[ TECH BRIEFS ]

Avis to use XM radios

Avis Rent A Car System Inc., the world's second-largest car-rental company, will offer radios from XM Satellite Radio HoldingsInc. in its cars nationwide beginning in 2003. Avis is adding as manyas 50,000 satellite-radio-equipped vehicles from General Motors Corp.to its fleet, Avis said. Customers will be charged an extra $2.99 aday for access to 100 channels.

IBM makes tiniest transistor

IBM Corp. has built the world's smallest working silicontransistor, which might help reduce the size of computers and otherelectronic devices. The transistor is six nanometers in length, about20,000 times smaller than a human hair. Details of IBM's transistordevelopment will be published in a technical paper to be presentednext week at the International Electron Devices Meeting in SanFrancisco.

EBay, AutoTrader split

EBay Inc., the largest online auctioneer, will end a partnershipwith AutoTrader.com on Jan. 1, six months early. EBay declined togive a reason why the relationship is ending earlier than scheduled,spokesman Kevin Pursglove said. Under the agreement, AutoTrader.comhad provided some of the vehicle listings to eBay's automobileauction and sales business.

IPayment files for IPO

IPayment Inc. filed late Friday for an initial public offering ofup to $75 million in common stock, according to a filing with theSecurities and Exchange Commission. Details about the price per shareand number of shares weren't disclosed in the filing. IPayment, basedin Nashville, provides credit and debit card-based payment processingservices to small merchants.

Top CheckFree exec resigns

CheckFree Corp. said Monday that President and Chief OperatingOfficer Peter F. Sinisgalli will resign, effective Jan. 31, to seek achief executive position elsewhere. The Atlanta-based provider offinancial electronic-commerce services and products said it won'treplace Sinisgalli. The division heads will instead report directlyto Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Peter Kight.

Tyco taps Lucent treasurer

Lucent Technologies Inc. Treasurer Martina Hund-Mejean resigned totake the same position at Tyco International Ltd. Hund-Mejean, 42,will report to Chief Financial Officer David FitzPatrick, whom sheworked with when both were at General Motors Corp. Tyco's currenttreasurer, Michael Robinson, who served under ousted Chief ExecutiveOfficer Dennis Kozlowski, has been offered a different job with Tyco.