ge corp the main focus for the dow tomorrow, page-3

GE announced they would be spinning off parts of their business units.

Here's the link: http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/10/news/companies/GE_spinoff.ap/index.htm

Why announce this a day before you're about to report Q2 earnings and not on the same day ?

Anyone else experienced companies provide these kind of announcements a day or so prior to reporting quarterly figures ?

If so, have such figures been to the downside or up ?

I'm just trying to understand the logic since the news tonight will have an impact on the DOW.