(Business 2.0) – DATA STORAGE Sony Sees Blue Light Blue lasers squeeze much more data onto optical discs than the red lasers found in today's DVD recorders. In Japan, Sony begins selling the BDZ-S77, the first consumer blue-laser recorder, which uses the Blu-ray technology to burn 23GB onto 4.7-inch discs. April 10

MEDICINE More Privacy for Patients New guidelines for safeguarding medical records, known as HIPAA, begin to take effect. Compliance has created big headaches for physicians and hospital administrators, but it may be a bonanza for biometrics, VPN, and data-security specialists. April 14

AIRLINES Delta's New Tune Hoping to mimic Southwest and JetBlue, Delta Airlines is launching Song, its own discount carrier, with a maiden flight from New York to West Palm Beach, Fla. Besides low fares, Song also plans to offer a deep library of in-flight MP3s. April 15

TAXES Point, Click, File PayCycle joins H&R Block and Intuit this year on the list of tax-season beneficiaries. The payroll applications firm recently landed the Internal Revenue Service as a client to help process returns from 54 million small businesses that are expected to file electronically. April 15

TECH MARKETING Money In, Sales Out? Minnesota research firm SoftwareMinds will release its 2002 survey on software marketing best practices and budgets. Based on input from industry execs, the report should provide insight into which tactics achieve the best return on investment in a tough economy. Late April

ECONOMIC STATISTICS Work Faster, Please The economy performed worse than expected during the final quarter of 2002. As the Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes its productivity and costs report for Q1, Wall Street will be looking for productivity gains to offset the inflation caused by rising gas prices. May 1