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U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday withdrew an offer for Iran to attend Syria peace negotiations after Tehran declared it does not support the June 2012 political transition deal that is the basis for the talks. _0"> "He (Ban) continues to urge Iran to join the global consensus behind the Geneva communiqué," Ban's spokesman Martin Nesirky said. "Given that it has chosen to remain outside that basic understanding, (Ban) has decided that the one-day Montreux gathering will proceed without Iran's participation." Ban said earlier that Iran's public statement that it did not support the 2012 Geneva deal calling for a transitional government for Syria was "not consistent" with assurances he had been given by Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. (Reporting by Michelle Nichols and Louis Charbonneau)

U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon withdrew a last-minute invitation to Iran to attend peace talks on Syria on Monday after the Syrian opposition threatened to boycott this week's conference if President Bashar al-Assad's main sponsor took part. Ending nearly 24 hours of confusion that dismayed diplomats who have spent months cajoling Assad's opponents to negotiate, Ban's spokesman said Iran was no longer welcome at the initial day of talks at Montreux, Switzerland on Wednesday. The opposition immediately withdrew its threat to stay away from the conference known as Geneva-2. But the uproar over Iran, which has provided Assad with money, arms and men, underlined the difficulties of negotiating an end to a bloody, three-year civil war that has divided the Middle East and world powers. Ban, his spokesman said, made the invitation to Iran after Iranian officials assured him they supported the conclusion of a U.N. conference in 2012, known as Geneva-1, which called for a transiti

Softbank Corp has entered direct talks with Deutsche Telekom as it seeks to combine its Sprint Corp unit with the German company's T-Mobile US, Bloomberg reported on Sunday, citing people familiar with the matter. _0"> Deutsche Telekom this week transferred ownership of its 67 percent stake in T-Mobile to a Dutch holding company from a German holding company, fuelling speculation it may be looking to sell the U.S. business. Sprint and T-Mobile US have long wanted to combine to create a stronger rival against the top two U.S. mobile carriers, Verizon and AT&T, while Softbank CEO Masayoshi Son wants to build the world's biggest mobile Internet company. Softbank has assurances from banks that financing is available but an agreement could still take months to reach, Bloomberg reported. Matters to be resolved include how much cash and stock SoftBank will pay for Deutsche Telekom's stake in T-Mobile, and how Sprint and T-Mobile will be integrated, Bloomberg furt

Vodafone and BSkyB have held high-level discussions on how to curb BT's growing reach over the broadband market, the Sunday Times reported, citing senior sources. _0"> The newspaper said the talks illustrate the extent to which the once-staid telecoms operator has gained on its competitors by betting on fiber broadband and top flight football. According to its sources, the newspaper said BSkyB, the Rupert Murdoch-owned pay-TV group, and Vodafone discussed striking deals on Sky's sports and movie channels and collaborating on a high-speed broadband service. However, the sources said, it was unlikely that the two firms would build a nationwide fiber network because it would cost several billion pounds. Vodafone declined to comment while Sky was not immediately available to comment. BT is spending more than 3 billion pounds ($4.93 billion) on a high-speed fiber-optic network that should reach 90 percent of homes by next year and a further 2 billion pounds on sports

Hewlett-Packard Co said on Friday it has made decisions on how to address shareholders' securities fraud claims over its $8.8 billion writedown for its purchase of British software company Autonomy Plc, but wants six more weeks to decide what legal course to pursue. U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco had on September 6 given Hewlett-Packard until Friday to vote on recommendations by a committee of independent directors. The committee was to advise whether the Palo Alto, California-based personal computer and printer company should try to have claims against various officers and directors dismissed, or join the claims in a bid to recoup its losses. In a Friday court filing, Hewlett-Packard said its board has reviewed the recommendations and "made decisions with respect to the actions that it deems to be in the best interests of the company and its shareholders." It nonetheless said it has agreed with the plaintiffs' lawyers to keep the lawsuit on

A data breach at Target Corp that exposed the credit card information of tens of millions of holiday shoppers was a major black eye for the retailer. In its wake, investors and analysts are circling companies that could benefit from a major upgrade in credit card technology. One of their favorites: Verifone Systems Inc, a $3.2 billion market cap company that is one of two major global manufacturers of point-of-sale terminals and mobile payments systems and could profit from any major upgrades of payment technology. Analysts at JPMorgan Chase and Jefferies & Co upgraded their outlook for the company in the last 10 days, helping send its shares price up about 25 percent since the Target breach was first reported on December 18. Yet for its shares to continue to rally, Verifone must prove to analysts and portfolio managers it has taken steps to right its own ship after several years of choppy performance. That question mark is a product of several years of poor acquisitions and a

Nintendo Co Ltd will likely be reluctant to make radical changes such as allowing its games to be played on rivals' devices as it grapples with poor sales of its flagship Wii U game console, which forced it to slash its outlook and sent its shares tumbling. Unlike rivals Microsoft Corp and Sony Corp, whose recently released XBox One and PlayStation 4 have seen strong sales, the creator of "Super Mario" has resisted pressure to open up game development to other firms. Nintendo relies on the popularity of its franchises, such as Mario and Zelda, to drive sales of its hardware. Some analysts say Nintendo is missing out, however, by not releasing a version of its games for smartphones or tablets, which now exceed 1 billion in use and account for a rising proportion of games played. But there are no signs that Nintendo, which plans to unveil a new management strategy on January 30 after releasing quarterly results, is likely to soften its stance. "I think the compan

International Business Machines Corp is thinking of selling off its low-end server business and Dell Inc may be among potential bidders, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing sources. _0"> A deal to sell all or part of the world's largest technology service company's x86 server business to China's Lenovo Group Ltd fell through as the two sides couldn't agree on a price, sources had said last year. Whether Lenovo was still interested in the business and if there are any more potential buyers was not clear, the Wall Street Journal report said. ( r.reuters.com/bup26v ) The low-margin, but high-growth businesses will help Dell, which has been trying to increase sales, gain scale as it focuses more on enterprise clients. Founder Michael Dell succeeded in taking the company private in a $25 billion deal last year after prolonged trouble. (Corrects source in paragraph 3 to Wall Street Journal from Bloomberg) (Reporting by Devika Krishna Kumar; Editing by Joy

Accenture Ltd on Monday said it would buy cloud computing services provider ClientHouse as part of a plan to expand its capabilities in Europe. _0"> Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. ClientHouse is an independent provider of cloud computing services from Salesforce.com, as well as Veeva Systems, which provides cloud-based services to biotech companies, Accenture said in a statement. Shares of Accenture closed Friday at $84.43. (Reporting by Ryan Vlastelica; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

Telecoms network operators are expected to spend more on equipment for the second straight year in 2014, with China and Europe bringing a fresh spurt of growth as service providers need to build out high speed 4G mobile broadband networks. Market research group Gartner sees global sales of network equipment to carriers rising 6 percent to $85.4 billion this year, up from 3 percent last year. Asia, excluding Japan , should grow 7 percent, and Europe and North America 6 percent. Specialist telecoms forecaster Dell'Oro is less bullish but still expects 3 percent growth, compared with 2 percent in 2013. The predictions are good news for Europe's network equipment makers - Sweden's Ericsson, Finland's Nokia and Franco-American group Alcatel-Lucent - but analysts do not expect a softening of brutal price competition with low-cost Chinese rivals. Nor will all the vendors fare the same. China Mobile's huge roll-out of 4G will be more of a boon for domestic firms Huaw

Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales has taken a "substantial" stake in The People's Operator (TPO), a London-based mobile provider that pays 10 percent of revenue to good causes, with the aim of taking it to the United States and other markets. Wales said TPO had pulled off the difficult feat of creating an inspirational business that had solid commercial foundations. "Its big vision is to generate massive sums of money for good causes," he said in a telephone interview on Monday. "But when I worked though the numbers and looked at the business model, it made a lot of sense to me." TPO is a so-called mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), which means it relies on an existing operator's network, in this case EE, the British joint venture between France's Orange and Deutsche Telekom. It launched a pay-as-you-go operation in November 2012 and followed in April 2013 with a contract offering unlimited voice, mobile and data for 14.99 pounds ($24

China's Lenovo Group Ltd has resumed discussions to buy International Business Machines Corp's low-end server unit, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. _0"> The two companies were in discussions to buy the division last year, but no deal was made as they couldn't agree on a price, sources have said. It was unclear how far along the more recent talks were, or what prices were being considered. An IBM spokesman said on Monday the company wouldn't comment on the report, nor on similar reports in other media outlets. Bloomberg, citing a person with direct knowledge of the matter, said Lenovo was in serious discussions to buy the unit and that a deal may be signed within weeks. The Wall Street Journal, also citing unnamed sources, said Dell Inc may be among the potential buyers, though it was unclear how serious Dell was. Dell went private in a $25 billion deal last year, following prolonged troubles at the computer maker. IBM's x86 server bus

American Patrick Reed survived a few anxious moments and poor swings midway through the final round to seal his second PGA Tour victory by two shots at the $5.7 million Humana Challenge on Sunday in La Quinta, California. _0"> A commanding seven strokes ahead overnight, Reed mixed four bogeys with three birdies in a roller-coaster stretch of eight holes from the fifth but held steady after that to close with a one-under-par 71 on the Palmer Private course at PGA West. "I wasn't pleased with the round today but I got it done," the burly 23-year-old told Golf Channel after completing a wire-to-wire victory with a 28-under total of 260, finishing two ahead of fellow American Ryan Palmer (63). "The first three days were kind of grind and go, play as low as you can," said Reed, who became the first player on the PGA Tour to post scores no worse than 63 in each of the first three rounds. "But Sundays are always a little harder, as everyone knows, an

Shaun White has succeeded in his bid to earn selection for two snowboarding events at next month's Winter Olympics in Sochi. _0"> The 27-year-old Californian, who won gold in the men's halfpipe at each of the past two Winter Olympics, was picked in the U.S. team for the halfpipe and slopestyle, which has been added to the Olympic program for the first time. White secured his place in the slopestyle on Thursday then booked his spot in the halfpipe by winning the last qualifying event on Sunday. He was among 13 snowboarders, including a brother and sister with an ominous name for victory, who were named in a powerful U.S. squad. Taylor Gold joined White in making the men's halfpipe team while his teenage sister Arielle Gold made the same event in the women's division. Kelly Clark, the Olympic champion in the women's halfpipe at Salt Lake City in 2002, was chosen for her fourth Olympics while Hannah Teter, the gold medalist in 2006 and silver medalist i

Peyton Manning can lift one of the few clouds hanging over his career and confirm his status as one of the gridiron's greats after guiding the Denver Broncos into the Super Bowl with a win over the New England Patriots on Sunday. _0"> There is no disputing the four-time National Football League most valuable player's Hall of Fame credentials, but with just one Super Bowl ring where he ranks among the sport's best is open to debate. Two seasons removed from missing a year due to neck surgeries, Manning produced a campaign for the ages setting a single season marks for touchdown passes (55) and yards (5,477). With Manning at the controls of Denver's powerhouse offense, the Broncos scored a record 606 points, 161 ahead the next closest pursuer. Certainly Broncos head coach John Fox, who overcame his own serious health issue, missing a month of the regular season after undergoing heart surgery to replace an aortic valve, knows where his quarterback ranks among

Peyton Manning outshined his future Hall of Fame rival Tom Brady, firing two touchdown passes, as the Denver Broncos rolled to a 26-16 win over the New England Patriots on Sunday to secure their first trip to the Super Bowl in 15 years. _0"> The Broncos and the National Football League's top-ranked offense will take on the Seattle Seahawks and the number one defense at New Jersey's MetLife Stadium on February 2 in what should provide the first cold weather Super Bowl with a sizzling matchup. "The heart feels great," said Denver coach John Fox, who missed a month of the regular season after undergoing heart surgery in November for an aortic heart valve replacement. "He (Manning) has been remarkable. "To have the kind of season, not just today, but all season long that he had to me is pretty remarkable. "And there is still one more game." The AFC title game had been hyped as Manning verses Brady 15, a legacy showdown between two of the

The Seattle Seahawks turned up the defensive heat on the San Francisco 49ers to win the National Football League's NFC Championship 23-17 on Sunday and earn a place in next month's Super Bowl against the Denver Broncos. _0"> The Seahawks advanced to the NFL title game for the only the second time in their 37-year history, while their fellow top-seeded Broncos sealed their place with a 26-16 win over the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship. Seattle battled back from a 17-10 deficit midway through the third quarter with 13 unanswered points, roared on by the raucous CenturyLink home fans as the NFL's top-rated defense registered three turnovers in the fourth quarter. "We threw a tremendous night of defense out there," Seattle coach Pete Carroll told reporters. "We really played great "D", and we needed it down the stretch." San Francisco coach Jim Harbaugh, a coaching rival of Carroll's dating back to college football d

Maria Sharapova's quest for a second Australian Open title was halted in the fourth round on Monday when the third seeded Russian ran out of steam against an inspired Dominika Cibulkova, who emerged with a 3-6 6-4 6-1 victory on Rod Laver Arena. _0"> After her Slovakian opponent had leveled the match, the 2008 champion took a medical time-out before and third set for treatment on a hip injury but Sharapova was reluctant to use that as an excuse for her shock defeat. "Those aches and pains are expected when you spend a long time on the court," Sharapova said after she became the second former champion to crash out in the fourth round following world number one Serena Williams' loss on Sunday. "I haven't been playing the best tennis of this tournament, but I found ways to get through to the last two matches. "Tried to do that again today, but she played extremely well." Sharapova, despite being rusty after missing the latter part of the

The opening stage of cycling's Tour Down Under will go ahead as planned, its race director said on Monday, though the Tour is taking advice from authorities about the danger fires pose to the route. _0"> The six-stage Tour is scheduled to start on Tuesday, with the 135 km first stage running through the Barossa Valley, which is currently under threat from fires. The Tour said it was taking advice from the Country Fire Service and South Australian Police and decided to go ahead with the stage based on their advice. "Obviously this advice might change subject to the conditions and we'll continue to be guided by the advice we receive from the Country Fire Service and South Australian Police," race director Mike Turtur said in a statement. "But our advice is that the race route and the towns through which the race will travel are not in the fire area and it is safe for us to continue as planned." Fires in the Barossa Valley have threatened lives a

The Denver Broncos and the Seattle Seahawks won their National Football League conference championships in brilliant style on Sunday to set up a historic Super Bowl between the top two ranked teams in the United States. The Broncos, led by their unflappable quarterback Peyton Manning, beat the New England Patriots 26-16 in Colorado to make it to their first Super Bowl in 15 years. The Seahawks overturned a 10-0 deficit to defeat the San Francisco 49ers 23-17 in Washington state and advance to the NFL's title game for just the second time in the franchise's history. "This feels even sweeter," said Seattle owner and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. "What an amazing job in a super tough game." The two teams will meet in the 48th Super Bowl at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on February 2 in a game that has all the makings of a classic with the Broncos boasting the best offense in the league and the Seahawks the best defense. The Broncos will be appearing i

Sloane Stephens has denied she was celebrating the shock fourth round exit of world number one Serena Williams and said she felt the television footage was intrusive. _0"> Stephens had been captured by television with a wide grin on her face when Williams was beaten by Serbia's Ana Ivanovic on Sunday and then seemingly rising her arms in triumph and trying to 'high-five' one of her support team. Local media had jumped on the footage and said the actions would probably further sour an already frosty relationship between the world number one and Stephens that developed after the youngster beat Williams in last year's Australian Open quarter-finals. The 20-year-old, however, was adamant she had not been celebrating Williams' demise but was merely mimicking the actions of Ivanovic's supporters in the players' box. "There was no raising of the arms," the 13th seed said after she was beaten 6-3 6-2 by two-times champion Victoria Azarenka on

A ruffled Rafa Nadal fumed after being called for multiple time violations but composed himself to fend off a gallant Kei Nishikori and reach the quarter-finals of the Australian Open on Monday with a tense 7-6 (7-3) 7-5 7-6 (7-3) win. Nadal's fidgeting, shorts-tugging preparation before serves is a famous quirk of the Spaniard's game but it fell foul of watchful Greek umpire Evanthia Asderaki, and at exactly the wrong moment. With the third set locked at 4-4 and deuce, the world number one's breach of the 20-second time limit saw him forfeit his first serve and throw away the ball in disgust in a rare loss of composure at Rod Laver Arena. Nishikori duly won the next two points to capture the break and leave the Spaniard muttering as he trudged back to his chair, throwing a withering look at Asderaki. Clearly fired up, Nadal struck back the next game to put the match back on serve and punished the profligate Nishikori in the tiebreak to set up a quarter-final against

A majestic Roger Federer emphatically returned to the grand slam big-time by trouncing Jo Wilfried-Tsonga 6-3 7-5 6-4 at the Australian Open on Monday to book a blockbuster quarter-final with Wimbledon champion Andy Murray. The former world number one, coming off a wretched 2013, channeled the halcyon days of his new coach Stefan Edberg, swooping at the net to fell the stunned Frenchman at an electric Rod Laver Arena. Having suffered early exits at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, Federer muscled into his 41st grand slam quarter-final, equaling the record of American Jimmy Connors in the professional era. Under the watchful eye of Edberg - one of the game's finest serve-volleyers - the Swiss master fittingly sealed the match with an imperious cross-court volley and declared the crisis of confidence that blighted last season banished. "For me personally, I've overcome it, I don't have doubts anymore," the 32-year-old told reporters. "I know I'm going de

Rafa Nadal came through his first proper test to storm into the quarter-finals of the Australian Open on Monday but Maria Sharapova was ushered to the exit after a second big shock in as many days in the women's draw. Victoria Azarenka was left as the only top-three seed still standing in the last eight when Sharapova was scratched from the title race by Dominika Cibulkova, a day after Serena Williams had also tumbled out in the fourth round. In the men's draw, the "Big Four" look poised to scrap it out for yet another grand slam crown over the next week after Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray all won on Monday to join Novak Djokovic in the last eight. Spaniard Nadal led the way with a 7-6 (7-3) 7-5 7-6 (7-3) victory over Japan's Kei Nishikori on Rod Laver Arena that was by no means as easy as the phrase "straight sets" would suggest. The world number one had to contend with a blister on his hand, a tumble, a time violation at a crucial moment a

Two men said by Islamist militants to have carried out suicide attacks in south Russia appeared in a video donning explosive belts and warning Vladimir Putin to expect a "present" at the Sochi Winter Olympics from fighters following after them. The video was posted by a group identifying itself as Vilayat Dagestan and appeared on a website often used by militants from Russia's northern Caucasus region where Moscow has been battling insurgency for over a decade. It could not be independently corroborated. The video said the two men, named only as Suleiman and Abdulrakhman and posing also with assault rifles in front of a banner with Arabic writing, were the suicide bombers who attacked the city of Volgograd last month killing at least 34. One, who is bearded, reads a statement in Russian to the wailing of a song in Arabic. The video shows them having what appear to be explosive devices attached to them and one pushing a button that nestles in his hand and appears to

Jerome Champagne launched his bid to stand for the FIFA presidency on Monday but immediately undermined his campaign by saying he did not think he could beat Sepp Blatter should the Swiss incumbent stand for re-election. Frenchman Champagne, 55, a former diplomat, worked at FIFA for 11 years from 1999 and is a former deputy Secretary General of world soccer's governing body. At a packed London news conference he confirmed his plans to stand for the most influential job in soccer, with a program of reform aimed at limiting the influence of the richer sections of the game. However, after outlining details of his policy ideas and setting the ball rolling for a potential 15-month campaign, he was left stalled on the grid when he admitted he would probably not beat Blatter and might not even stand should his former boss attempt to hold on to power. Asked if he could beat Blatter, who hinted last week that he would stand again, Champagne said: "No I don't think so, he'

The trial of French soccer internationals Franck Ribery and Karim Benzema on charges of soliciting an underage prostitute started on Monday. Real Madrid striker Benzema and Bayern Munich forward Ribery, who are not attending the four-day trial, are being tried on charges of paying Zahia Dehar, a prostitute-turned-fashion model, for sex in 2008 and 2009, when she was aged 16 and 17. Ribery has admitted paying her for sex but said he did not know how hold she was. Benzema has denied having any sexual relations with Dehar. Paying for sex is not illegal in France but underage prostitution is. The trial is going on amid a heated debate in France over a reform of prostitution laws aimed at imposing fines on clients. Benzema and Ribery's lawyers said on Monday they were confident the players would be cleared of all charges. They stressed that a Paris prosecutor said during the investigation that there was no evidence to prove that Ribery and Benzema could have known the girl was

San Francisco Pro Bowl players NaVorro Bowman and Mike Iupati both suffered major injuries in the 49ers' 23-17 loss to the Seattle Seahawks in Sunday's NFC championship game. _0"> Linebacker Bowman went down with a likely torn ACL injury to his left knee while left guard Iupati fractured his left ankle, the team said. Iupati's injury occurred early in the game on a fourth-down plunge into the end zone by 49ers running back Anthony Dixon. The 331-pound (150 kg) guard was buried under a pile of players on the goal line and had to be helped off the field. Bowman's injury in the second half was another devastating blow for the 49ers. He and Iupati both left the locker room after the game on crutches. Bowman took the ball away from receiver Jermaine Kearse just short of the goal line in a fourth-quarter play, but had his leg bent badly when Kearse fell on him. Adding insult to injury, the play was not ruled a fumble and Seattle was given the ball on the one-y

American slalom specialist Mikaela Shiffrin is a woman in a hurry. Just 18 years old, the teenager already is a World Cup winner and world champion in slalom with an Olympic medal well within her sights. And with compatriot Lindsey Vonn missing the Games due to injury, more attention will turn to the Colorado-born Shiffrin. "It's nice to sing my national anthem a couple of races before the Olympics," Shiffrin told the Team USA website ( alpine.usskiteam.com/ ) after a recent World Cup slalom victory in Flachau, Austria. "Hopefully I can sing it again in Sochi." The night-time Austrian victory, her second World Cup win in a row and third of the season, makes her a hot favorite for gold in Sochi with a great deal of media attention and high expectations from American fans. For most athletes that level of attention might be a burden, but Shiffrin has shown little sign so far that she is not able to cope with the pressure. "If I'm a medal contende

Jean-Frederic Chapuis casually thinks about becoming Olympic champion in Sochi next month. The first Frenchman to be crowned ski cross world champion, Chapuis turned his sights towards the discipline after failing to make it to the highly competitive French Alpine skiing national team. "What I liked in ski cross is the direct confrontation with your rivals," Chapuis, who made his World Cup debut in 2010, told Reuters. "It also perfectly suits my instinctive side." With four skiers starting from the same gate and extremely high chances of crashes, ski cross is rather unpredictable, but there is no result without hard work. "It's just that the attitude is more easy going than in Alpine skiing. Otherwise there is at least as much training involved," the 24-year-old Chapuis explained. Michel Lucatelli, the head of the French ski cross national team, said Chapuis had huge potential. "He has good instincts, he's fast and technical on the sk

For Canadians Sidney Crosby is an ice hockey God. A superhero with a hockey stick wearing the Maple Leaf on his chest who came to the hockey mad country's rescue four years ago at the Vancouver Winter Games by scoring the golden goal against the United States that crowned Canada Olympic champions. 'Sid the Kid', the all-Canadian boy from tiny Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia with impeccable politeness and magical talent, was the toast of the Great White North. A once in a generation player who would carry the Canadian flag and hockey hopes of his country for years to come, Crosby's future seemed as bright as the shiny gold medal that hung around his neck. But the architect of one of the greatest moments in Canadian sporting history would spend a good portion of the next two years not in the spotlight but sitting in the dark, his brilliance dimmed by sport's latest scourge - concussions. Just 23 years old when he was flattened by a David Steckel shoulder on New Year&