Merck Buys Cubist, Amazon's Auction Alternative & Cheerios New Flavor

Merck is buying Cubist Pharmaceuticals, Amazon adds a 'make-an-offer' feature,' and General Mills launches ‘Cheerios + Ancient Grains.’

Author:: Gregg Greenberg
Publish date:: Dec 11, 2014 12:14 PM EST

Merck said this week it is buying Cubist Pharmaceuticals for $8.4 billion or $102 per share. Cubist draws most of its revenue from the antibiotic Cubicin which is used to treat Superbugs in hospitals. Meanwhile, Amazon added a new ‘make-an-offer’ feature to its website Tuesday that allows customers to bid for lower prices on art, collectables and rare coins. The online retailer said the new bidding process is different from eBay because price negotiations are private and a customer never pays more than the listed price. Finally, General Mills will launch a new version of its flagship cereal in January called ‘Cheerios + Ancient Grains’, according to NPR. The new variety of the oat-based cereal will also contain small amounts of quinoa, Kamut wheat and spelt.