STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
NPR's business news starts with Microsoft's moves in the news business.
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INSKEEP: Microsoft is making headlines this morning. The software company is no longer part of the joint venture that owned MSNBC.com. That breakup leaves it free to start its own online news service. NBC's owner, Comcast, bought out Microsoft's 50-percent interest in MSNBC, though there's no word on what it paid. So as of today, MSNBC.com is now NBCNews.com. The split after a 16-year marriage was expected for a long time and was officially announced late last night.
Microsoft plans to be an online news competitor of NBC by this fall. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.