Comcast agrees to pay $26M as part of hazardous waste settlement

Comcast Communications has agreed to pay $26 million to resolve allegations by the state and Alameda County that it unlawfully disposed of hazardous electronic equipment and failed to shred records that contained customers' names, addresses and phone numbers, prosecutors said.

Eye on safety, California sets rules for self-driving cars

California regulators have unveiled a roadmap that would let consumers begin using self-driving cars, though manufacturers would have to prove the emerging technology is safe before a licensed driver could get chauffeured around town. The approach California's Department of Motor Vehicles offered Wednesday in precedent-setting draft regulations is cautious, though it does allow that...

Report cites 241 near collisions between pilots, drones

There has yet to be a confirmed U.S. collision between a drone and a manned aircraft, but there's a growing number of close calls as drones fly where they least belong — near airports. A report released Friday counted at least 241 reports of close encounters between drones and manned aircraft that meet the Federal Aviation Administration's definition of a near-collision, including...

Yahoo scraps original Alibaba spin off plan

NEW YORK (AP) — Yahoo is scrapping its original plan to spin off its prized stake in China's Alibaba Group and will instead break off the rest of its business into a new company. The change of heart announced Wednesday comes after Yahoo's board met last week to review the proposed Alibaba spin off, as well as CEO Marissa Mayer's stalled attempts to turn around one of the...

Yahoo mulls shareholder demand to sell Internet business

Yahoo's board is considering an activist shareholder's demand to sell the Internet services the company is best known for, a maneuver that might help the company dodge a tax bill of more than $10 billion looming over its holdings in China's Alibaba Group.

California's top oil regulator quits after 17 months on job

California's top oil regulator announced his resignation on Monday after 17 months as head of the embattled agency, including a criticized episode in which he directed state workers to investigate the oil and gas potential of Gov.

Airbnb battles hostile ballot measure in San Francisco

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Travelers worldwide may love using Airbnb to book vacation stays, but the company that revolutionized home-sharing faces a hostile ballot measure in the city where it was founded. Proposition F on the Nov. 3 San Francisco ballot would limit short-term rentals to 75 days a year and require hosting companies such as Airbnb to yank listings that violate the limit.