Foxtel signs new Hollywood film deal: Australian pay television group Foxtel said on Friday it has formed a new deal with Hollywood studios, and has terminated its previous film supply deal with AustralisMedia Ltd, which is now in liquidation. "The effect of this decision is that a substitute agreement between Foxtel and the Premium Movie Partnership for direct supply of the Showtime and Encore movie channels to Foxtel will take effect immediately," Foxtel said. Foxtel said the TV1 Partnership had also terminated its agreement to provide a general entertainment channel to Australis, and has formed an agreement with Foxtel to supply programming.

Fujitsu sees recovery after dismal show: Japanese computer and chip maker Fujitsu Ltd said on Friday its group profit plunged nearly 88 per cent last business year but it saw a strong recovery in the current year. Fujitsu said its group net profit nosedived 87.9 per cent to5.59 billion yen ($41.1 million) in the 1997-98 business year which ended on March 31, dragged down by a US computer unit's restructuring costs, sluggish domestic sales and damage from the Asian currency crisis. The restructuring and goodwill costs of US Mainframe computer unit Amdahl Corp ,which Fujitsu turned into a wholly owned subsidiary last September, ballooned from the original estimate of 35 billion yen.

Fuji TV aims to buy back 220,000 of its shares: Fuji Television Network said on Friday that it would propose changing company rules at a shareholders' meeting on June 26 to allow it to buy back up to 220,000 of its issued shares. The national broadcaster said in a statement that it planned to buy back 100,000 shares using profits and another 120,000 million using 70 billion yen in capital reserves. The company said in a statement that it had 1.74 million issued shares as of the end of March.

Toyota Motor to up stakes in Daihatsu, Hino: Toyota Motor Corp plans to increase its stakes in Daihatsu Motor Co Ltd and Hino Motors Ltd in a bid to strengthen ties among its group firms, the daily Asahi Shimbun reported on Friday. A spokesman for Toyota said he could not immediately comment on the report. The paper said Toyota hoped to raise its stakes in the two affiliatespossibly by the end of this year. Toyota held 33.4 per cent of Daihatsu and 18.2 per cent of Hino as of the end of last September. The paper also said Toyota's share in Daihatsu was expected to be raised to nearly 50 per cent and that in Hino to 33.4 per cent.

Autodesk reports higher Q1 earnings: Design software maker Autodesk Inc has reported a sharp rise in first-quarter earnings and said it expects to maintain its recent rate of growth at least in the short term. "We're cautious about Asia and about Japan in particular. However, because we're seeing good strength in our business in Europe and the US, We're not finding any reason to lower our expectations," Autodesk Treasurer Christine Tsingos told Reuters. Autodesk said its first-quarter earnings rose to $27.6 million or 55 cents per diluted share, from about 10 cents, before non-recurring charges, in last year's first quarter.

Orica buys into Thai explosives company: Chemical and explosives group Orica Ltd said on Friday it has bought acontrolling interest in Thailand's largest explosives company, Chai International Development Company Ltd (CID), for an undiclosed amount. Chai International is headquartered in Bangkok, employs over 150 people and has sales of about A$12 million a year.

Saarc telecom meet to discuss special tariffs: The first-ever meeting of the Saarc telecommunications ministers, which opened in Colombo on Friday, would focus its attention on introduction of special tariffs among the south Asian countries and explore possibilities to introduce intra regional communication network. The two-day conference inaugurated by the Sri Lankan president, Chandrika Kumartunga, is being attended among others by India's minister for information and broadcasting, Sushma Swaraj, who is also holding additional charge of telecommunications portfolio.