1. DOLCE & GABBANA SENTENCED FOR TAX EVASION
An Italian court has convicted Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana of tax evasion, sentencing the two designers to one year and eight months in prison and a 500,000 euro fine. Though the company's lawyer says the pair intends to appeal, the sentence wouldn't actually land them in jail: In Italy, sentences under three years are served with house arrest or community service. Italian tax authorities estimate the country lost 17 billion euros in tax evasion in 2012. [The Wall Street Journal]
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2. OUSTED SANDRIDGE CEO GETS $90 MILLION
The CEO and founder of SandRidge Energy Inc, Tom Ward, has been fired, just days before an activist investor was poised to gain control of the board. SandRidge's Chief Financial Officer James Bennett will replace Ward. It is the latest example of a growing trend in which shareholders drive executive branch shake-ups in the energy industry. Because a four-month independent review found no evidence to fire Ward "with cause," the executive will receive a $53.3 million lump sum, vesting of 6.3 million shares of previously issued restricted stock, and his base salary for the next three years — a package worth $90 million. [Bloomberg]
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3. U.S. YIELDS REACH 22-MONTH HIGH
The Treasury 10-year note yield hit 2.47 percent, a 22-month high, following Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's statement yesterday that the Fed may start slowing down its $85 billion bond-buying program later this year. The 30-year bond yield rose to 3.53 percent, the highest since September 2011, and the 7-year yield notes touched 1.89 percent, the highest level since August 2011. [Bloomberg]
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4. UNITED AIRLINES ADS MINIMUM SPEND TO FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAM
Starting next year, United Airlines flyers will need to spend a minimum of $2,500 a year on tickets and upgrades to qualify for Premier Silver elite status. In the past, fliers only needed 25,000 miles, which might have been accumulated without spending $2,500. Gold status will now cost $5,000 and 50,000 miles. [ABC]
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5. FACEBOOK ADDS VIDEO SHARING
A new service on Instagram, the Facebook-owned photo-sharing app, allows users to record 15 seconds of video, lay on filters, then post immediately. "We've worked a ton on making it fast, simple and beautiful," said Kevin Systrom, co-founder of Instagram. "What we did to photos we just did for video." Both Facebook and Twitter, which owns a similar service called Vine, have yet to announce how they will monetize their video sharing platforms. Online video is expected to draw $4 billion in advertising this year. [The New York Times]
