BRIEFCASE.

Byline: - Staff and Wire Reports

Cruise's 'Mission' not so impossible

Paramount Pictures will proceed with production of ``Mission: Impossible 3'' starring Tom Cruise after resolving budget issues that had threatened to derail the project.

Shooting on the film will begin July 18 in Italy and is scheduled to be released May 5, 2006.

Cruise, the star of the upcoming ``War of the Worlds'' for Paramount, has been at the center of intense media coverage for his personal life in recent weeks but the concerns over ``Mission'' were said to be strictly financial ones.

``Tom's history with Paramount has made for one of Hollywood's most successful relationships; the opportunity to continue our collaboration with him on 'Mission: Impossible 3' is everything anyone in show business could hope for,'' Paramount Pictures Chairman and CEO Brad Grey said in a statement.

Northrop, Airbus plan joint venture

CENTURY CITY - The parent company of European jet-maker Airbus and U.S. defense contractor Northrop Grumman Corp. have agreed to team up to build a refueling plane for the Pentagon in an effort to compete with Boeing Co.'s troubled tanker program, according to a published report.

European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co. and Century City-based Northrop Grumman have a draft agreement and EADS plans to announce on June 22 where it will build a U.S. factory for the project if it wins the Pentagon contract, according to The Wall Street Journal, which cited people familiar with the joint-venture talks.

Northrop shares fell 18 cents Wednesday to close at $55.38 on the New York Stock Exchange, while Boeing shares fell 81 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $64.47.

HP 'rebalancing' cost $236 million

SAN FRANCISCO - Hewlett-Packard Co. spent about $236 million on employee severance payments and other ``work force rebalancing'' programs between November and April.

HP took restructuring charges of $177 million in its fiscal first quarter and $59 million in its fiscal second quarter, according to a filing Wednesday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The Palo Alto-based computer maker said the charges would allow it to slash its worldwide work force by approximately 3,000 employees, including 1,600 people who were laid off before April 30. The rest are expected to be terminated by October.

Regal to remodel for wheelchairs

WASHINGTON - Regal Entertainment Group, the nation's largest movie theater chain, has agreed to alter nearly 1,000 stadium-style auditoriums so people in wheelchairs have better views, the Justice Department announced Wednesday.

In addition, all new Regal theaters will be designed with wheelchair seating in the middle or farther back. The terms are part of a settlement of a 4 1/2-year-old lawsuit alleging the company violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by failing to give the disabled seating comparable to the general public.

Regal, based in Knoxville, Tenn., operates 6,273 auditoriums in 40 states under the Regal Cinemas, United Artists Theatres and Edwards Theatres banners. About 3,500 have stadium-style seating.

Rigas sentencing postponed a week

NEW YORK - The sentencings of John and Timothy Rigas, convicted last year in the massive fraud at Adelphia Communications Corp., have been postponed to June 20, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.

The sentencings had been scheduled for Monday. There was no immediate explanation for the delay, but postponements are common in federal criminal sentencings.

Adelphia founder John Rigas and his son Timothy, the company's former finance chief, were convicted in July 2004 of conspiracy, bank fraud and securities fraud. The bank fraud counts alone carry up to 30 years in prison.

Adelphia, then based in Coudersport, Pa., went bankrupt in 2002 after disclosing $2.3 billion in off-balance-sheet debt. It now operates under bankruptcy protection in Greenwood Village, Colo.

Nasdaq-Instinet merger faces bid

NEW YORK - The proposed merger between the Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. and the electronic trading arm of Instinet Group Inc. could be delayed after an investment advisory company made a separate, higher bid for Instinet's institutional brokerage division.

Third Avenue Management LLC, an Instinet shareholder, confirmed Wednesday it was making a $307 million bid for Instinet's brokerage unit. The unit was initially slated to be spun off to a group of private investors led by Silver Lake Partners and Instinet executives for $207.5 million.