The Minnesota Department of Commerce said it will start working with local governments to create a more streamlined process for installing solar panels.
Technology
Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor’s both downgraded their credit ratings for Best Buy, saying that a buyout by founder Richard Schulze would add significant debt.
Current CEO Wayne Fortun will take over as chairman following co-founder Jeffrey Green’s retirement from the position.
The company also raised its revenue guidance for 2012, from about $71 million to between $75 million and $76 million.
Richard Schulze offered $24 to $26 a share. The company described the offer as “highly conditional,” and one analyst said that the move seems “more like a negotiating tactic than a fully-funded and committed offer.”
The cuts are part of the struggling grocer’s plans to restructure its technology department in an effort to reduce costs and increase efficiency.
St. Cloud-based Marco said the acquisition is part of its plans to expand nationally.
Greenlight Capital told investors that Best Buy is “trying to come up with a strategy” following the departures of CEO Brian Dunn and Chairman Richard Schulze, which could lead to additional “business disruption.”
The company is reportedly retooling its Geek Squad team as it shifts employees away from basic home installations to focus on services for small businesses and on providing technology expertise at Best Buy’s smaller, “connected”-format stores.
Private equity firm LaunchEquity Partners said that if its offer were accepted, it would invest $10 million in MakeMusic over the next two years and retain all of the company’s employees.
The New Hope-based provider of DirecTV, voice, and high-speed Internet services is buying New Jersey-based MDU Communications International, Inc.
The company is expanding its infant offerings through its new CK Baby Shop, an area within its St. Paul store that carries products for newborns.
The cuts, which include roughly 600 Geek Squad positions, are in addition to 400 corporate layoffs announced in March.
Best Buy’s bylaws now require that an investor own at least 25 percent of the company’s stock in order to call a special meeting related to a “change of control”; founder Richard Schulze and entities that he controls own 21.2 percent.
The Human Life Value Calculator iPad app gives users a range of their economic value based on current income and debt, as well as expected lifetime earning capacity—and Securian says it might make users “think twice about their life insurance coverage.”
G. Mike Mikan said at the company’s annual meeting that Best Buy aims to curb the practice of “showrooming,” provide better customer experience, reduce its retail footprint, and focus on return on investments.
The music software company said that Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer Karen VanDerBosch will assume the CEO duties on an interim basis—and the board has initiated a search for a new chief executive.
The custom equipment that Intequus made for Netflix’s new content delivery network is designed to help Netflix’s video content stream more efficiently.