CHARLESTON -- West Virginia's five Alpine ski resorts had a flat season this past winter.

West Virginia Ski Areas Association spokesman Joe Stevens says the resorts tallied about 800,000 skier visits from mid-November through early April.

Though the number of skiers dwindled toward the end of the season, Stevens says the season total was about average.

Stevens says association members were pleased, given the current economy.

The National Ski Areas Association says the Pacific West ski region reported a nearly 6 percent drop in business from its 10-year average.

West Virginia's resorts include Canaan Valley, Oglebay, Snowshoe, Timberline and Winterplace.

Comcast Corp. to offer wireless Internet service

PHILADELPHIA -- Comcast Corp. will become the first major cable TV operator to roll out wireless broadband outside of Wi-Fi hotspots as it launches the service in Portland, Ore., on Tuesday, with at least three other cities to follow this year.

Comcast will offer speeds of up to 4 Megabits per second, faster than any other comparable, non-Wi-Fi service currently being marketed. The service is for use with laptops, but not other mobile devices.

Comcast's wireless broadband, which lets users surf the Web on the go with their computers, pits it squarely against the mobile data offerings of phone companies.

Ky. workers welcome minimum wage increase

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. -- Minimum-wage earners in Kentucky are looking forward to a 70-cent pay increase this week.

The state minimum wage will increase from $6.55 to $7.25 an hour on Wednesday, earlier than a federal minimum wage increase of the same amount set for July 24.

Alinda Batt told the Bowling Green Daily News that the wage increase comes just in time. Last week she was trying to get her electricity turned back on after her service was cut off for non payment.

But William Davis, chairman of the economics department at Western Kentucky University, said the wage hike could mean higher labor costs for employers, which could lead to fewer work hours and less job opportunities.

GM ends joint venture with Toyota at Calif. plant

NEW YORK -- General Motors Corp. said Monday it is ending its joint venture with Toyota Motor Corp. at a Fremont, Calif., manufacturing plant, bringing to a close the first partnership of its kind between a U.S. and foreign automaker as GM continues to downsize under bankruptcy.

The Detroit automaker said it was unable to reach an agreement with Toyota over a new product plan at the facility. The plant, called New United Motor Manufacturing Inc., or Nummi, currently makes the Pontiac Vibe station wagon for GM and the Corolla compact car and Tacoma pickup truck for Toyota.

GM announced it was phasing out the Pontiac brand earlier this year. The facility will cease production of GM vehicles in August, the company said. A Toyota spokesman said the Japanese automaker is weighing its next move for the plant, which employs about 4,600 workers.

"The economic and business environment surrounding Toyota is also extremely severe, and so this decision by GM makes the situation even more difficult for Toyota," company spokesman Mike Goss said.

He said Toyota is disappointed to see the partnership end, but declined to comment further, including on whether the plant would close.

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