Amazon beefs up UK team for delivery robot Scout September 8, 2020 Amazon has today revealed a boost to its UK research and development arm with the creation of a new team dedicated to Scout, the e-commerce giant’s on-street delivery robot. Amazon said it would be hiring for more engineers to develop its fully-electric and autonomous delivery robot, based at its Cambridge research and development hub. The [...]
Italy launches probes into Apple, Google and Dropbox’s cloud storage services September 7, 2020 Italy’s competition regulator has today launched six investigations into the cloud storage services of Apple, Google and Dropbox, over concerns of misuse of data. The country’s Competition and Markets Authority said it had received several complaints about allegedly unfair commercial practices by Apple’s iCloud, Google Drive and Dropbox. The authority said in a statement that [...]
Amazon fined by UK watchdog over late documents in Deliveroo probe September 7, 2020 Amazon has earned a slap on the wrist from UK regulators after it failed to meet a deadline for vital documents, as part of a long-running probe into its stake in Deliveroo. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) today fined Amazon £55,000, after it was forced to delay its investigation of Amazon’s purchase of a [...]
Visa falls under scrutiny in Europe over fintech rules September 7, 2020 Visa is at the centre of a probe by the European Commission over its digital payments rules for fintech firms, following allegations of anti-competitive behaviour. The payments giant said in its most recent quarterly filing that the EU’s executive arm had opened a preliminary investigation into its rules at the end of June, asking Visa [...]
Softbank shares fall seven per cent on rising tech bets September 7, 2020 Shares in tech giant Softbank fell seven per cent as markets closed in Asia this morning, as investors were concerned by the group’s rising exposure to risky tech bets. Softbank has plugged billions of dollars into buying shares in major tech companies on the Nasdaq, after it sold off a swath of assets over the [...]
Samsung wins $6.6bn US 5G tech deal as Huawei tensions simmer September 7, 2020 Samsung Electronics today said it has won a $6.6bn deal with telecoms giant Verizon to provide wireless communications equipment for 5G in the US. The South Korean electronics magnate is benefiting from a gap in the market left by Chinese rival Huawei, analysts have said, which is banned from working with US companies by the [...]
Adobe rival Figma sets up international base in London September 7, 2020 Silicon Valley software starlet Figma has selected London as the site of its new international headquarters, opting to go ahead with the move despite the increase in remote working. London will be Figma’s new base for the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region, currently playing host to a staff of 14 working from home. [...]
Salesforce and Oracle accused of breaching GDPR in €10bn lawsuit August 14, 2020 A class-action lawsuit has accused tech giants Oracle and Salesforce of breaching EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in their processing and sharing of data for advertising purposes. Non-profit organisation The Privacy Collective, which filed the lawsuit, alleged the two companies are misusing consumers’ personal data through their third-party cookies Bluekai and Krux, which are [...]
PM Johnson toughens enforcement measures ahead of lockdown easing August 13, 2020 Enforcement measures in the UK are set to get tougher ahead of further lockdown easing this weekend, with fines for breaking the rules set to double. Fines for repeat offenders of mandatory face covering rules will double to a maximum of £3,200 in the coming weeks, the government said today. New fines will also be introduced for [...]
Apple boots Fortnite off App Store after challenge to payment rules August 13, 2020 Apple has removed Fortnite off its App Store, after the game’s creator Epic Games instituted a new way of buying in-game benefits that circumvents Apple’s rules. Epic Games has in turn initiated legal action against Apple, it said in a statement. “Apple’s removal of Fortnite is yet another example of Apple flexing its enormous power [...]