Help-desk support free for Internet Explorer 7users

Microsoft issued its latest version of Internet Explorer 7 late Monday and is offering free telephone help-desk support to consumers who take the browser for a spin.

IE7 is still in a test version, but Gary Schare, director of Internet Explorer product management, said "it's pretty darn solid." Little has changed from the beta version that was offered to Web developers last month.

Microsoft also is launching a Web site to aggregate add-ons, such as search toolbars. Schare said IE7 users might not find much need for add-ons because features such as search are already integrated into the browser.

A final version of IE7 is on schedule for release in the second half of this year, Schare said.

Company weighs possible buyout

WatchGuard Technologies may sell itself after the company received a buyout offer from second-largest shareholder Vector Capital.

The Seattle maker of Internet security software, which named Wachovia Securities as financial adviser, is seeking "strategic alternatives," WatchGuard said Monday in a statement. Spokesman Jeff Wenker wouldn't comment beyond the statement.

Last month, WatchGuard said it received an offer for an unspecified amount of cash from Vector, which holds a 9.4 percent stake. In a Feb. 17 letter to WatchGuard, the San Francisco-based venture-capital firm said it believed the company's board was seeking a buyer because of speculation over the hiring of Wachovia.

Saflink

Biometric ID card gains 2 new allies

Saflink announced Monday that two new companies have joined its alliance to provide cards with biometric identification for use in the Transportation Security Administration's Registered Traveler program.

The program is designed to give travelers who pay a fee and submit personal information a special ID card to pass through airport checkpoints faster.

Bellevue-based Saflink said JP Morgan Chase will process applications and bill for the annual fee, and retailer Paradies Shops will offer cardholders promotions.

TSA will begin a pilot program using the new cards in 10 to 20 airports in June.

PeoplePeople

Online retailer faces lawsuit from state

Washington state is suing a Vashon-based company called PeoplePeople that sells cheese, candles and posters online. The state says PeoplePeople failed to deliver purchased items, did not respond to consumer complaints and charged unreasonable fees.

The company does business under about two dozen names and markets on multiple Web sites, including www.discountcandleshop.com, www.cheesepeople.com, www.cheesesupply.com and www.postersupply.com.

The Attorney General's Office has tallied at least 70 complaints about PeoplePeople, which Attorney General Rob McKenna said "hasn't been very people-friendly."

Calls to PeoplePeople on Monday were not returned.

Taco Del Mar

Eatery launches TV, radio campaign

Taco Del Mar is spending more than $1 million on broadcast airtime for a new advertising campaign that will air on TV and radio in seven markets, including Seattle.

The company recently hired a new head of marketing, Paul Curhan, and a new advertising agency, Levy Scheckler.

Production for the TV commercial cost more than $100,000.

Boeing

Connexion signs cruise-ship deal

Boeing's Connexion service, which provides broadband Internet access primarily to airline passengers, has signed its second maritime deal — this time for a cruise ship.

HighSeas Computer Services, based in Franklin, Tenn., is scheduled next week to begin providing the service to a passenger Internet café aboard the luxury cruise ship Insignia, operated by Florida-based Oceania Cruises.

In January, Connexion launched its maritime service with Teekay Shipping, an oil-tanker operator.

Clearwire

Kirkland firm buys East Coast provider

Clearwire, a Kirkland company providing wireless broadband service, said late last week that it acquired Winbeam of Pennsylvania to expand its presence on the East Coast.

Winbeam, which also provides wireless broadband and some dial-up services, was founded in 2000 and licenses the same spectrum as Clearwire.

Winbeam's 2.5 GHz frequency holdings cover portions of Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia.

Computer Associates

2 former executives enter guilty pleas

Sanjay Kumar, the former CEO of Computer Associates, and another former executive pleaded guilty on Monday to obstruction-of-justice and securities-fraud charges in a massive accounting scandal at the business-software company.

Kumar and Stephen Richards, its former head of worldwide sales, had been accused in a 2004 indictment of having engaged in a widespread scheme to falsely inflate the company's quarterly earnings by backdating contracts.

The indictment also charged that executives instructed salespeople to complete deals after the quarter had closed and "cleaned up" contracts by removing time stamps from faxes.

American Express

Income, profit fall in the first quarter

American Express, which specializes in travel services and credit cards, said Monday that its net profit fell in the first quarter, reflecting the spinoff last year of its Ameriprise Financial advisory unit.

Excluding Ameriprise, however, earnings were up sharply on strength in both domestic and foreign card operations.

Net income in the January-March period was $873 million, or 69 cents a share, down from $946 million, or 75 cents a share, a year earlier.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial had projected first-quarter earnings at 69 cents a share on slightly higher income of $6.35 billion.

Income from continuing operations — which excludes results from Ameriprise — totaled $876 million, or 70 cents a share, in the January-March period, up 18 percent from $745 million, or 59 cents a share, a year earlier.

Shares of American Express, a Dow component, fell 47 cents, or 0.9 percent, to $51.78 Monday.

Caterpillar

Machinery maker boosts '06 forecast

Heavy-equipment maker Caterpillar posted a record first-quarter profit Monday and boosted its earnings forecast for the year amid a sales surge sparked by ongoing global demand for its hulking construction and mining machinery.

Caterpillar topped Wall Street's expectations as earnings rose 45 percent to $840 million for the quarter that ended March 31, up from $581 million during the same period in 2005, when the company finished the year with record profit and revenue.

Profit per share was $1.20 for the January-March period. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial had forecast profit of $1.05 per share.

Despite record first-quarter earnings, Caterpillar shares dipped 49 cents to $77.38 Monday.

Compiled from Seattle Times staff, The Associated Press and Bloomberg News