BRIEFCASE.

Byline: - Staff and Wire Services

Lori is new CAO for Univision Inc.

Univision Communications Inc., the Los Angeles-based Spanish-language media company, named Peter Lori as senior vice president, corporate controller and chief accounting officer Thursday.

The appointment is effective immediately.

Based in Teaneck, N.J., Lori will report to Jeff Hinson, executive vice president and chief financial officer.

Most recently, Lori was an audit partner at KPMG, where he was responsible for financial statement audit and advisory services to large corporate clients.

Prior to that, he served as an audit manager and partner at Arthur Andersen, where he worked for 15 years.

KB Home to offer Spanish Web site

KB Home home builders announced Thursday it will offer content in Spanish after redesigning its Web site, www.kbhome.com.

The content is the same as the English version, except when users click a button labeled ``Espaol,'' they will be linked to a Spanish-language Web site. Consumers can also go directly to the Spanish-language Web site at www.kbcasa.com.

Transmeta Corp. will restructure

SAN JOSE - Struggling chip-maker Transmeta Corp. on Thursday announced a major corporate restructuring, a 24 percent reduction in its work force and the hiring of a new chief executive as it tries to survive amid much larger rivals.

Just five years after its splashy public debut at the sunset of the tech boom, the unprofitable maker of low-power microprocessors for notebooks and other computers said it will focus on licensing its technology and intellectual property to other companies.

Transmeta also cut 67 employees, leaving it with 208 worldwide. In addition, it announced the departure of chief executive Matthew Perry. Arthur L. Swift was named as his replacement. Swift previously was the company's senior vice president of marketing.

Qwest boosts its offer anew for MCI 

DENVER - Qwest Communications International Inc. boosted its bid for MCI Inc. again on Thursday, offering $8.94 billion just two days after the long-distance phone company accepted a sweetened $7.51 billion proposal from Verizon Communications Inc.

Shares of MCI, formerly known as WorldCom, rose sharply for a third straight day as investors speculated that the biggest telecom bidding war since the Internet bubble would push the final takeover price beyond what Verizon has agreed to pay.

Soon after the new bid was disclosed, The Wall Street Journal reported that Verizon was exercising its right to force a vote by MCI investors on the merger before a special shareholder meeting scheduled for that purpose in May. Verizon spokesman Eric Rabe declined comment.

American income rose in February

WASHINGTON - Americans' incomes, bolstered by strong gains in hiring, rose by 0.3 percent in February while consumer spending climbed at an even faster pace of 0.5 percent, the government reported Thursday.

The Commerce Department said the gain in spending followed a much smaller 0.1 percent increase in January and reflected the fact that auto sales rebounded last month after having fallen in January.

The 0.3 percent rise in incomes was attributed to a surge of 262,000 new jobs in February, the biggest increase in four months. Further solid gains in both incomes and consumer spending are expected in the months ahead as the consumer continues to be a driving force in the economy.

Analysts said the February gains in incomes and spending showed that the economy was being propelled this year by continued strength in employment growth and consumer spending - which accounts for two-thirds of total economic activity.

Tyco execs took bonus millions

NEW YORK - Tyco International Ltd.'s former lead outside auditor testified Thursday that he was aware of two special bonuses totaling millions of dollars to former top executives L. Dennis Kozlowski and Mark H. Swartz.

Prosecutors have alleged that Kozlowski, Tyco's ex-chief executive, and Swartz, its former chief financial officer, improperly granted themselves millions of dollars in compensation without proper authorization.

Under questioning from prosecutors, Richard Scalzo, an auditor from PricewaterhouseCoopers LLC, said he was told the Bermuda conglomerate had determined that the bonuses, which were granted to a number of Tyco employees, were ``direct and incremental'' costs associated with the gain on the initial public offering of the company's Tycom unit and the sale of its ADT Automotive unit in 2000.