Music lovers aren't going to like the latest software from Microsoft. The company has developed software that lets record company control the copies you can make of the CDs you buy. The Wall Street Journal says the technology would let record companies put two types of tracks on their music CDs: songs that could not be copied and others that could. The new technology would also let you email certain tracks to friends, tracks that would have degraded sound quality or would have an expiration date. The Journal reports that two big recording companies are now experimenting with this technology. It can also be used for DVD movies.

Some familiar names will not be running ads in next weekend's Super Bowl telecast. McDonald's, Nike and Coca-Cola will all be on the bench during the game again this year choosing the cheaper post or pre-game shows. USA Today reports that Super Bowl 37 is nearly a sell out with just a few 30 second spots left in the second half. The paper says ABC is getting up to $2.2 million a slot, up 10 percent to 15 percent from last year.

The feds have approved a powerful new airline alliance. The U.S. Department of Transportation has given the green light to the marketing alliance between Delta, Northwest and Continental airlines. If the nation's 3rd, 4th and 5th largest airlines agree to the DOT's conditions, they will be allowed to sell seats on each others flights and develop joint marketing programs. Frequent fliers would be able to earn miles and use them on any of the three airlines. Discount airlines say the three-way alliance would hurt them. No word yet on whether Delta, Northwest and Continental will accept the government restrictions required as part of this deal.

The Internet is an increasingly popular way for people looking for work to get their resumes out there. And that's turning into quite a problem for those on the receiving end. The Seattle P-I says 5,000 recruiters and hiring managers were surveyed in the past month, and 92 percent said they had been inundated with irrelevant responses to job postings -- often hundreds per position. 71 percent said most of the resumes they get don't match the job description. 34 percent said online job seekers don't follow the instructions for submitting their resumes.

A new boss at K-Mart. The board of the bankrupt retailer has named a new chief executive to replace James Adamson, who was put in place last year to oversee bankruptcy reorganization. Now, K-mart President Julian Day will assume the top job, and Adamson will stay on as non-executive chairman through the final months of the Chapter Eleven process. Day will retain his duties as president. K-Mart hopes to come out of Chapter Eleven reorganization by April 30. The company is cutting about 59,000 jobs and closing about 600 stores.

Consumer advocates say cable TV operators aren't telling the truth. The cable companies claim rate increases are just to offset higher operating costs. But the Consumer Federation of America says the industry has actually boosted its profits by $8 billion. The problem, they say is lack of competition. In markets with more than one cable operator, government statistics show rates are 17 percent less.

There's a new headache for employers in our state. It's more fallout from the high jobless rate here in Washington State. The state's Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund lost money last year, $410 million to be specific, so employers will be hit with higher unemployment taxes this year. Later this month, the state will tell employers what the new unemployment tax rate will be.

U.S. financial markets will be closed Monday in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Overseas markets are open. Prices on the Tokyo Stock Exchange closed lower Monday. The Nikkei Average was down 131 points, closing at 8,558.