Flexibility key to Blazing Griffin’s soaring success August 5, 2020 Within 24 hours our entire games’ studio was working from home. Inadvertently, we had made the sudden transition slightly easier as have given staff the option to partially work from home for some time now and are used to flexible working. This meant that our work was already entirely cloud based, that we had device [...]
North East take support for gaming companies to the next level August 5, 2020 The North East of England is a powerhouse in the global gaming. It’s home to more than 60 internationally renowned, specialist gaming companies including Ubisoft Reflections, Coatsink and Sumo Digital. International blockbuster games made in the area include Mortal Kombat 11 and the Tom Clancy’s The Division franchise. Access to an established talent pool has [...]
Amazon to pass on UK digital tax to sellers in fees hike August 5, 2020 Amazon is to increase seller fees next month, saying it will no longer absorb the UK’s digital services tax after talks with the government failed to progress. The e-commerce giant said it had taken on the impact of the digital services tax — a two per cent levy on the firm’s annual revenues — since [...]
The City View: Tony Matharu on why it’s time to get London moving again August 5, 2020 Subscribe to The City View Podcast: Apple / Google / Spotify / RSS In this episode Christian is joined by top hotelier and London businessman Tony Matharu, who believes the capital needs an injection of confidence to get people back on public transport, back in the office and back into the pubs, restaurants, shops and hotels. Also in this episode, Christian looks [...]
Google parent Alphabet reveals record $10bn bond at lowest-ever price August 4, 2020 Alphabet borrowed $10bn (£7.66bn) in the investment-grade corporate debt market yesterday, marking its largest ever bond issue at its lowest price to date. Within the $10bn on offer, a $1bn five-year tranche was issued at a discount of 0.45 per cent — the lowest discount seen at that maturity since Apple issued a $1.5bn five-year [...]
The City View: Glass half full? Emma McClarkin on the future of British pubs August 4, 2020 Subscribe to The City View Podcast: Apple / Google / Spotify / RSS In this episode Christian is joined by the chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, Emma McClarkin, who represents over 20,000 pubs and whose members are responsible for 90 per cent of the beer brewed in the UK. Emma describes how pubs and brewers have responded to [...]
FTSE 100 breaks 6,000 and US stocks rise amid economic optimism August 3, 2020 The FTSE 100 rose sharply, surpassing 6,000 points, as investors looked past rising coronavirus cases and cheered positive economic data. London’s blue-chip index was 2.2 per cent higher in afternoon trading at 6,028 points. The mid-cap FTSE 250 was up 1.2 per cent. Read more: HSBC profit plummets due to coronavirus pandemic On Wall Street, [...]
Chinese AI firm slaps Apple with $1.4bn patent lawsuit August 3, 2020 Chinese artificial intelligence firm Shanghai Zhizhen Network Technology has filed a $1.4bn lawsuit against Apple, claiming the iPhone giant has infringed on a patent for its voice assistant technology. Shanghai Zhizhen, also known as Xiao-i, is calling for 10bn yuan ($1.4bn) in damages and demands that Apple cease “manufacturing, using, promising to sell, selling, and [...]
The City View: Thames Clippers’ CEO on getting London back to work August 3, 2020 Subscribe to The City View Podcast: Apple / Google / Spotify / RSS Christian is joined by Sean Collins, co-founder and CEO of London’s riverboat service, Thames Clippers, as the transport provider grapples with life under lockdown. Last year the company carried nearly 5 million passengers, many of them commuters, and today they’re operating at around 25 per cent of that. Despite the [...]
Markets live: FTSE 100 slips and dollar suffers worst month in a decade July 31, 2020 The FTSE 100 fell in early afternoon trading as investors weighed up weak company earnings and the dollar was set for its worst month in a decade as US coronavirus cases continued to rise. London’s premier stock index was down 0.3 per cent at 5,969 points. The FTSE 250 of mid-cap stocks rose 0.4 per [...]