TACOMA, Wash. -- Could convenience store industry stalwarts Sheetz and Wawa be among the next chains to be bought out? That's the opinion of one consultant, who argues growth issues make the two chains ripe for acquisition in 2010.

"These are my takeover or take-out targets for 2010," said Steven Johnson, founder of Foodservice Solutions, Tacoma, Wash.

NEW YORK -- Every day, millions of consumers swipe their debit cards and choose whether to punch in a code or sign their name. It is a pointless distinction to most consumers, since the price is the same either way. But behind the scenes, billions of dollars are at stake, reported The New York Times.

How this came to be is largely a result of a successful if controversial strategy initiated decades ago by Visa. It is an approach that has benefited Visa and the nation's banks at the expense of merchants and, some argue, consumers.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Pilot Travel Centers has launched a major new initiative using communications tools ranging from putting messages on its fleet of tanker trucks to launching new social media sites to promote its coffees in 2010 and tout Pilot coffee as "the best on the interstate."

The initiative includes the company's first official Facebook fan page dedicated exclusively to coffee and a brand new Twitter account.