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                After several days of rumours, AOL has
                confirmed it is to buy Netscape Communications, creators of the Navigator browser and the
                Netcenter Web site, for just over £2.5 billion.    | 
              
              
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                The legal framework for electronic
                commerce will be cleared up during the next Parliament, the Queen has announced.    | 
              
              
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                State-of-the-art entertainment software
                company Eidos is pinning its hopes on cyberbabe Lara Croft to improve its bottom line.    | 
              
              
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                With Christmas just over a month away
                the business community is predicting that e-commerce will "explode" in the UK
                bringing "intense competition" and "limitless opportunity" for
                businesses.    | 
              
              
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                Many small businesses are mistaken if
                they think they have dealt with the problems posed by the millennium bug, according to
                Lloyds Bank.    | 
              
              
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                UK PC owners have the chance to add a
                new piece of hardware to their machines with the launch of a innovative scanner.    | 
              
              
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                An official Web site for London has been
                set up by tourism authorities, with a strong emphasis on encouraging people to visit for
                the Millennium celebrations.    | 
              
              
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                Sony has unveiled a new style memory
                device for the consumer market, about the thickness of a stick of chewing gum but with an
                eight megabyte capacity.  
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                Town planning, virtual reality and the
                Internet have merged with the announcement of a new online initiative that will study the
                effects of how cities and urban environments grow.    | 
              
              
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                Oil giant Shell has relaunched its Web
                site in a bid to become more "audience friendly" and prepare for future
                e-commerce applications.  
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