BUSINESS BRIEFS
Blockbuster to stock Blu-rays
Advertiser Staff and News Services
LOS ANGELES — Blockbuster Inc. will rent high-definition DVDs only in the Blu-ray format in 1,450 stores when it expands its high-def offerings next month, dealing a major blow to the rival HD DVD format.
The move, being announced today, could be the first step in resolving a format war that has kept confused consumers from rushing to buy new DVD players until they can determine which format will dominate the market.
FAMILY TREE SITES TO INCLUDE DNA
WASHINGTON — For less than $200 and a cheek-swiped cotton swab, amateur historians will soon be able to add DNA results to family tree Web sites.
The rapidly growing field of online genealogical searches is expanding to genetic testing, courtesy of a new partnership between the Internet's largest family history Web site, Ancestry.com, and Sorenson Genomics, a privately held DNA research firm.
Sorenson and Ancestry .com's Provo, Utah-based parent company, The Generations Network, will reveal details of their venture today.
CASINO WORKERS OK CONTRACT
LAS VEGAS — Union members representing 14,250 workers at six Las Vegas casinos owned by Harrah's Entertainment Inc. voted overwhelmingly to approve a five-year contract.
Some 97 percent of the voting members of the Culinary Workers Union Local 226 and the Bartenders Union Local 165 backed the agreement, which was negotiated over the past three months, the unions said.
The agreement, which a union spokeswoman said includes the largest wage and benefits increase in the unions' history, was ratified Saturday as the unions were also negotiating with the other major Las Vegas Strip casino operator, MGM Mirage Inc.
