Media Digest (12/20/2011) Reuters, WSJ, NYT, FT

AT&T (NYSE: T) gives up on its effort to buy T-Mobile. (Reuters)

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) wins a patent case over HTC in the smartphone wars. (Reuters)

Olympus will sell shares to Sony (NYSE: SNE) and Fuji Film to help its battered balance sheet. (Reuters)

A new set of loans to the IMF will be set to help struggling EU nations, but the UK did not contribute to the 150 billion euro fund. (Reuters)

In a sign of worsening trouble for the financial firm, Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) shares trade below $5. (Reuters)

LightSquared, Falcone’s wireless company, is nearly out of money. (Reuters)

Sony sold 321,000 PlayStation Vitas in its first two days on sale. (Reuters)

A tax increase in the U.S. for 2012 is more likely as Congress wrangles over a budget. (WSJ)

An ITC ruling against HTC may hurt the efforts of Google’s (NASDAQ: GOOG) Android. (WSJ)

Google and KKR (NYSE: KKR) will invest in a new solar venture. (WSJ)

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers granted ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) permission to drill in northern Alaska. (WSJ)

Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) says its sales growth has improved. (WSJ)

FBI reports show crime dropped for the fourth straight year. (WSJ)

Spain will try to cut its deficit by more than $21 billion next year. (WSJ)

The number two executive at Cablevision (NYSE: CVC), Tom Rutledge, leaves for Charter (NASDAQ: CHTR). (WSJ)

Winn-Dixie is taken private by BI-LO  for $560 million. (WSJ)

The New York Times (NYSE: NYT) may sell 16 local newspapers. (WSJ)

Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) has set plans for online coupons. (WSJ)

China may allow its citizens to invest more overseas. (WSJ)

A new UK plan will make banks and investment houses legally different entities by 2019. (NYT)

Japan will buy a new F-35 fighter jet from Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT). (FT)

The European Central Bank says contagion remains the greatest risk of the EU financial crisis. (FT)

Douglas A. McIntyre