Baton Rouge getting in the game with EA training center

The new Electronic Arts video game “global quality assurance center” at LSU won’t create that many jobs: 20 full-time, along with 200 part-time jobs for lucky college students who will test the games. But officials at today’s announcement repeatedly stressed it puts Baton Rouge and Louisiana on the digital media map, possibly opening the door to other projects in the future. “We are not stopping here,” Louisiana Economic Development Secretary Stephen Moret says. “We will be leveraging this victory to create many more in the coming years.”

Incentives to EA could total up to $14 million over 10 years, Moret says, including a 20% tax credit on eligible spending, incentives from the state’s “quality jobs” program, and $100,000 from the city-parish for improvements to the South Campus facility that will host the center. Payroll for the operation is expected to reach $5.7 million annually within two years, officials said. Hiring will begin in September.—David Jacobs

LSU makes changes to postgame traffic plans

Several adjustments to postgame traffic direction should improve the flow of vehicles off the LSU campus after football games this fall. The most significant adjustment should help ease the bottleneck that has developed after games on Skip Bertman Drive. To read the full list of changes and other pregame and postgame traffic and parking tips, click here. LSU opens the season Saturday, Aug. 30 against Appalachian State at 4 p.m. The game also will be televised by ESPN.

Capital Creamery sold to Jobe’s Café owner

The Capital Creamery on North Boulevard has been sold. Trinh Tuyet Thai, who owns Jobe's Café, has purchased the ice cream parlor/coffee shop. Thai plans to keep the creamery operating as is, says Dean Vicknair, the former owner. Vicknair says he sold the creamery in order to concentrate on his other downtown business, the Capital Corner Market on Main Street. Vicknair says he plans to expand the market and start stocking gift and grocery items. "I've got my plate full right now," Vicknair says.—Timothy Boone

LSU graduate school gets new dean

William Worger has been named the new dean of the LSU Graduate School, effective Sept. 1 pending approval by the LSU Board of Supervisors. Worger, a native New Zealander and history professor with expertise on South Africa, earned his Ph.D. from Yale University and formerly served as associate dean of UCLA's graduate school. He also held positions at Stanford University and the University of Michigan before going to UCLA in 1989. Worger succeeds Harold Silverman, who left LSU last year for a job as vice provost of academic affairs at the State University of New York.—Steve Clark

Does Baton Rouge pastor have license to steal?

The Rev. Donald Britton has a felony conviction for stealing thousands of dollars from a client at a government-funded homeless shelter. So how did he end up getting a couple of six-figure government grants from the state of Louisiana? Read the 225 story here.

FTC hangs up on telemarketers

Effective Sept. 1 of next year, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission will bar telemarketers from making prerecorded sales calls unless a consumer agrees in writing to receive them. The FTC also will require all these calls include an opt-out feature to automatically place the caller on the do-not-call list. The rules, proposed in 2006, generated thousands of consumer objections to telemarketers' requests for more flexibility on making the calls. Charitable organizations are exempt from the ruling.

Fay meanders along Florida’s east coast

Tropical Storm Fay meandered north along the Florida Atlantic coast Wednesday but did not immediately head out over the ocean, lessening the chances it will gain strength and become a hurricane. At 10 a.m., Fay was located 15 miles north of Cape Canaveral with winds of 50 mph. Fay was moving to the north at 3 mph and was expected to hug Florida’s east coast before making a gradual turn to the northwest later today or Thursday. According to the five-day forecast issued this morning by the National Hurricane Center, Fay is expected to be near Tallahassee, Fla., as a tropical depression on Saturday and south of Meridian, Miss., as a depression on Sunday. Click here for the National Hurricane Center Web site for updates on Fay.

Olympics: Redeem Team routs Australia … Bolt strikes again … U.S. needs extra innings in softball

Men's basketball: Kobe Bryant scored 25 points in his best game in Beijing, and the U.S. Olympic team advanced to the semifinals by beating Australia 116-85 today. The United States will play defending champion Argentina or Greece on Friday night for a spot in Sunday's gold medal game. Locked in what looked like another tough game in Australia, the Americans sent the Aussies' upset hopes down under with a 14-0 burst to open the second half, featuring nine points from Bryant. … Men’s track and field: Usain Bolt of Jamaica broke the world record by winning the 200 meters in 19.30 seconds, becoming the first man since Carl Lewis to sweep the 100 and 200 gold medals at the Olympics. Bolt eclipsed the old record of 19.32 seconds set by Michael Johnson in Atlanta in 1996. Softball: Pushed to extra innings, the U.S. team scored four runs in the ninth inning and beat Japan 4-1 to move within one win of its fourth straight gold medal—in the sport's farewell for now. Crystl Bustos hit a three-run homer in the ninth inning as the Americans extended their Olympic winning streak to 22.

News roundup: Mortgage application volume hits multiyear low … eBay lowering fixed-price sellers’ listing fees

Lowest level since 2000: Mortgage application volume fell last week to its lowest levels in nearly eight years, the Mortgage Bankers Association said today. The trade group's application index fell to 419.3 during the week ended Aug. 15, its lowest level since the index hit 298.3 in December 2000, and a 1.5 percent decline from the prior week. Application volume is down 61 percent from its 2008 peak in February. Bold move for eBay: Ebay is cutting the fees U.S. sellers on its site pay for fixed-price items, in one of the company's boldest moves this year to boost merchandise for sale, lure new buyers and take on competitors. Instead of charging sellers to list each item separately, eBay will charge 35 cents to list any number of the same types of fixed-price items. The move, effective September 16, is a bid to reduce the clutter of similar items on eBay—100 pairs of white socks will now be sold as a group, for example.