Facebook’s £3,169 UK corporate tax bill in 2013 was less than a zone 1-9 yearly London travelcard October 22, 2014 Facebook’s corporate tax bill for 2013 came in at just £3,169 last year, according to its latest accounts. It paid less than London commuters pay for a yearly zone one to nine travelcard (£3,256) by basing its European headquarters in tax-favourable Ireland, and using a tax loophole known as the “Double-Irish”. The social network paid the [...]
Five terrifying “curveball” job interview questions, and how to prepare for them January 29, 2015 We've all been there: you're getting on ok during a job interview, and suddenly the interviewer asks a question you'd never even considered. Your future depends on your reaction to this question. What do you do? James Reed, the chairman of recruiter Reed, reckons he has the answers. His book, Why You? 101 Interview Questions You'll [...]
Orange Wednesdays cancelled: Cinema ticket prices have risen by 47 per cent in the 10 years since promotion was introduced December 11, 2014 EE is pulling the plug on Orange Wednesdays. The promotion, which for 10 years has offered two-for-one deals on cinema tickets and Pizza Express restaurants for all Orange users, will come to an end on 25 February next year. Although Valentine’s Day crowds will manage to sneak in a final two-for-one deal for [...]
Gfinity IPO: eSports mania set to hit London with sector’s debut float November 30, 2014 In a move that surprised many, Amazon forked out just under $1bn in August to acquire online electronic sports (eSports) TV channel Twitch. For the majority in the UK, it was a first introduction to eSports: the world of online competitive video gaming. The industry attracts not only people who compete against each other, but [...]
Ukip Calypso: Nigel Farage inspires his own political protest song October 20, 2014 Think political protest songs and you're sure to conjure up an image of Bob Dylan blowin' in the wind or maybe John and Yoko imagining a world without war – but what about Nigel Farage arriving at Number 10? The Ukip leader today tweeted a link to a song called the Ukip Calypso, urging [...]
Dixons Carphone expects to hit £80m cost savings faster October 8, 2014 High Street giant Dixons Carphone said yesterday it expected to reach its cost savings target earlier than previously forecast, following the £4bn merger of Dixons Retail and Carphone Warehouse two months ago. The FTSE 100 retailer said at the time of the merger it would save around £80m in annual costs from 2016–17. Speaking to [...]
Black Friday 2014: From Uranium ore to free guns – five of the weirdest US Black Friday deals November 26, 2014 The US takes its Christmas shopping seriously. Black Friday, the day US shoppers traditionally pull themselves out of their Thanksgiving-induced food comas and hit the high street, was worth $12.3bn (£7.8bn) last year. And while some of the discounts retailers make to entice shoppers are pretty extreme (Walmart, for instance, is selling iPads for $199, [...]
Blackberry share price jumps following new Passport smartphone launch September 24, 2014 Blackberry's share price jumped over three per cent on the Nasdaq this morning, following the launch of Passport, its "innovative" new smartphone. The mobile phone manufacturer has cut costs and re-focused itself as a niche brand under the stewardship of new CEO John Chen. In 2013 Blackberry reported a surprising $23m quarterly profit. [...]
Bitreserve and CNET founder Halsey Minor talks dot-commers, virtual currencies and the Bank of England’s open-mindedness March 8, 2015 You might not have heard of Halsey Minor, but it’s likely that you’ve indirectly benefited from one of his many achievements. He’s one half of the brains behind CNET, the technology media website which, founded in 1994, was in the vanguard of internet firms, and is still one of the most-visited tech information resources in [...]
Waterstones still able to book a place in nation’s hearts – Brand Index October 14, 2014 Once a regular fixture on the high street, growing competition from online retailers, supermarkets and the rise of e-books is taking its toll on booksellers – even on chains such as Waterstones. Established in 1982 by Tim Waterstone, the bookseller expanded rapidly until being sold in 1993 to WH Smith. Then it changed hands several times [...]