Hilton Hotels is temporarily suspending development of its Denizen Hotels as a federal grand jury in Manhattan investigates charges that two former Starwood executives smuggled out more than 100,000 pages of proprietary documents before they joined Hilton, Tamara Audi reports. Hilton spokeswoman Ellen Gonda says the company is cooperating fully with the U.S. attorney's office in Southern District of New York, which has asked for documents relating to its employment of Ross Klein and Amar Lalvani, who are on paid administrative leave "pending Hilton's review of the situation." Hilton also placed on paid administrative leave its luxury-hotel development team. …

LVMH, part of the French luxury empire controlled by Bernard Arnault, may sell some or all of its two-thirds stake in Moët Hennessy, its wine and spirits business, to partner Diageo, Julie MacIntosh, Neil Hume and Jenny Wiggins report. The story is based on information from someone familiar with the talks, which are characterized as "informal" and "hypothetical." A sale would free up cash for LVMH, the world's biggest luxury goods group, to spend on purchases in the fashion side of its business. Industry watchers have said luxury goods makers Hermès or Gucci could fit well within LVMH's portfolio, …

House brands now make up 24% of all food and beverages served in U.S. homes, up from 18% in 1999, according to a new NPD study, and 97% of households purchase unbranded products from time to time, Emily Bryson York reports. "This is a trend, but not just because of economic difficulties," says Harry Balzer, chief industry analyst at NPD. In fact, he says that private-label consumption appeared flat over the past year. Survey participants say they choose private labels because of price and value, but many also feel the quality is similar or superior to name-branded products. …

James R. Healey says the "hybrid war" is officially underway with Toyota's announcement Tuesday that its Prius gasoline-electric hybrid will start at $21,750, which is just $1,280 more than the base price on the cheapest Honda Insight. Toyota spokeswoman Ming-Jou Chen says its better-equipped, mid-level version will make up about two-thirds of Prius sales, but the so-called "Prius I" base model "will be out there." The Prius is also bigger, faster, more fuel-efficient and has a broader array of options. Toyota's aggressive move underscores how vicious the auto market has become but Honda spokesman Sage Marie notes that its …

The hefty, one-third-pound Angus burger that McDonald's has been testing in several markets since March 2007 will be part of the chain's national "Monopoly" promotion in October, according to an internal McDonald's document obtained by the Tribune. Mike Hughlett reports that it may roll out nationally even sooner, however. A franchisee tells him to look for it this summer. The franchisee says that he believes the Angus will be a "promotional" product that shows up on the menu for a few months at a time. "It's not the next Big Mac, that's for sure," he says. It may end up …

Consumer spending on food fell by an inflation-adjusted 3.7% in the last quarter of 2008, forcing food companies to adapt to what they believe will be a lasting shift in eating and shopping habits, Julie Jargon reports. Kraft has recently launched the iFood Assistant for Apple's iPhone, which allows people to search for recipes and manage their shopping lists. Nestle is pushing its popular Lean Cuisine frozen entrees, offering five for $10 in some stores. And Campbell Soup is creating sophisticated recipes that use its soups and broths as an affordable base for hearty comfort food such …

Chain pizza parlors are looking for ways to entice cash-starved customers, too, Jaclyn Trop reports, by broadening their appeal. No. 2 Domino's, for example, has added oven-baked sandwiches to its fare. It's trying to pre-empt what spokesman Tim McIntyre calls the veto vote -- when someone in a group wants something other than pizza. A national trend toward saving money by cooking at home, coupled with rising costs for raw ingredients, has pizzerias squeezed at both ends. Domino's profits fell 32% last year and the company closed 108 stores in the U.S. But sales have been strong for concoctions …

Oracle's Larry Ellison, at 64, is one of the last larger-than-life figures in Silicon Valley, Scott Duke Harris reports, famous for his swagger as much as his swag. He may be the valley's ultimate competitor, known for acquiring companies along with homes, yachts, female companions and, most recently it appears, Sun Microsystems. Oracle will pay $7.4 billion in cash for Sun, pushing the total value of all acquisitions Monday to $16 billion, Jerry Hirsch and Alex Pham reports in the L.A. Times, raising hopes that companies are cranking up their acquisition engines. Sensing that the economic slide may be …