Biz Watch

Black Vs. Board
Who has the right to sell Conrad Black's media empire: Lord Black, the majority shareholder, who is under fire for taking allegedly improper commissions, or the board of Hollinger International, the U.S. public firm that actually owns the newspapers, including Britain 's Daily Telegraph and the Chicago Sun-Times? That's the key question following Black's surprise deal last week to sell his holdings to the reclusive Barclay brothers for a bargain $466 million.

Infuriated, Hollinger's board has told its investment bank, Lazard, to find other buyers. "The board believes it has the authority to sell assets without the authority of the controlling shareholder," says a source

INDICATORS Number Crunching Richard Causey, former chief accountant at Enron, denied multiple charges of securities fraud after surrendering to U.S. authorities. Prosecutors allege Causey was "a principal architect" in manipulating the failed energy firm's financial results. Out Of The Picture New York-based Eastman Kodak announced plans to ax up to 15,000 jobs — more than one-fifth of its global work force — as part of its painful shift from traditional film to digital photography. An End To Discount Viagra? Microsoft boss Bill Gates vowed to rid the world of spam within two years — by hitting the senders' pocketbook. Microsoft is developing a method of charging spammers for every unsolicited message rejected as junk mail.

close to the board. Hollinger fired Black as chairman on Jan. 17. Before relations turned hostile, Black publicly committed not to strike any private deals while the firm considered its options, though he says the agreement is no longer valid. The looming battle could be good for Hollinger's long-suffering shareholders — unless potential bidders are scared off by looming lawsuits.

Will Executive Bonuses Be Next?
Marking a victory for anticorruption campaigners, 18 of the world's top construction and engineering firms have agreed to stop paying bribes to win contracts. At the Davos World Economic Forum, the firms — including Hochtief of Germany, Swiss-based ABB and Skanska of Sweden — unveiled a set of principles aimed at eliminating bribery, contending that businesses themselves are hurt by rampant payoffs because they distort competition. "There is significant corruption in the industry," Alan Boeckmann, chief executive of U.S. construction giant Fluor, tells TIME. Some big players, including Bechtel and Halliburton — which last week fired two employees for allegedly taking $6 million in kickbacks from a Kuwaiti subcontractor — declined to participate, but with an accord now in place there is growing pressure to sign up. Will the pledge be enforced? We'll see. "We all know this is just a first step," Boeckmann acknowledges.

Best-Laid Plans
Amid declining productivity and rising unemployment, the E.U. Commission warned member states that plans to become the most competitive knowledge-based economy in the world by 2010 were on course to fail.

The Bottom Line
	This is the only country where people who are successfully creating value have to go to court.
		JOSEF ACKERMANN, Deutsche Bank CEO, on Day 1 of his trial for alleged breach of trust related to Vodafone's 2000 takeover of Mannesmann