because they re not right on top of the tragedy.  it is still very early days for the project  though. in an e-mail  dan lane calls it  an early proof of concept.  right now  the alert retrieval cache can only take a text message and automatically upload it to a web-page  or distribute it to an e-mail list. in the near future  the group says it hopes to take in messages from people in affected areas  and use human moderators to take actions based on the content of those messages. but there s still another challenge. you have to get people to know that the system is there for them to use.  it s amazing how difficult it is to find someone to pass it along to  and say  look this is what we re trying to do and everything like that   says mr rampersad.  so the big problem right now is the same problem we re trying to solve - human communication.  he is optimistic  however. he thinks that the alert retrieval cache is an idea whose time has come and he hopes governments  too  will sit up and take notice. and he stands by his motto  courtesy of michelangelo: criticise by creating.  clark boyd is technology correspondent for the world  a bbc world service and wgbh-boston co-production.


commodore finds new lease of life the once-famous commodore computer brand could be resurrected after being bought by a us-based digital music distributor.  new owner yeahronimo media ventures has not ruled out the possibility of a new breed of commodore computers. it also plans to develop a  worldwide entertainment concept  with the brand  although details are not yet known. the groundbreaking commodore 64 computer elicits fond memories for those who owned one back in the 1980s.  in the chronology of home computing  commodore was one of the pioneers.  the commodore 64  launched in 1982  was one of the first affordable home pcs. it was followed a few years later by the amiga. the commodore 64 sold more than any other single computer system  even to this day. the brand languished somewhat in the 1990s. commodore international filed for bankruptcy in 1994 and was sold to dutch firm tulip computers. in the late 1980s the firm was a great rival to atari  which produced its own range of home computers and is now a brand of video games  formerly known as infogrames.  tulip computers sold several products under the commodore name  including portable usb storage devices and digital music players. it had planned to relaunch the brand  following an upsurge of nostalgia for 1980s-era games. commodore 64 enthusiasts have written emulators for windows pc  apple mac and even pdas so that the original commodore games can be still run. the sale of commodore is expected to be complete in three weeks in a deal worth over £17m.