Heard on the Street

CONSOLIDATION

Alltel announced Dec. 6 that it has merged all of its Internet services into one customizable site, www.Alltel.net. Alltel's dial-up access, high-speed digital subscriber line and wireless Internet customers can now use the same Web site as a starting point on the Internet. Previously Alltel maintained separate Web sites for its more than 200,000 dial-up access, DSL and wireless Internet customers. The new site's customizable services are powered by InfoSpace, a global provider of cross-platform merchant and consumer infrastructure services on wireless, broadband and narrowband platforms. First-time visitors to the site will complete a one-time registration form and can then customize content on the site, including news, weather, stock quotes, sports scores and other information.

TRAVELNOW SAYS PLAN NOW

TravelNow.com has compiled the following list of tips for booking online travel during the holiday season: 1. Read the fine print. That great deal may have many blackout dates, and that special holiday airfare may be for one-way travel only. 2. Plan in advance. Plan now for Christmas or New Year's travel. Lower prices can be found with advance airplane ticket purchases. 3. Be flexible. Consider alternative airports near your destination for lower prices and available seats. 4. Try a travel auction. 5. Subscribe to e-mail newsletters that deliver travel deals to your desktop. 6. Save with accommodations outside the city. Hotel rooms can be less expensive in the suburbs vs. downtown. 7. Stay extra days. Many airlines will give you a better ticket price if you stay at your destination through the weekend. 8. Take advantage of e-tickets. 9. Consider hotels in the business district for weekend stays. Accommodations in the business or financial centers of a city, and discounts, may be widely available on weekends. 10. Travel by train.

CARE BY CANDLELIGHT

The CARE No-Kill Animal Shelter will hold a candlelight vigil at 6 p.m. Dec. 14 at Phelps Grove Park in memory of the 4.5 million companion animals euthanized this year in shelters across the United States. The event also is a celebration of the hundreds of lives CARE and neighboring animal shelters have saved this year, and a celebration of the responsible, caring pet owners in the community. According to information from Anna Bruening, CARE public relations director, it is hoped that the vigil will remind the public of the importance of responsible pet ownership, and therefore help reduce the death toll in 2001. The event is free and open to people and pets (leashes required), and hot cocoa and cookies will be served. The candlelight walk will be led by carolers and will follow a route around the perimeter of the park. For more information, call 875-6565, ext. 4.

THE DEAL'S OFF

A proposed transaction in which Marshfield Investment Company and its subsidiary banks would be acquired by Central Bancompany of Jefferson City will not take place. Announced in October, the transaction was canceled when the two companies were unable to arrive at a final agreement. "Both sides worked very hard for an agreement, but there were several complex issues that could not be resolved," said Robert Robuck, vice chairman of Central Bancompany Inc., in a release. Marshfield Investment Company owns and operates Metropolitan National Bank in Springfield, Bank of Kimberling City and The First National Bank of Lamar.