Inmarsat takes on Elon Musk and Oneweb with satellite network launch July 29, 2021 British satellite giant Inmarsat is launching a new network of satellites to offer global broadband and 5G services, joining an escalating space race alongside rivals Elon Musk and Oneweb. The project, dubbed Orchestra, will bring together the company’s existing geosynchronous satellites (Geo) with low-earth orbit satellites (Leo) and land-based 5G services to create a single [...]
Met Office warns of climate change as UK weather hit record levels last year July 29, 2021 The Met Office has warned that last year was the first in history to have temperatures, rains and sunshine hit record levels. The effects of climate change continue to be felt across the UK, the Met Office said in a report today, during a July which brought both heat-health warnings and flooding to London. “This [...]
Netflix, Google and Facebook to require jabs for return to office July 29, 2021 Netflix, Google and Facebook will require all US employees to be vaccinated against Covid-19 before they can return to work. In an email to staff Google boss Sundar Pichai said the tech giant was pushing back its return to the office from September to mid-October. He added that vaccinations will be compulsory for US staff, [...]
Robinhood valued at $32bn as it prices shares ahead of IPO July 29, 2021 Popular trading platform Robinhood has been valued at $32bn (£23bn) after pricing its shares at the lower end of the guidance range ahead of its stock market debut. Robinhood priced its shares at $38 each — the bottom end of its $38 to $42 range — as it gears up for an eagerly-anticipated initial public [...]
Google hit with £920m UK lawsuit over ‘unlawful’ app store charges July 29, 2021 Google has been slapped with a £920m class action lawsuit in the UK over claims charges on its Google Play Store are “excessive and unlawful”. The claim, filed in the Competition Appeal Tribunal in London, alleges that the tech giant shuts down competition in its Play store and hits out at its 30 per cent [...]
MPs and peers launch ‘super committee’ to scrutinise online harms laws July 29, 2021 A joint committee of MPs and lords has been launched today to scrutinise controversial government plans to tackle online harms. The new super committee will be tasked with seeking views on the online safety bill, which was published in draft form in May. The bill is designed to hold tech giants such as Facebook and [...]
Spotify beats forecasts as paid subscribers hit 165m July 28, 2021 Spotify has beaten expectations for the second quarter as the streaming giant saw its paid subscriber numbers grow by a fifth. The Swedish company said premium subscribers jumped 20 per cent year on year to hit 165m in its latest quarter – towards the upper end of its guidance and modelty ahead of forecasts. Monthly [...]
Exclusive: UK esports funding hits record high amid lockdown gaming boom July 28, 2021 British esports startups enjoyed record levels of investment last year as surging interest in the sector during Covid lockdowns helped fuel a major cash injection. Esports firms raised £42m in 2020, which was a record year for both value and number of deals. The momentum has continued into 2021, with eight deals worth £15m already [...]
Big Tech earnings: What to expect this week as tech titans report July 27, 2021 Wall Street is gearing up for a slew of Big Tech earnings this week with Apple, Amazon, Facebook, Google and Microsoft all set to deliver figures for their latest quarter. Twitter and Snap kicked off proceedings by smashing expectations last week, raising hopes that a post-pandemic advertising rebound will boost other platforms. Tesla also shrugged [...]
Dallas engineering giant Jacobs to support UK’s first satellite launch site July 27, 2021 Dallas engineering giant Jacobs, which works with NASA, has secured a role in supporting the UK’s first vertical space satellite launch site due to be based in the Scottish Highlands. Jacobs will assess the local supply chain and report on how advanced engineering, asset management and avionics – aviation electronics – can be transferred to [...]