Business news with words dispute+shares. 9 news.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Telecommunications stocks mostly edged lower on quiet Monday action, led by a 1% drop in Sprint Nextel Corp . Other notable decliners included Tellabs Inc. , Ciena Corp. and Juniper Networks Inc. , all down around 1% in the session before the New Year's holiday. Among the few gainers were Vonage Holding Corp. and Nortel Networks Corp. The two companies settled a patent dispute, although the agreement does not require payment from either side. Shares of Vonage were up 7% and Nortel rose 1.6%.

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Vonage Holdings Corp. said Monday that it has agreed in principle with Nortel Networks Corp. to end the pending litigation between them. According to a release from Holmdel, N.J.-based Vonage, the contemplated settlement involves a limited cross license to three Nortel and three Vonage patents and does not call for monetary payments by any party. Earlier this month, The Wall Street Journal reported that Nortel filed a lawsuit against Vonage, alleging that Vonage violated nine patents related to Internet phone services, countering Vonage's claims that Nortel had violated three of its patents. Shares of Vonage, which closed Friday at $2, were up about 9% in premarket trading Monday.

Russia's OAO Vimpel Communications agreed to buy broadband and fixed-line operator Golden Telecom Inc. for about $4.3 billion. Under the deal announced Friday, VimpelCom will pay $105 for each Golden Telecom share, a 5% premium to where the shares closed Thursday. Golden Telecom is listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market, but its business is located in Russia. The two companies disclosed earlier this month that they were in talks. The deal gives VimpelCom, Russia's second largest mobile operator, a foothold in Russia's growing market for broadband, as well as the slowing business of fixed-line telephony. Golden Telecom is also Russia's largest player in the business of providing telecommunications services to businesses. Golden Telecom's two biggest shareholders - Norway's Telenor ASA (TELNY) and Russia's Alfa Group -- appear to have put aside their differences to support the deal. The two companies, which also hold stakes in VimpelCom, have been trying to resolve a dispute in connection with their involvement in a Ukranian telecom operator, Kyivstar.

CME Group Inc. and the Chicago Board Options Exchange are in talks to settle an ownership dispute, potentially clearing the way for the CBOE to convert to a stock-based company and merge with another company or sell shares to the public. In recent weeks, options exchange CEO William Brodsky and ...

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Shares of Vonage Holding Corp. jumped more than 60% Friday after the Internet-phone company ended a costly patent dispute with Verizon Communications Inc.

Intel agreed to pay $250 million Wednesday to settle patent litigation with rival chip developer Transmeta, throwing a financial lifeline to the smaller company.

GROUPE Danone SA, the world's largest yogurt maker, said third-quarter sales rose 3.7 percent on increased demand for Activia and Actimel health-enhanced dairy products. Revenue was 3.69 billion euros (US$5.23 billion), up from 3.56 billion euros a year earlier, the Paris-based firm said yesterday, matching the median estimate of five analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News. The shares climbed the most in two months after Danone repeated its full-year sales forecast and said profitability improved. Asian sales fell 2.7 percent after a trademark dispute with China's Hangzhou Wahaha Group. To revive growth and focus on healthier food, Danone agreed to buy Dutch baby-food maker Royal Numico NV in July and sold its cookie unit to Kraft Inc. Investors "are relaxed by the confirmation of Danone's full-year target," said Marco Gulpers, an analyst at ING Groep NV in Amsterdam. Danone shares rose 1.29 euros, or 2.4 percent, to 55.50 euros at 10am in Paris. The stock added as much

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Shares of Internet-phone company Vonage Holding Corp. sank 21% Wednesday after another major legal setback and Sprint Nextel Corp. dipped after a ratings cut, but most telecommunications stocks edged higher. Vonage lost a patent dispute with Sprint and was ordered to fork over $69.5 million in damages. Earlier this year, it also lost a patent dispute with Verizon Communications Inc. Vonage has appealed the Verizon ruling and said it will do the same with Sprint. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs cut its rating on Sprint to neutral from buy, saying the company's turnaround plan is not working as quickly as hoped. Sprint shares fell a few pennies.

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Absolute Capital Management froze investor redemptions on Wednesday after founder Florian Homm quit over a pay dispute. Shares of the U.K.-based hedge fund firm slumped 47%.