Apple preparing for iWatch launch with another high profile hire July 5, 2014 Apple appears to be gearing up for the impending launch of its iWatch with another high profile hire, poaching a senior executive from Swiss luxury watch brand Tag Heuer. Tag Heuer, part of luxury goods group LVMH, announced that vice president for sales Patrick Pruniaux will be leaving the company on Monday 7 July to join [...]
Amazon and Luxembourg hit by EU “sweetheart deal” tax crackdown. July 3, 2014 Amazon is the latest company to have been hit by an EU tax crackdown that has already caught out Apple, Starbucks and Fiat’s financial arm. According to a report in the FT, the EU's competition commission has sent a request to Luxembourg, where the company's headquarters are based, for information about whether decisions on [...]
Apple iCup technician wanted, no computer skills required July 3, 2014 For anyone who has harboured a dream of working for Apple but doesn’t know their front-end from their back-end, the perfect job has just come up. The potential employee won't even need to know how to switch a computer on if they become Apple’s iCup technician. That’s because it gets about as technical as a coffee [...]
Oracle prices $10bn bond July 1, 2014 TECH firm Oracle yesterday priced one of the biggest bond offerings of the year, after rolling out $10bn (£5.83bn) of corporate bonds. The software group, founded by Larry Ellison, is going to use the cash for corporate purposes. Most of the bonds – $8.25bn – were offered as fixed-rate notes. JP Morgan, Merrill Lynch, Wells [...]
Cameroon to investigate World Cup match-fixing allegations July 1, 2014 Cameroon's football federation is investigating claims that seven of its players were involved in match-fixing at the World Cup. German news magazine Der Spiegel carried allegations made by a convicted Singapore match-fixer Wilson Raj Perumal, who is reported to have sent a message prior to the match against Croatia correctly forecasting the 4-0 scoreline and [...]
Samsung’s Galaxy S5 fails to dethrone Apple after flagship launch June 30, 2014 Samsung’s flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S5, has taken third billing behind both Apple’s iPhone 5S and its cheaper 5C in May’s sales, according to research by Kantar Worldpanel. Samsung fared better in the US, however, where the S5 was the second-highest selling smartphone in May behind the 5S. “May was the first full month of [...]
How to handle being shown the door June 29, 2014 Whether you fight your corner or seek to reach a deal, it’s important to know your options. Here is a scenario: out of the blue, your newly-appointed boss gives you a “below expectations” rating at your mid-year appraisal. “Why the change from exceeds to below in the space of six months?” you cry. A pause [...]
AMS plans Dialog deal for €3.4bn chip empire June 26, 2014 AUSTRALIAN semiconductor firm AMS yesterday said it was in discussions to buy Frankfurt-listed Dialog Semiconductor in a deal valuing the combination at around €3.4bn (£2.7bn). “These discussions are at a very preliminary stage and there can be no certainty that a transaction will be forthcoming,” the companies said in a joint statement. According to takeover [...]
Apple’s Beats Electronics deal to face EU antitrust regulator ruling by 30 July June 25, 2014 Apple’s $3bn (£1.8bn) takeover of Dr Dre and Jimmy Iovine’s Beats Electronics will be scrutinised by European Union antitrust regulators who will decide by 30 July whether to OK the deal. The European Commission said it had been notified of the deal on Tuesday and that it would take 25 days to consider whether it [...]
Google I/O 2014: Expect Google TV, Google Glass, Android Lollipop and wearables June 25, 2014 Google’s I/O conference brings together developers from across the world to see the latest breakthroughs, products and software created by the internet giant. The event kicks off later today, but speculation is rife about the announcements due to come out of San Francisco. Here’s what’s expected (in addition to guests pulling up in Google's driverless [...]