Disney seeking to restore glory with Pixar buyout
New York: Walt Disney is said to be in talks to acquire Pixar, the studio behind animation hits such as Finding Nemo, Toy Story and The Incredibles. The report in the Wall Street Journal would appear to be in consonance with new Disney chief executive Robert Iger's moves to restore this pioneering studio to its preeminent status.

If the deal should materialize, it would make Steve Jobs, Pixar's chairman and the founder of Apple Computers, Disney's biggest individual shareholder.

Under a seven-film deal, Disney co-funded and distributed Pixar's computer animation movies that, as per market estimates, may have generated US$1bn in profits for Disney. If so, then they would account for more than half the Disney film studio earnings over the same period.

The profitable relationship fell out with Jobs and then Disney chief executive Eisner having a public spat. In June 1994, Pixar said it would open talks with other studios. Pixar's next film, Cars, is the last under the Disney deal.

Pixar's first film, Toy Story, released in 1995, was the first full-length computer animated feature and went on to became the highest grossing film of the year. Pixar's other hits have included Toy Story 2, A Bug's Life and Monsters Inc.

Meanwhile, Disney's traditional hand-drawn animation business went into an apparently terminal decline, with as string of flops including Treasure Planet, Atlantis, Brother Bear and Home on the Range.
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Traditional photography takes another blow as Konica Minolta opts out
Tokyo: Traditional film photography took another body blow yesterday when Konica Minolta said it would stop making cameras and photographic film in an attempt to stem expected losses this financial year.

The Japanese company, the world's third-biggest maker of photographic film after Eastman Kodak and Fuji Photo Film, will sell its single-lens reflex (SLR) camera business to Sony as part of an agreement reached last year.

To stem its losses the company said that it will focus on the profitable side of its business, such as printers, photocopiers and parts for liquid crystal displays. Konica Minolta has suffered a dip in its share of the US$13bn global digital camera market.

Konica was established in 1873 and started making cameras in 1903, while Minolta entered the industry in 1928. The two firms merged in 2003 but have failed to capitalise on the digital camera boom even as demand for analogue films began to fade.
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Crude oil trading above US$67 as positions harden on Iran
New York: Riding on concerns that global supply may be disrupted should the United Nations act to stop the resumption of a nuclear research program in Iran, crude oil traded above US$67 a barrel. Iran is the world's fourth-largest producer.

Analysts said that the market was responding to fears that in case of the worst possible scenario with respect to Iran, about five per cent of the worlds oil could easily come off the market.

With the EU nations appearing to move closer to the stated positions of the US on Iran, the situation seems to indicate another upward spike in crude prices. Crude oil for February delivery reached US$67.11 in after- hours electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest intra-day price since Sept. 29. It was at US$67.04, up 21 cents, at 8:56 a.m. Singapore time.

Adding to overall concerns was a statement from the French president Jacques Chirac that France will develop its nuclear forces to counter states that may resort to using weapons of mass destruction. Chirac's statement is probably aimed at Iran and may be intended to increase the pressure.

Oil had reached a record US$70.85 on Aug. 30, the day after Hurricane Katrina struck the U.S. Gulf of Mexico coast, wrecking rigs and platforms and shutting refineries.
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