Under The Radar News

1. Online dating owner Spark Networks (LOV) is in early talks with suitors, including Yahoo (YHOO), IAC/InterActive's (IACI) Match.com and MySpace (NWS). LOV's market cap is $131.4M, but analysts say a suitor could pay as much as $185M.
2. Liz Claiborne (LIZ) could announce as early as today the sale of its Ellen Tracy brand to private-equity firm American Capital Strategies. LIZ may also be looking to sell its Sigrid Olsen brand.
3. Comerica Inc. (CMA) will issue a prepaid debt card aimed at 40 million Social Security benefits recipients who don't have bank accounts or who don't use them effectively.
4. Most U.K.-based O2 stores are believed to have missed their iPhone (AAPL) targets by "some distance," with a typical store selling just one per week. There appears to have been an upturn recently, to one phone per day. Orange said Thursday it sold 70,000 iPhones since Nov. 28th.
5. Sony BMG Music Entertainment, a JV between Sony (SNE) and Bertelsmann, wants to sell at least part of its music collection DRM-free. The move would follow similar ones by Warner Music Group (WMG) and Universal.
6. Physicians say Bristol-Myers' (BMY) leukemia drug, Sprycel, causes "significant pleural effusions" leading to the discontinuation of treatments by almost 25% of patients. There appear to be "relatively few patients" who have had the complication with Novartis' (NVS) Gleevec.
7. Sony's (SNE) Asia unit is considering a PlayStation Store subscription service. For a flat monthly fee, gamers would be able to play as many PS1 and PSP games as they want.
8. AirTran Airways (AAI) Chairman Joe Leonard will resign in May. New CEO Robert Fornaro will take over. The news comes a few months after AAI lost a bid for MidWest Airways (MEH).
9. UnitedHealth Group's (UNH) $2.4B takeover of Sierra Health (SIE) may require that UnitedHealth sell its Pacificare business.