EXCITE@HOME DISMISSES AUDITOR: Excite@Home has fired the auditors who recently expressed doubts about the Internet company's chances of staying in business, but it says the decision was completely unrelated. According to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, Ernst & Young was dismissed Aug. 15 -- one day after it said in Excite@Home's amended annual report that it had "substantial doubt about the company's ability to continue as a going concern." While Excite@Home is not disputing that finding, the seller of high-speed Internet access said it had replaced Ernst & Young with PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.

PENNEY UPHOLDS FORECAST: J.C. Penney Co. Inc. reiterated its earnings forecasts for the third quarter and the full year. The company said its earnings will be in the range of 10 cents to 15 cents a share in the third quarter and 30 cents to 35 cents a share for the full year. Analysts expected 14 cents a share for the third quarter, and 34 cents a share for the year. Penney said it will conduct a briefing for shareholders this week. Shares fell $1.33 to $25.05.

BUSCH PARKS OFFER ONLINE SALES: Anheuser-Busch Adventure Parks will offer ticketless admission to customers who buy their tickets through the six parks' Web sites. Using a technology application similar to online grocery coupon sites, Busch theme park patrons can print a bar code on a piece of paper from their home computer after paying by credit card. A laser reader at the park entry gate recognizes the bar code. Another option will be to order tickets on the Web and wait for them to arrive by mail. Sea World in Orlando began offering service for single-day tickets today. Busch Gardens Tampa Bay will provide the service later.

AIRLINES CUT TRAVEL COMMISSIONS: United and Delta said they would slash travel agents' commissions on domestic air fares, mimicking the cost-cutting measure initiated by American Airlines late last week. Richard Copland, president of the American Society of Travel Agents, said travel agents will respond by increasing their clients' transaction fees.

Likewise, James Wolf, executive vice president of the 3-million-plus-member Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association College Retirement Equities Fund, said it costs his company an average of $11 to handle every telephone call it receives from an investor. The cost of fielding calls from retirees average much more: from $35 to $40 each.

NAPSTER WILL RETURN, CEO VOWS: In his first public appearance as the chief executive of Napster Inc., Konrad Hilbers promised that the embattled file-swapping service would start offering subscriptions later this year. Hilbers told a summit of high-tech leaders that Napster would be back online as soon as it fully complies with a court ruling to remove all copyrighted material from its site and can effectively police itself to make sure none is being traded. Hilbers is formerly of German media giant Bertelsmann AG, which has partnered with Napster to develop a membership-based distribution system that would guarantee payments to artists. Napster was ordered shut down last year pending a lawsuit from the music industry.

AMERICA WEST CHIEF STEPPING DOWN: William Franke, the man who resurrected America West Airlines from bankruptcy, is stepping down from the helm of the carrier Sept. 1, when his hand-picked successor, W. Douglas Parker, will take over. America West announced the changes after Franke met with the board of directors. Parker, 39, now serves as the company's president and chief operational officer. In May, the 64-year-old Franke announced his plans to retire when his contract expired in December. Shares of America West Holdings Corp., the airline's parent company, rose 11 cents to close at $9.62.

AIRLINES CUT TRAVEL COMMISSIONS: United and Delta said they would slash travel agents' commissions on domestic air fares, mimicking the cost-cutting measure initiated by American Airlines late last week. United and Delta said they will cap payments to U.S. travel agents at $10 for a one-way ticket and $20 for a round-trip flight, instead of $25 and $50, respectively. Canadian travel agents will be capped at about $9 for one-way tickets and $18 for round-trip, instead of about $23 and $46, respectively. Analysts said the reduced commissions, which apply for all tickets sold in the United States and Canada, could save United parent UAL Corp. about $78-million a year and Delta Air Lines Inc. about $51-million. Richard Copland, president of the American Society of Travel Agents, said travel agents will respond by increasing their clients' transaction fees.

GATEWAY CREDIT AT JUNK STATUS: Gateway Inc.'s credit ratings were lowered to junk status by Standard & Poor's Corp., which cited the computer company's declining revenue and lack of profitability. Gateway's corporate debt rating and bank-loan rating were cut to "BB," or below investment grade, from "BBB-." Its shares fell 21 cents to $9.76. The stock has fallen 84 percent in the past 12 months.

QWEST ASKED TO PAY REFUND: The Washington state attorney general has asked Qwest to give refunds to customers who lost high-speed Internet connections as a result of the "Code Red" computer worm attack, but the Denver-based Internet access provider is refusing. Customers using Qwest DSL service experienced intermittent outages for about 10 days after Qwest and Cisco, which makes modems for the DSL lines, were hit by the worm. Business customers say the outages cost them thousands of dollars in sales.

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