Whatsapp delays controversial update following privacy backlash January 15, 2021 Whatsapp has delayed changes to its privacy policy following a backlash that saw scores of users flocking to rival apps Telegram and Signal. The messaging app today said it was pushing back the date by which users would have to accept the new terms, adding that no one would have their account suspended or deleted [...]
Dating app Bumble files for US stock market float January 15, 2021 Dating app Bumble has filed for a US initial public offering, joining a host of major tech companies expected to go public this year. The app, which is backed by private equity giant Blackstone, registered for a float of up to $100m (£74m), though this is a placeholder amount and is expected to change. Previous [...]
Signal down: Messaging app stops working after surge in new users January 15, 2021 Messaging app Signal has stopped working in the wake of a huge surge in new users. The social media platform, which bills itself as a more privacy-focused alternative to the incumbent tech giants, suffered glitches this afternoon that prevented messages from sending. There was a spike in users reporting problems with connection and logging in [...]
Satellite firm Oneweb secures $400m in fresh Softbank-led funding January 15, 2021 Oneweb, the satellite broadband firm bailed out by the UK government last year, has raised a further $400m (£294m) in a fresh funding round led by Softbank. The Japanese conglomerate will also take a seat on the board of Oneweb, which was rescued from bankruptcy in November by the government and Indian billionaire Sunil Bharti [...]
Amazon hit with class-action lawsuit over ebook price-fixing January 15, 2021 Amazon has been slapped with a class-action lawsuit over accusations it colluded with publishers to fix ebook prices. The lawsuit, filed in a New York district court, alleges that Amazon and the so-called Big Five publishers — Penguin Random House, Hachette, Harper Collins, Macmillan and Simon & Schuster — agreed to price restraints that cause [...]
Blackrock sells $200m China Telecom stake after US ban January 15, 2021 Blackrock has offloaded almost all of its stake in China Telecom at a significant discount following a new ban on US investment. China Telecom is one of a number of tech firms subject to a Trump administration executive order blocking American investors from owning companies deemed to have links with the Chinese military. The move [...]
Screenshot: Is social media heading for a new era of privacy? January 15, 2021 A weekly column from City A.M. bringing you all the biggest stories and trends in technology, media and telecoms This week **Media Moment of the Week: CNN’s crowbar correction **Whatsapp’s privacy exodus **Music touring: A victim of Brexit? Media Moment of the Week Given the extent of the carnage at the Capitol last week, reporters [...]
CES 2021: Gadgets that wowed us in the first all-digital Las Vegas show January 14, 2021 The first all-digital Consumer Electronics Show has come to an end, and while the event was a little more subdued than normal, there were still some gadgets on show that blew us away. Whether by virtue of their brilliance or their strangeness, here are the gadgets that caught our eye during CES 2021. Razer Project [...]
Google completes $2.1bn Fitbit takeover after antitrust probe January 14, 2021 Google today said it has completed its $2.1bn (£1.5bn) takeover of Fitbit, more than a year after the deal was announced. The tie-up was subjected to a lengthy investigation by regulators amid concerns about Google’s market power and the use of people’s health data in targeted advertising. But the European Commission last month cleared the [...]
Blue Prism enjoys fifth year of revenue growth despite pandemic downturn January 14, 2021 Automation specialist Blue Prism has enjoyed its fifth year of revenue growth even as businesses delayed purchases amid the pandemic. The Aim-listed firm develops Robotic Process Automation (RPA) software, which helps large companies automate complex administrative tasks. Customers responded to the pandemic by delaying purchasing decisions or reducing deal sizes which meant Blue Prism took [...]