• Late-night TV is changing forever. Last week, long-time late-night television host David Letterman, 66, announced he would be retiring next year. After a 30-year run, the television icon will likely be replaced by a younger comedian, as the station aims to take a larger chunk of the 18- to 49-year-old demographic. This particular demographic is the most coveted by advertisers.
• Americans’ tastes and spending habits are changing, and it is forcing consumer-product companies to reevaluate what used to be consistent growth patterns that correlated with economic conditions. Over the past several years, there has been a decline in the purchases of basic products such as laundry detergent, toothpaste, razors, soda and cereal. In response, companies like General Mills and Proctor & Gamble Co. are promoting a greater number of deals and coupons.
• There is good news for cancer patients, survivors and pharmaceutical companies. Two new drugs being developed by Pfizer and Eli Lilly showed promise in slowing the growth of breast cancer tumors by targeting proteins that are used by tumors to grow and spread within the body. The drug, in pill form, would stop tumor growth so other treatments could be used to eliminate the cancer.
• More small banks are selling themselves to larger institutions. The cause of the increase in sales is the rising costs banks incur to keep up with recent regulations. Small banks cannot afford to put out funds to hire the number of employees required to handle the additional work created by post-2008 regulations. With record-low interest rates already hitting banking profits, any added cost is damaging.
• Yahoo! is close to finishing a deal that would provide the company with four original 10-episode comedies. The shows would be streamed online, but many investors fear that Yahoo! isn’t ready to enter a market so already dominated by large players such as Amazon and Netflix.
