NEW YORK — Sony is advising consumers to quit using some of its Vaio laptop computers and unplug them, saying that it’s possible that its non-removable battery pack could overheat. The company says it’s in the process of creating a program to repair or replace the computers, or will refund their purchase price.
The packs included in some of Sony’s Vaio Fit 11A models, which were released in February, were provided by a third-party supplier. If the packs overheat, it could cause burns to the laptop’s housing, Sony said Friday.
Women’s retailer going out of business. Coldwater Creek Inc., a women’s clothing retailer that hasn’t posted an annual profit since 2007, filed for bankruptcy protection with a plan to start going-out-of-business sales in time for Mother’s Day.
Coldwater said it intends to start liquidating inventory just before the May 11 holiday, a peak sales period for the retailer. The company listed assets of $278.5 million and debt of $361.3 million in Chapter 11 papers filed Friday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del.
Soda shares sag. SodaStream International Ltd, the Israeli maker of home soda machines, dropped to the lowest level in two months after Stifel Financial Corp. said competition from larger rivals will erode the company’s profits.
Shares of Lod, Israel-based SodaStream fell 3 percent, or $1.21, to close at $38.71 Friday. Coca-Cola Co.’s partnership with Keurig Green Mountain Inc. to introduce a system for producing single-serve cold drinks will result in “loss of shelf space,” a group of Stifel analysts said in a note.
Tillerson’s pay off 30 percent. Exxon Mobil Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Rex Tillerson’s total compensation declined 30 percent to $28.1 million in 2013, as the previous year included a hefty benefit from a change in pension value.
Tillerson received about $2.7 million in base salary, $150,000 more than a year earlier, and cash bonuses totaling $3.7 million, down from about $4.6 million in 2012.
He also received stock awards valued at about $21.3 million, according to the company’s proxy filing
“Weev” hacker wins appeal. An Arkansas man’s conviction for violating the main U.S. anti-hacking law by taking 114,000 e-mail addresses from AT&T Inc. was thrown out by a U.S. appeals court because he was tried in the wrong state.
Andrew Auernheimer, known in the online world as “weev,” was indicted and convicted at trial in Newark, N.J., of conspiracy to violate the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and of identity fraud. The U.S. Court of Appeals in Philadelphia ruled Friday he never should have been charged in New Jersey because his crimes had no connection to the state.
Walmart may issue proxy materials. Walmart Stores Inc. won’t have to delay issuing proxy materials after a judge rebuffed an investor’s bid to force the world’s largest retailer to allow a shareholder vote on a proposal to tighten oversight of sales of high-capacity weapons.
Herbalife center of FBI probe. Herbalife Ltd., the company that hedge-fund manager Bill Ackman has accused of being a pyramid scheme, is being probed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, according to a person familiar with the matter.
