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FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) -- Nike suspended its lucrative contract with Michael Vick on Friday, while Reebok took the unprecedented step of stopping sales of his No. 7 jersey. In another dose of bad news for the indicted quarterback, a top trading card company announced it was pulling Vick's likeness from any new packs. Facing protests from animal-rights groups, Nike announced it was suspending Vick's endorsement deal without pay, as well as halting sales of Vick-related shoes and other products at its retail stores. "Nike is concerned by the serious and highly disturbing allegations made against Michael Vick, and we...

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) -- Adidas-Salomon AG said Wednesday that it will buy shoemaker Reebok International Ltd. in a $3.8 billion deal, giving the company about 20 percent of the U.S. market and putting it in a position to better challenge leader Nike Inc. Under the terms of the deal, Adidas, which has its North American headquarters in Portland, Ore., will pay $59 for all of Reebok's outstanding shares, a premium of 34 percent. The deal is subject to regulatory approval in the United States and Europe as well as by shareholders. Both companies said the transaction could close during the...

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - German sporting goods maker Adidas-Salomon is buying U.S. rival Reebok (RBK) in a 3.1 billion euro ($3.8 billion) deal to expand its reach in Nike's (NKE) home market. Shares in Reebok surged 32 percent to $58.17 in Germany, while Adidas was up 6 percent at 156.40 euros at 1005 GMT, after it painted a bright outlook for the merged group. Adidas shares had initially dropped 4 percent on the news, as it said it would help fund the takeover with equity and as some analysts questioned the deal's benefits. Adidas, the number two in the sporting goods...

<p>Defeating apartheid would have been impossible without corporations world-wide mounting economic pressure to help release South Africa from the grip of a criminal regime. Archbishop Desmond Tutu, a leading voice in that fight for freedom, declared, "Tough sanctions, not constructive engagement, finally brought the release of Nelson Mandela and the dawn of a new era in my country." In 1993, when Archbishop Tutu looked to the brutality of the junta controlling Burma, he called it "the South Africa of the '90s." More than a decade has passed, but Western corporations are still playing key roles in boosting the Burmese economy that finances the junta's rule.</p>

The head of a Washington, DC based media watchdog group is asking that advertisers demand to preview a planned CBS mini series on former President Ronald Reagan before sponsoring the program. Media Reasearch Center President L. Brent Bozell Tuesday sent a letter to each of the nations top 100 advertisers urging them to preview the movie before making a sponsorship decision because it is what Bozell called 'a partisan attack against one of Americas most beloved Presidents.'A review of the script by New York Times writer Jim Reutenberg noted the two part mini series, scheduled for later this month, makes...

A sportswear giant is signing up children as young as three years old in a bid to market its products and capture the next generation of stars. Reebok has offered to pay the school fees of three year old Mark Walker, an amazing basketball talent.Walker can score baskets from 10 meters out using a full sized basketball with adult sized hoops.He is the most worrying example of a growing trend among sports companies such as Nike and Reebok.Freddy Adu, a 14 year old soccer player in the United States, has singed a contract with nike thought to be worth 1...