Facebook wages war on Google January 15, 2013 FACEBOOK yesterday unveiled a search engine that allows users to trawl through photos, reviews and profiles, in a move that sees the social network enter territory dominated by Google. Announcing the new feature, Graph Search, from the company’s California campus, chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said the technology would become an extra pillar of Facebook, allowing [...]
How much Christmas shopping will you do online? November 21, 2012 CHRISTOPHER JENNER SWISS RE I’ll probably do about 85 per cent of it online due to laziness. Compared to last year, I do think my Christmas online shopping has progressed substantially. I mainly order vouchers for people and get my shopping done throughout December. PAMELA HARTLEY STANDARD BANK I imagine I’ll do about 50 per [...]
Little Christmas cheer for retail January 14, 2013 Chief Market Strategist, Cantor Index THE official retail activity figures, which are posted monthly or at specific times like Christmas, are accurate but often indecipherable to the layman. The small print is where the message is. And the most recent figures suggest that Christmas was great for some, but brutal for others. The situation was [...]
Rapid responses December 18, 2012 Corporation tax [Re: Politicians are powerless to curb our shrinking corporate tax base, yesterday] Douglas Carswell argues that, through international property migration, it is unavoidable that big corporations will mitigate their tax liabilities. But the sad consequence is that the only people who end up paying more is us, the financially immobile taxpayers. Something must [...]
Suppliers stuck playing Santa December 13, 2012 HOW long can HMV rely on its suppliers to play Santa Claus? At the start of 2012, the long-suffering entertainment retailer forged a closer alliance with suppliers in return for a 2.5 per cent stake. Their support is understood to have run into tens of millions of pounds already, and to include supplying goods on [...]
Politicians need to stop moralising – and reform our taxes December 3, 2012 LIKE many people, I loathe the UK tax system. It fails to treat everyone equally and is either extraordinarily punitive or pathetically soft. Scandalously, some big companies pay huge amounts of corporation tax while other similar businesses don’t. The aim must be revolutionary tax reform – all streams of income from labour and capital generated [...]
That’s capitalism, says Google chair Schmidt in tax response December 12, 2012 GOOGLE’S chairman Eric Schmidt has defended his company against criticism of its tax affairs, saying: “It’s called capitalism”. “I am very proud of the structure we have set up. We pay lots of taxes; we pay them in the legally prescribed ways,” he told Bloomberg. Google has been chastised by MPs for funneling $9.8bn (£6bn) [...]
The top five 7-inch tablets on the market October 24, 2012 Amazon Kindle Fire HD The HD version of Amazon’s original design is ideal for people who use their tablet for watching movies and online shows. Considering the affordable price, the features on offer provide great value for money and the speakers are pretty good too. Google Nexus 7 by Asus Despite it being made of [...]
Top executives quizzed by MPs on tax avoidance November 12, 2012 STARBUCKS, Amazon and Google were yesterday criticised by MPs following accusations that the multinational firms are moving profits abroad to minimise their UK corporation tax bill. MPs were critical of deals that appear to show firms diverting apparently British transactions through overseas divisions in low-tax countries. Members of the Public Accounts Committee accused the firms [...]
Amazon picks up Tech City offices April 4, 2012 PUSHBUTTON is relocating from its current 2,000 square foot digs to an office 25 times the size as Amazon shows its support for London’s flourishing Tech City. The ten year old company, which was bought by Amazon last year, designs tools that allow TV viewers to watch and interact with media across a range of [...]