Trump Admin Seeks to Curtail Green Cards for Immigrants on Public Aid
The Trump administration is proposing rules that could deny green cards to immigrants if they use Medicaid, food stamps, housing vouchers and other forms of public assistance.
Federal law already requires those seeking green cards to prove they will not be a burden — or “public charge” — but the new rules detail a broad range of programs that could disqualify them.
The Department of Homeland Security said Saturday that current and past receipt of certain public benefits above thresholds will be considered “a heavily weighed negative factor” in granting green cards as well as temporary visas.
The 447-page proposal published on the department’s website will appear in the Federal Register “in the coming weeks,” triggering a 60-day public comment period before it takes effect.
Sky Shares Rally After Comcast Wins Bidding War
Shares in Sky plc are up 8.8 percent after Comcast won a bidding war for the British pay TV giant in a weekend auction that pushed the value of the company to almost 30 billion pounds ($39 billion).
The rare auction was organized by Britain’s Takeover Panel after months of offers and counteroffers from Comcast and 21st Century Fox as the U.S. media companies sought a foothold in Europe.
After three rounds of secret bidding, Comcast offered 17.28 pounds a share for Sky, beating Fox’s bid of 15.67 pounds. Sky’s board recommended accepting the offer.
Philadelphia-based Comcast, which missed out on its bid to buy Fox, said it hoped to complete the takeover by the end of October. Comcast is one of the largest cable television providers in the U.S., with around 29 million customers.
SiriusXM Buying Pandora Media in $3.5B Deal
Subscription radio company SiriusXM says it’s buying music streaming service Pandora Media Inc. in a stock deal valued at about $3.5 billion that’ll allow it to expand its service beyond cars and into homes and other mobile areas.
SiriusXM Holdings Inc. has more than 36 million subscribers in North America, while Pandora has more than 70 million monthly active users.
Pandora stockholders will receive 1.44 newly issued SiriusXM shares for each Pandora share they own. Pandora has a “go-shop” period in which it can solicit other offers from third parties.
Both companies’ boards have approved the transaction, which is expected to close in 2019’s first quarter. It still needs approval from Pandora shareholders.
Shares of Pandora, based in Oakland, California, jumped more than 11 percent in Monday premarket trading.
Apple, Salesforce Teaming up on Mobile Apps for Business
Customer relations software company Salesforce says it will join with Apple to create new business apps exclusively for iPhone and iPad.
Salesforce said Monday the partnership will focus on three areas: apps for industry and small business to improve customer relations; enabling businesses and developers to create Salesforce apps for iPhone and iPad; and promoting developer career growth by teaching anyone how to build iOS apps. The “Get Started with iOS Development Trail” app is available now, while the others will roll out later this year and in early 2019.
The companies say that millions of developers would be able to build their own apps through the new Salesforce Mobile SDK for iOS and through Salesforce’s free web-based learning platform Trailhead.
Shares of Salesforce rose 1.5 percent in morning trading.
US Lawmakers Scuttle Plan to Limit Airline Change Fees
Lawmakers have scuttled a plan to prohibit airlines from charging “unreasonable” fees for changing or canceling tickets.
But U.S. House and Senate leaders say they will direct the Federal Aviation Administration to set minimum dimensions for passenger seats as part of a new spending bill. The bill also prohibits airlines from removing passengers against their will from overbooked flights.
Lawmakers were crafting a compromise bill over the weekend in an effort to meet a Sept. 30 deadline.
Airlines opposed efforts to crack down on changes fees, which are as high as $200 per ticket. Last year, U.S. carriers collected nearly $2.9 billion in change fees.
The Senate supported limiting those fees. But Democratic Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts said Saturday the provision was left out after negotiations with House lawmakers.
Weight Watchers Slims Down Name to WW
Weight Watchers is trimming its name to just two letters: WW.
The company says it is renaming itself to focus more on overall wellness and not just dieting. Its app, for example, will offer tips and meditation and give out rewards for tracking meals and exercise.
WW has seen a rise in subscribers, helped by a 2015 investment by Oprah Winfrey. The media mogul has appeared on commercials for the company, promoting her weight loss. WW had 4.5 million subscribers at the end of June, a 28 percent increase from the same period a year before.
The New York-based company says users will see changes to its app starting next week.
NBC’s top entertainment executive, Robert Greenblatt, exits
NBC’s top entertainment executive is calling it quits and is being replaced by two executives who worked for him.
NBC said Monday that Robert Greenblatt is leaving as NBC entertainment chairman after nearly eight years. Greenblatt engineered a comeback at the network behind successes like “This is Us” and “The Voice,” and spearheaded the idea of bringing live musicals to prime-time television.
Greenblatt said it’s time to move on to a new challenge, although he hasn’t said what that might be.
NBC promoted George Cheeks and Paul Telegdy to be co-chairmen. Cheeks has been in charge of NBC Universal’s cable networks and NBC’s late-night lineup, while Telegdy has run the network’s non-scripted programming.
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