Davos 2015: Who’s going to the World Economic Forum? January 20, 2015 Where else do world leaders, economists, royalty and even a celeb or two cross paths? It can only be Davos. The World Economic Forum’s annual summit hosts a privileged few, but if you’re lucky enough to be visiting, here’s who to look out for. If, like most people, you’ll be remaining at your desk and [...]
European Commission: Yup, Amazon’s Luxembourg tax deal probably gave it an unfair advantage January 16, 2015 European regulators admitted that a deal struck between Amazon and Luxembourgish authorities to minimise its tax bill probably did constitute state aid. In a 23-page letter dated 7 October but only published today, the European Commission pointed out that it "has doubts…. as to [the deal's] compatibility with the internal market" It added that it [...]
Intel smashes earnings expectations January 15, 2015 It was a strong end to 2014 for Intel. The world’s largest maker of semiconductors reported revenue of $55.9bn (£36.8bn) for the full year, a bump of six per cent on last year’s figure. That jump was matched by the fourth quarter figure: also up six per cent, this time to $14.7bn. The results were [...]
Cameron isn’t trying to ban Snapchat, WhatsApp, iMessage and encrypted messaging January 14, 2015 If the reports were right, David Cameron this week was trying to succeed where Kim Kardashian failed: to break the internet. The reaction against his comments implying the government might ban encryption was loud, angry and fast. This is entirely understandable – even setting aside the civil liberties arguments, any attempt to ban encryption would probably [...]
Burberry sales grow in third quarter but slip in Hong Kong January 14, 2015 British luxury brand Burberry had a good end to 2014, with retail sales rising 15 per cent to £604m in the third quarter. The success was driven largely by strong digital growth in the Americas, Europe and the Middle East, but this progress wasn’t replicated in Asia – sales fell in Hong Kong, and [...]
Guys just wanna have fun January 11, 2015 JLL’s boss tells Kasmira Jefford why his firm is anything but dull GUY Grainger has something he needs to get off his chest. It seems that some people might think that property and property advisory companies like JLL are, well, let’s say a little bit… dull. “People often say that to me and I think: [...]
CES 2015: Still the biggest tech show on earth – Bottom Line January 8, 2015 As the global tech industry packs its bags and leaves the neon lights of Las Vegas behind for another year, is the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the world’s largest tech convention, still relevant? On one hand, CES boasts that this year it had more than 3,500 tech exhibitors and over 160,000 attendees. The organisers have [...]
Taylor Swift right to shake off Spotify: Why music streaming services are bad economics January 8, 2015 Did Taylor Swift make the right call when she withdrew her music from Spotify? A new report on the profitability of the music streaming industry suggests she was. Strategy Analytics, a technology advisory and consultancy firm, argues that despite the music streaming industry’s rapid growth, it will continue to struggle to provide adequate royalty [...]
Fitbug starts to flex its muscles January 7, 2015 The founder of the British fitness tracking group tells Oliver Smith in Las Vegas that he is already thinking about the next big thing PAUL Landau has had an interesting six months. In July he was the founder of a wearable fitness tracker firm whose share price had hovered around 1p for over two years, [...]
Monster sues Apple’s Beats Electronics, claims Jimmy Iovine and Dr Dre “fraudulently acquired” brand through “sham transaction” January 7, 2015 Headphones maker Monster and its chief executive yesterday launched legal action against Apple’s Beats Electronics for allegedly conspiring to dupe Monster out of a deal with Beats before it was sold last year to the iPhone maker for $3.2bn (£2.12bn). In a complaint filed in Superior Court in San Mateo County, California, Monster alleged that [...]