EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Compiled by Mike Mason
TOP STORIES
Santa Ana-based PacifiCare Health Systems Inc. lost a contract covering 187,000 CalPERS members after the pension fund dropped it and Woodland Hills-based Health Net Inc.; meanwhile, PacifiCare reworked its debt and is set to repay $250 million of the $775 million owed in January and pay the rest two years later; PacifiCare also will pay $87.3 million to settle charges it didn’t give the federal government “most favorable” premiums it gave commercial customers; PacifiCare had set aside $100 million to cover the suit County supervisors voted 3-2 to support Irvine’s plan to annex the former El Toro Marine base and develop the property as a park with homes and industrial space; Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn and other officials asked the Federal Aviation Administration to intervene in support of an El Toro airport The Food and Drug Administration approved Irvine-based Allergan Inc.’s Botox to reduce wrinkles, formalizing the product’s already widespread cosmetic use.
ENERGY
Fluor Corp.’s Duke/Fluor Daniel joint venture won an engineering and construction contract from Duke Energy North America for the 1,240-megawatt Hanging Rock Energy Facility in Lawrence County, Ohio.
TECHNOLOGY
Costa Mesa-based Emulex Corp.’s sales for the March quarter jumped 15% to $69.6 million vs. a year ago while profits rose 25% to $13.7 million before acquisition charges (see story, page 1) Newport Beach chipmaker Conexant Systems Inc. saw sales rise 5% to $241 million in the March quarter from the preceding one, with its operating loss narrowing 18% to $88.3 million Irvine-based Broadcom Corp.’s sales in the March quarter grew 5.3% sequentially to $238.8 million, with its net loss narrowing 24% to $21.9 million vs. the December quarter Santa Ana-based Ingram Micro Inc. opened a division in Germany selling video games and consoles Microsoft Corp. said it expects to ship 3.5 million to 4 million Xbox consoles by the end of June, a big cut from previous projections (see Technology column, page 54) Newport Beach-based The Collective Inc. sold rights to its “Wrath” game to LucasArts Entertainment Co. for undisclosed terms Irvine-based Interplay Entertainment Corp.’s auditor expressed doubt about the game maker’s ability to continue; meanwhile, Interplay, which is in violation of credit agreements, said it’s close to a deal to sell its Shiny Entertainment, a move that would include the game maker’s forthcoming title based on “The Matrix” SSP Solutions Inc., Irvine, said it raised $5 million, including a $1 million loan from its co-chief executives; SSP’s auditors earlier expressed doubts about its ability to continue Aliso Viejo-based Myrient Inc. cut 150 salespeople from its broadband Internet division in the quarter ended Feb. 28; Myrient also warned in a federal filing it could run out of money by August Cypress-based Universal Electronics Inc. licensed its remote control code database to Microsoft and signed a deal to supply remotes to Cox Communications Inc.
HEALTHCARE
Newport beach-based Nationwide Health Properties Inc. bought 49 assisted-living centers for $109 million from La Quinta Corp. Newport Beach-based The TriZetto Group Inc. bought software and other healthcare assets from Colorado Springs, Colo.-based ChannelPoint Inc. for undisclosed terms.
GOVERNMENT
Irvine-based Fidelity National Financial Inc.’s title arm agreed to pay a $16,000 fine after admitting it broke a state campaign law by reimbursing employees for contributions to mayoral candidate Bob Zemel and then-Assemblywoman Marilyn Brewer (R-Newport Beach) in 1998 Irvine property owners approved a parcel tax that doubles funding for lighting, landscaping and park upkeep; the maximum an owner can be charged at the next assessment jumps to $79, up from $41 A California appeals court revived a lawsuit related to the University of California, Irvine fertility scandal, ordering the judge who dismissed the suit to hear all the facts before reconsidering it; the plaintiffs sued Cornell University, which tested embryos for UCI’s Center for Reproductive Health, for allegedly researching embryos without their consent California State University, Fullerton’s former director of human resources settled his retaliation lawsuit against the university for $457,000 The $9.8 million Laguna Niguel/Mission Viejo Metrolink station opened.
REAL ESTATE
Newport Beach-based Buchanan Street Partners and San Francisco’s Rawson, Blum & Leon paid $24.2 million to Long Beach-based Newman Properties for the Mall of Orange (see related story, page 4).
WHAT ELSE IS NEWS
Boeing Co. said first-quarter net profit at its Seal Beach-based Space and Communica-tions division fell 50% to $42 million on sales of $2.3 billion, up 4%; the company said it was taking “significant” action to rework the division and plans to cut 2,000 jobs at its El Segundo-based satellite unit Wolfgang Reitzle, the London-based head of Ford Motor Co.’s Premier Automotive Group, Irvine, is expected to leave that post to become chief executive of a German industrial-gas company Quiksilver Inc. of Huntington Beach has opened two stores at The Grove shopping center in Los Angeles Restaurateur Pascal Olhats opened his fifth restaurant, Pascal Plein Air Caf & #233;, at the Orange County Museum of Art in Newport Beach Walt Disney Co. said its Splash Mountain ride will reopen in June after closing in March for renovations Secaucus, N.J.-based The Children’s Place Retail Stores Inc. said it plans to open stores at The Shops at Mission Viejo, Laguna Hills Mall, Westminster Mall and Brea Mall in the next year or so; the retailer already has stores at MainPlace in Santa Ana and Fashion Island Vans Inc., Santa Fe Springs, plans to buy Hermosa Beach-based Mosa Sports Inc. for $10 million to $15 million.
