It’s game over for Alphabet’s Loon balloon broadband adventure January 22, 2021 Alphabet, the parent company of Google, said last night it will shut down its high-altitude broadband connectivity venture Loon. The announcement is at odds with its recent successful endeavours. Loon raised $125m from a SoftBank unit in 2019, and in April 2020 it launched the first balloons to provide commercial connectivity service to Kenyans following [...]
Alphabet earnings: Five key takeaways as Covid-19 hits Google April 29, 2020 Shares in Google parent company Alphabet were up almost eight per cent in after-hours trading last night after the tech giant reported its first-quarter earnings. The closely-watched report was the first in a string of major US tech results set to be published this week, and give a key indication of how the coronavirus crisis [...]
Google it: Alphabet hits $1 trillion landmark amid ad growth optimism January 17, 2020 Alphabet, the parent company of Google, has hit a landmark stock market valuation of $1 trillion (£760bn) for the first time. The company’s shares rose by 0.76 per cent yesterday, enough to make it the fourth US-listed company to hit the milestone. Shares ended the day valued at $1,450.16. Alphabet hit the valuation 22 years [...]
Tech giants set to spend £25bn on advertising this year December 2, 2019 Eight tech titans including Google, Facebook and Amazon dominate the global advertising industry and will spend £25bn on advertising this year, according to new research. Google parent company Alphabet, Facebook, Amazon, Ebay, Netflix, IAC, Uber and Booking.com spent over £20bn on advertising in 2018, and are set to account for five per cent of global [...]
ii view: Microsoft results put shares in the clouds July 19, 2019 | City Talk By Keith Bowman from interactive investor. Technology behemoth Microsoft is now far more than Windows and Word, evidenced by latest results. Fourth-quarter results ending 30 June 2019 Revenue up 12 per cent to $33.7 billion Operating income up 20 per cent to $12.4 billion Returned $7.7 billion to shareholders Chief executive Satya Nadella said: “It was a record [...]
Google Cloud buys analytics firm Looker for $2.6bn June 6, 2019 Google will buy analytics firm Looker for $2.6bn (£2bn) as it looks to expand its cloud offerings. Read more: Microsoft and Oracle team up to take on Amazon Web Services The deal is the first big move for the company’s new cloud chief, Oracle veteran Thomas Kurian, who replaced Diane Greene last year. The acquisition [...]
Shares fall in Google parent Alphabet as Justice Department probe looms June 3, 2019 Shares in Google parent Alphabet took a beating this afternoon after reports that the company is about to be hit with a competition investigation. The company tumbled more than six per cent as markets opened in New York, its biggest drop since 30 April when it showed low revenues in its financial results. Read more: [...]
Trump backs out of Christchurch online terror pledge May 15, 2019 The United States has refused to join other nations in signing a pledge to tackle the spread of violent and extremist content online. The White House said while it supported the document’s overall goals, it is “not currently in a position to join the endorsement”. Named the Christchurch Call, the statement asks governments and companies [...]
Royal Returns – Interactive Investor on funds and trusts fit for children May 15, 2019 | City Talk By Jemma Jackson from interactive investor. Whilst the latest addition to the Royal family won’t want for much, it’s unlikely that any investments made on his behalf will be left to languish in cash. This contrasts with the majority of the nation’s Junior ISAs, where 70 per cent by number are in cash in the 2017/18 [...]
Shareholders call for Google parent Alphabet to be broken up May 1, 2019 A group of shareholders in Google's parent firm Alphabet has called for the company to be broken up, following a string of complaints against the firm regarding alleged human rights abuses and excessive founder dominance. Read more: Google parent Alphabet misses estimates as EU fine takes its toll The resolution, submitted by four members of [...]