The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has approved an application by Seattle-based Amazon to launch more than 3,000 satellites into orbit, despite ongoing concerns about launching so-called mega constellations. Yesterday, Thursday, July 30, five FCC commissioners voted unaminaously to approve Amazon’s Project Kuiper – a mega constellation of 3,236 satellites that will orbit Earth, designed to …
The headwinds of Covid-19’s economic impact in the second quarter were strong enough to slow down even the ad-funded tech giants. In its second-quarter results released today, Facebook reported $18.7 billion in revenue, an increase of 11% despite the slowdown of advertising spend as marketers navigate the ongoing crisis. The results included $18.3 billion in …
With Congress and the White House deadlocked over what to do with the now-expired $600-per-week federal unemployment insurance benefit, millions of Americans are set to lose a crucial financial lifeline amid the pandemic and experts warn that could hurt an economic recovery. The proposal from Senate Republicans, which would cut supplemental unemployment payments to $200-per-week …
Bank of America Corp. has deferred $7.7 billion of loans for commercial clients in response to the coronavirus pandemic. About 2% of clients’ commercial loans had been modified as of July 23, mainly consisting of payment deferrals of as long as 90 days, according to a quarterly regulatory filing Friday. Interest continues to accrue on those loans, …
Google’s $2.1 billion bid for fitness tracker maker Fitbit will face a full-scale EU antitrust investigation next week, people familiar with the matter said today. Alphabet unit Google this month offered not to use Fitbit’s health data to help it target ads in an attempt to address EU antitrust concerns. The opening of a full-scale investigation suggests that this …
Electronic Arts announced today during its latest earnings report that The Sims 4 has reached 30 million players. The Sims 4 launched back in 2014, but it has had amazing legs. The life-simulation game has seen tremendous growth this year alone. Back in January, EA noted that The Sims 4 had over 20 million players. This means the game …
Apple’s stock hit a record high on Friday after reporting blockbuster quarterly results, helping the iPhone maker briefly overtake Saudi Aramco to become the world’s most valuable publicly listed company. Apple’s stock surged to as high as $412.22 a share, putting its market capitalization at $1.762 trillion, according to the share count provided by Apple in a regulatory filing on …
A draft mandatory code announced by the Australian government would force Google and Facebook to pay news outlets for using their content. The new rules are aimed at addressing “acute bargaining power imbalances” between news groups and Google and Facebook, the ACCC said. Google said it was “deeply disappointed and concerned” by the draft code, …
Xpeng Motors, one of Tesla’s rivals in China, is in talks to raise around $300 million in funding. Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund, the Qatar Investment Authority, is one of the investors in the funding round, the sources said. Xpeng Motors has also confidentially filed for an IPO in the U.S., but has not decided on which …
This isn’t the first iPhone delay in history. Apple has confirmed it’s planning to launch its new iPhones a little later this year. “Last year we started selling new iPhones in late September, this year we expect supply to be available a few weeks later,” said Apple CFO Luca Maestri in an earnings call with …