City AM talk with Bink cofounders Lee Clarke and Greg Gormley about resuscitating the loyalty marketing industry October 17, 2016 The road to a cashless society has been a fairly smooth one so far – the ubiquity of contactless payments and online shopping have made it so. But where cash may have once made your wallet bulge, often the weight has been replaced with a deck of loyalty cards. Before we’re quite done eradicating cash, [...]
Meet the founder of Happn – the dating app putting love on the map October 17, 2016 Nearly one in 10 Londoners use dating app Happn. A colleague who’s more in the know than I am tells me it’s “recently become enormous on Instagram” – users can upload pictures direct from one to the other, with 30 of your most recent appearing automatically on your Happn profile. And once you’ve liked someone, [...]
Construction begins on the £200m research vessel that the public tried to name Boaty McBoatface October 17, 2016 Construction will today be launched on a new state-of-the-art research ship that members of the public attempted to brand “Boaty McBoatface”. Work on the £200m ship, now named RRS Sir David Attenborough, will be launched by the famed naturalist himself, who will initiate the lifting of the first 100 tonne hull unit in Birkenhead later today. [...]
Misys cuts float value as Brexit volatility bites October 16, 2016 Financial technology company Misys has been forced to cut the value of its pending market flotation due to Brexit-induced market volatility. The company is the latest in a string of firms that has had to dial back or call off plans to list as a result of the UK’s shock vote to quit the European Union [...]
MPs have blasted Twitter over failure to tackle anti-Semitism October 16, 2016 Twitter has incurred the ire of a group of MPs who have accuse it of not doing enough to stop the "pernicious problem" of anti-Semitic hate speech. The struggling social network was singled out by MPs on the home affairs select committee as acting as "an inert host for vast swathes of anti-Semitic hate speech and [...]
easyJet will invest millions in tech startups with Founders Factory October 16, 2016 easyJet is the latest established business tapping tech talent to boost innovation, partnering with the high-profile London-based startup accelerator and incubator Founders Factory. The airline is the sixth corporate backer of the startup hot house created by renowned entrepreneurs Brent Hoberman and Henry Lane Fox – both of Lastminute.com fame – with the ambitious goal of creating 200 successful startups over the next five years. The [...]
“It wasn’t the right fit for us”: Salesforce shares jump as boss unfollows Twitter, ruling out takeover bid October 15, 2016 Twitter’s share price dropped more than five per cent in the US on Friday after a takeover offer was ruled out by Salesforce – whose shares jumped five per cent on the news. The social media company’s shares were trading at close to $25 on 5 October after reports suggested a bidding process was about [...]
Here’s a novel way your office could stay cool next summer October 14, 2016 Snow cleared from roads in winter could be used to cool large buildings when it's hot, replacing traditional air conditioning. A computer-modelled study showed channelling air through "snow dumps" – where snow and ice is piled after being collected from highways – reduces the need for air conditioning units and could save businesses money. The system works [...]
The smartphone obsession is escalating: Britons are checking their phones 85 times a day – and nowhere is sacred anymore October 14, 2016 Britons' obsession with smartphones is reaching new heights. Or, perhaps, plumbing new depths. The average UK adult checks their phone 85 times a day, according to new research. And no where appears to be out of bounds, either, the study of 2,000 commissioned by mobile game studio Project M found. Read more: With consumers glued to [...]
Samsung operating profit to go up in flames to the tune of £2.5bn in the next two quarters after Galaxy Note 7 discontinuation October 14, 2016 South Korean electronics giant Samsung said today it expects to take a $3bn (£2.46bn) hit to its operating profit over the next two quarters because of the discontinuation of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphone. The announcement brings the total losses from the debacle to around $5.3bn. In a market update earlier this week, the company [...]