The selfie stick: A short history of this year’s most popular Christmas present January 6, 2015 It's been mirthlessly mocked, dubbed "the wand of Narcissus" and generally cited in descriptions of the downfall of society. But nobody could have predicted just how much the selfie stick – a small, articulated monopod with a clever bit of plastic attached that can reach where human arms can't – would catch on. In fact, [...]
Here’s what could happen to the 1,400 luxury Jaguars, Minis and JCBs aboard the grounded Höegh Osaka January 6, 2015 As most people tucked into their roasts on Sunday, the Hampshire Constabulary reported a strange phenomenon: car parks around Calshot, a peninsula down the coast from Southampton, were filling up as tourists flocked to the area to take a look at a stricken car carrier, which had been deliberately run aground. The 51,000-tonne Höegh Osaka [...]
Moonpig apps unavailable as it confirms security flaw January 6, 2015 Moonpig has confirmed it's "investigating" a vulnerability in its code which means personal details of three million customers may have been exposed for almost a year and a half. The company said many of its apps would be "unavailable for a time" while it looked into a blog posted yesterday warning that hackers could easily [...]
Peppa Pig meets Saving Private Ryan? Entertainment One buys stake in Mark Gordon Co January 6, 2015 Is this the beginning of new mash-up, a la Alien vs Predator? The production company known best for its Peppa Pig TV series has just acquired a majority stake in the company founded by the producer behind, among other things, Saving Private Ryan. Entertainment One (known to its friends as eOne) said this morning it had bought [...]
The 100 City people you need to follow on Twitter this year, day two: Analysts January 6, 2015 Yesterday, you were inspired by our 20 most important entrepreneurs. Today, we’re giving you some food for thought: our favourite City analysts. Whether it’s retail, property or they’re tasked with deciding on the future of the UK’s airports, this lot can move the market with no more than a swish of their pen. Think we’ve [...]
The 100 City people you need to follow on Twitter this year, day one: Entrepreneurs January 5, 2015 It's the beginning of 2015, so it's time to give your Twitter account a revamp: out with that Cheryl Cole spoof account, in with people who can give you the knowledge to get ahead in your career. Over the next five days, we'll be giving you the best and brightest City types to follow, from [...]
Ryanair’s charm offensive pays off as traffic soars 20 per cent in December January 5, 2015 It looks like Ryanair's new PR strategy – stop trying to extract money at any available opportunity, stop actually swearing at customers – has worked a treat. The airline's traffic grew to just over six million passengers in December, a 20 per cent increase from the same period last year. According to figures released this [...]
22-year-old Skiplagged.com founder raises $50,000 to defend himself against United Airlines and Orbitz January 2, 2015 The 22-year-old founder of Skiplagged has raised more than $50,000 (£32,000) to defend himself in a lawsuit by US airlines United and Orbitz. Aktarer Zarman's site allows passengers to find the cheapest possible fare through so-called "hidden city" ticketing. Essentially, it takes advantage of the fact that it can be cheaper to buy a one-way [...]
Petrol to fall below £1 a litre? Brent crude oil price falls to its lowest in more than five years January 2, 2015 Brent crude oil dipped as low as $55.48 a barrel this morning, its lowest in five and a half years. The price fall came off the back of weak manufacturing data from China and Europe, as well as a stronger dollar. The drop comes after oil prices lost 49 per cent during 2014, its second-biggest [...]
Black Friday hits John Lewis’ Christmas sales January 2, 2015 He may have been a runaway hit, but not even Monty the Penguin could help John Lewis emulate the success of its Black Friday deals during the Christmas period. Sales at the retailer fell 1.4 per cent during the week of Christmas, with sales of electrical goods falling 14.7 per cent compared with the same [...]
