Facebook tests pay emails; other business briefs

NATION

Facebook tests pay emails

Would you pay $100 to message Mark Zuckerberg? Facebook says it's testing some "extreme price points" to let users pay to have their messages seen by people who are not their friends. The tech blog Mashable reported Friday that some users trying to message Zuckerberg are offered the option to pay $100 to ensure that their missive reaches the Facebook CEO's inbox. Without paying, the message would likely end up in Zuckerberg's "other" message folder, an oft-overlooked purgatory between the spam folder and the inbox. Facebook is also testing a service that lets people pay $1 per message to route communications to non-friends' inboxes. Zuckerberg has more than 16 million followers on the site.

Wells Fargo earnings up 24%

Wells Fargo, the country's biggest mortgage lender, reported a 24 percent rise in fourth-quarter earnings Friday, beating analysts' expectations for both profit and revenue. The bank made more loans, gained deposits and enjoyed above-average returns from the investments made by its private equity business. But investors found the results underwhelming, and Wells Fargo's stock closed down 30 cents to $35.10. As the first major bank to report earnings, San Francisco-based Wells Fargo sets the tone for the rest of the industry.-- AP

Buying Hostess brands

Flowers Foods Inc. Friday said it has agreed to buy Wonder and other well-known bread brands from Hostess Brands Inc. for $390 million, as part of the latter company's bankruptcy reorganization. The Thomasville, Ga.-based company said it entered one contract to pay $360 million for the Wonder, Butternut, Home Pride, Merita and Nature's Pride brands, as well as 20 bakeries and 38 depots. It also agreed to pay $30 million for the Beefsteak brand. It said it expects the purchases to add to earnings in 2013, and that it will finance them with cash on hand plus debt.

-- Reuters