TalkTalk chief executive Dido Harding hands over the reigns the firm’s largest shareholder February 1, 2017 Dido Harding has announced she is stepping down as TalkTalk chief executive after seven years in the role. She led the company through a massive cyber attack in 2014, which hammered the group's share price and prompted calls for her resignation. Harding has also been a vocal opponent of BT's continued ownership of the Openreach broadband network, [...]
TalkTalk insists it’s holding onto customers February 1, 2017 TalkTalk revenues have slipped over five per cent – but the firm claimed it had stemmed the number of customers leaving for rival operators. The figures Revenues for the third quarter to December fell to £435m compared with £459m over the same period last year. Profits were also down at £332m from £351m. Some 516,000 customers decided [...]
Got an active dog? New technology could lower your pet insurance premiums January 31, 2017 The UK is a nation of dog lovers. And for those of us that know what it is, the country is also becoming rather a fan of the burgeoning internet of things. So with the good old fashioned entrepreneurial spirit Britain is famous for, PitPat, founded by former Dragons' Den contestant Andrew Nowell, has developed technology to monitor [...]
Slow and steady? Pension deficits need not be closed as report reveals trustees need to refocus January 31, 2017 Spiralling pension deficits are distracting those empowered to manage schemes away from making sure members receive the correct payouts. Almost all pension trustees do not see paying members as a key strategic driver, with many getting bogged down in the detail and failing to see the bigger picture, according to a report by actuarial specialists [...]
Deadline day: Sky and Discovery close in on 11th hour deal January 31, 2017 Sky and Discovery are closing in on a last-minute deal to save the likes of Eurosport and Animal Planet from the UK's screens. The two media giants are in the middle of an embarrassing spat over the future of Discovery's channels on the Sky platform. Read more: Still hope? Deadline looms for Sky and Discovery Last Wednesday Discovery [...]
Lloyd’s of London says it can manage a $200bn event: Here are four scenarios insurers used to test themselves January 31, 2017 Like the rest of the world, Lloyd's of London was caught unawares by the attack on the World Trade Centre in September 2001. The world has been hit by natural catastrophes since the tragic 9/11 terror attacks, but what would happened in a doomsday scenario where a number of apocalyptic events all occurred at once? [...]
The final Rolls-Royce Phantom VII has rolled off the production line January 31, 2017 The last Rolls-Royce Phantom – or at least as we know it – will roll off the production ramps in Goodwood this week. Officially decommissioned at the end of last year, Phantom VII's will be replaced by an eighth generation of the Rolls-Royce car by owner BMW. Read more: Rolls-Royce car sales motor to new record [...]
Sam Sunderland interview: Britain’s first winner of the Dakar Rally talks sun, sand and… cows January 31, 2017 After multiple broken bones and two previous disappointments, Britain’s first ever winner of the Dakar Rally never imagined his high-speed dreams would be ended by something as sedate as a cow. But Sam Sunderland, who took the title in the motorbike division of the iconic race earlier this month, recalls how a blundering bovine nearly [...]
Vodafone’s £10bn Indian merger to create one of the world’s largest mobile phone operators January 30, 2017 Vodafone has opened talks with rival Idea Cellular over a £10bn merger of Indian operations in a deal that would create one of the world's largest mobile phone firms. Combining Idea Cellular and Vodafone India would create a company with 390m subscribers. The largest mobile phone company in the world is state-backed China Mobile with 835m customers. Read more: Vodafone returns to Sweden [...]
