Back of the Netflix: Sports content is fuelling wave of ad-funded streaming April 4, 2026 Owning live rights is no longer the only way for streaming platforms like Netflix to capture sports audiences, writes Chris Keenan. Could there be a way to engage sports audiences without the billions spent on traditional broadcast rights? It’s this thinking that appears to be shaping Netflix’s latest moves. Over the past year, the streaming [...]
Musk turns SpaceX IPO into sales push for Grok April 4, 2026 Elon Musk is using SpaceX’s blockbuster IPO to do more than raise capital, he is also driving adoption of AI business. Banks and advisers working on the listing have been required to purchase subscriptions to Grok, the chatbot developed by xAI, it was reported on Saturday. Several firms have already agreed to spend tens of [...]
OpenAI reshuffles leadership as IPO plans loom April 4, 2026 OpenAI is reshaping its leadership team as it prepares for its next phase of growth, with senior executives moving roles and others stepping back. The company confirmed that longtime chief operating officer Brad Lightcap will transition into a new role focused on special projects, reporting directly to chief executive Sam Altman. In the position, Lightcap [...]
Tories brace for heavy losses as Badenoch outpolls rivals April 4, 2026 Five years ago, the Conservatives were polling at around 40 per cent, buoyed by the vaccine rollout and post-Brexit momentum, and went on to gain 235 seats in the 2021 local elections. But ahead of May’s vote, that position seems to have shifted. Political scientist Stephen Fisher has suggested the party could lose as many [...]
Labour to curb jail terms for shoplifters as retail crime fears grow April 4, 2026 Labour’s plans to scrap most prison sentences of under a year will see thousands of prolific shoplifters avoid jail, in a move that risks intensifying pressure on retailers already warning of rising violence and disorder. The changes, introduced under the Sentencing Act, mean around 98 per cent of shoplifters currently in custody would instead qualify [...]
World Cup no longer has global audience – and that’s a marketers challenge April 4, 2026 The domestic football season is hurtling towards its conclusion and, despite England’s drab international break and talk of boycotts, World Cup fever is starting to build. Soon, wallcharts will be pinned up, vintage England kits pulled out from the back of the wardrobe, and Three Lions will find its way onto office playlists. However, this [...]
School of Hard Knocks and Investec celebrate spring rugby tournament April 3, 2026 Around 350 boys and girls used rugby to test their teamwork, resilience and determination as the School of Hard Knocks celebrated its latest Eton Manor RFC spring tournament. The two-day event, backed by international bank and wealth manager Investec, saw students joined by Red Roses legend Shaunagh Brown and the president of English rugby’s governing [...]
Labour must reform biodiversity laws to boost housebuilding, trade body says April 3, 2026 Housebuilders are calling on the government to reform its biodiversity quotas for developers to lessen the costs and delays they say it causes to businesses. The Home Builders Federation (HBF), which represents the housebuilding industry, welcomed recent changes to biodiversity laws but said they do not go far enough in lifting the burden on housebuilders. [...]
Mansion tax to hit 165,000 homeowners April 3, 2026 The mansion tax is expected to hit 165,000 homeowners in its first year, more than the 120,000 that was previously thought. The levy will hit 45,000 more properties than had been initially forecast, according to the fiscal watchdog, and thousands could successfully appeal the tax. The mansion tax, introduced at last year’s Budget, will not [...]
M&S boss: Sadiq Khan is soft on crime April 3, 2026 Marks and Spencer has hit out at the Mayor of London for being soft on crime, after crowds of young people have targeted London shops in the past week. Thinus Keeve, the supermarket’s retail director, has called on Sadiq Khan to crack down on violent disorder against retailers, after a Marks and Spencer (M&S) shop [...]