Xiaomi is spending $1bn on Internet TV content to takeover China’s smart TV market and rival Alibaba, Baidu and Tencent November 4, 2014 Xiaomi, the Chinese smartphone maker, is planning to spend up to $1bn (£625m) on online TV content in an effort to dominate the smart TV market. The three-year-old company has already overtaken established players in the smartphone market to become the third largest in the world and is now setting its sites on the billion [...]
GCHQ director: WhatsApp, Twitter and Facebook “facilitate” Isis terrorism November 4, 2014 GCHQ’s newly appointed director has suggested that Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp and other large US tech brands “facilitate” terrorism. In an opinion piece published in the Financial Times, Robert Hannigan writes that “the largest US tech companies…are the routes for the facilitation of crime and terrorism.” Hannigan’s article is published on the same day [...]
Watch: Russian Steve Jobs monument dismantled after current CEO Tim Cook comes out as gay November 4, 2014 A St Petersburg monument in memory of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs has been dismantled following the current CEO of the tech giant, Tim Cook, coming out as gay. The iPhone-shaped monument is two metres high and had sat outside the State University of Information Technologies, Mechanics and Optics. However, ZEFS, the Russian group [...]
Apple readying first European bond offering November 3, 2014 APPLE’S share price rose 1.3 per cent yesterday on reports that it is planning to sell more bonds. A tranche are thought to be in euros marking the iPhone-maker’s first European bond offering. Deutsche Bank and Goldman Sachs were said to be calling up investors yesterday, stoking demand for such an offering, according to The [...]
Taylor Swift pulls all her music off Spotify November 3, 2014 More in-fighting between artists and Spotify: Taylor Swift, the singer as much known for reaping revenge on a series of exes as hits such as Love Story and (ironically) Stay, Stay, Stay, has turned her wrathful eye to the music streaming service, pulling all her music off it. Spotify announced her departure on its blog [...]
Apple could be about to issue its first bonds in euros November 3, 2014 Apple's share price rose this morning on reports that it is planning to issue more bonds, with a deal – potentially its first in euros – thought to be on the cards as early as tomorrow. Investors are expecting a call from advisers Deutsche Bank and Goldman Sachs today, the Wall Street Journal reports, [...]
PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel talks quarter-life crises and how to tackle the state November 2, 2014 It's not every day that you get to speak to Silicon Valley royalty. And Peter Thiel, co-founder of PayPal, first outside investor in Facebook, fund manager, and leader of multiple firms, is a dynasty heavyweight. Having just published his new book, Zero to One, he’s keen to talk about some of his latest ideas. [...]
Apple CEO Tim Cook speaks out: I consider being gay among the greatest gifts God has given me October 30, 2014 Apple chief executive Tim Cook made history yesterday when the 16-year veteran of the world’s most valuable publicly-listed company announced he was proud to be gay. In a letter to Bloomberg Businessweek, Cook wrote: “If hearing that the chief executive of Apple is gay can help someone struggling to come to terms with who he [...]
Business is on the side of open minds – Editor’s Letter October 30, 2014 IT IS great news that Tim Cook has chosen to declare that he is proud to be gay. Unfair discrimination is abhorrent, and such high-profile statements can only help to end any lingering sense that public homosexuality is incompatible with a senior position in business life. At the same time, we should not be surprised [...]
Samsung share price up but electronics firm seeks change in tactics as profits drop October 30, 2014 Samsung Electronics, the world’s largest electronics manufacturer by sales, posted disappointing third-quarter results yesterday showing profits down 60.1 per cent to 4.1 trillion won (£2.4bn) in the three months to the end of September. The South Korean firm, whose share of the smartphone market declined for the third straight quarter, said it planned to focus [...]