News Corp chief Robert Thompson calls Google a “platform for piracy” run by “cynical management” in letter to EU commissioner Joaquin Almunia September 18, 2014 News Corp has told the EU it believes Google is stifling competition and undermining the business model of “content creators” in its dominance of internet search. The Rupert Murdoch-owned company, which publishes the the Times, the Sun, the Wall Street Journal and book publisher Harpercollins lambasted Google in a letter to the EU’s competition commission [...]
How Google and Amazon workers keep their focus September 15, 2014 Harriet Green examines the Two Pizza Rule and the benefits of workplace mindfulness. Distractions can be crippling to productivity. Gloria Mark of the University of California found that, on average, office workers are distracted every 11 minutes. And worse, it takes 25 minutes to return to a task once you’ve wandered onto something else. [...]
Android One: How Google’s budget smartphone for India compares with its rivals September 15, 2014 Google has launched its first Android One smartphone in India – a budget device aimed at enticing the “next billion” smartphone users in the country and other emerging markets. Google’s initiative aims to create cheap, high-quality smartphones for those in countries where incomes are lower and devices less affordable. Android One offers a package of [...]
Google is the media brand you love to hate most September 2, 2014 The media is full of celebs, politicians and high profile figures we love to hate – and it is no different in the media industry, with that highest of profile brand Google being ranked as most loved and disliked in a recent survey. The tech giant topped a poll of nearly 800 media professionals, [...]
Why healthcare could be Google Glass’s biggest market August 22, 2014 Google Glass, the wearable tech device, may be an exciting new development – but with a $1,500 price tag (not to mention its less-than-fashionable appearance), its appeal to the consumer market has so far been limited. But during a conference yesterday, the man widely credited with creating the Glass identified what could end up being [...]
Greggs scum hack prompts Twitter team to “bribe” Google with doughnuts August 19, 2014 Greggs bakery’s cheeks were left burning as hot as the middle of its sausage rolls yesterday, when someone who Googled the firm found that its logo had been hacked to read “providing shit to scum for 70 years”. Naturally, the news went viral and Greggs was trending on Twitter. “We are aware of the [...]
Google shares up 1,000 per cent a decade after IPO August 19, 2014 A decade ago yesterday, just three years after the dot-com crash, a Silicon Valley search startup called Google debuted on the Nasdaq for $85 a share. Shares, priced at the low end of Google’s $85 to $95 range, jumped 18 per cent during the first day of trading to $100.34, valuing the company at over [...]
YouTube Music Key: Here’s what we know about Google’s music video subscription service to rival Spotify and iTunes August 19, 2014 Google is poised to launch its music streaming app to rival Spotify and Apple’s iTunes appear, according to details about the service that have apparently leaked online. Mooted for a summer release date when YouTube first announced its plans back in June, the service will be called “YouTube Music Key” and priced at $9.99 a month [...]
Not sure about an acquisition? Take Google’s toothbrush test August 18, 2014 Google loves making an acquisition. This year alone it’s made 24. But would you believe us if we told you chief executive Larry Page uses a toothbrush to decide whether to gobble up a company or not. Well, it’s true. Sort of. The New York Times has revealed Page has something called “the toothbrush [...]
Google to help lay $300m undersea internet cable to Japan August 11, 2014 By the end of 2016 Google and a group of Asian telecommunications firms will have built $300m worth of internet cable, joining Japan to the US. The project, called "Faster", will cater to rising bandwidth usage and will begin immediately. Internet traffic spanning the trans-Pacific route is becoming "intense" as smartphones, high broadband usage and [...]