Apple has apologised after a backlash over an advert that showed objects, including musical instruments and books, being crushed by a hydraulic press. Apple said the advert fell short of its goal of empowering and celebrating creatives, in a statement released to marketing publication Ad Age. The video was meant to demonstrate how creativity has been compressed into the latest iPad. But celebrities including Hugh Grant and Justine Bateman reacted with horror to the destruction shown in the advert. “Our goal is to always celebrate the myriad of ways users express themselves and bring their ideas to life through iPad. … Continue reading Apple apologises after piano crushing ad backlash

Walt Disney and Warner Bros Discovery say they will start to offer a bundle of the Disney+, Hulu and Max streaming services to customers in the US this summer. The new package will be available to customers on all three streaming platforms. The media giants said they will offer plans with and without adverts but did not reveal how much they will charge customers. The move comes as Disney and Warner Bros face competition from rivals, including Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. “This new offering… will help drive incremental subscribers and much stronger retention,” Warner Bros Discovery executive JB Perrette … Continue reading Disney and Warner to bundle streaming services

Apple boss Tim Cook tried to beat back doubts about the future of the tech giant, after it reported its biggest sales fall in more than a year. Sales slumped 4% year-on-year in the first three months of 2024 to $90.8bn, weighed down by a sharp drop in demand for iPhones. Executives said the results were distorted by Covid-related supply disruptions, which led to unusually strong sales during the same period last year. They said sales would return to growth in the months ahead, noting upcoming product launches and investments in artificial intelligence (AI). “I couldn’t be more excited in … Continue reading Apple sees biggest fall in sales for a year

Turkey has suspended all trade with Israel over its offensive in Gaza, citing the “worsening humanitarian tragedy” in the strip. The Turkish trade ministry said the measures would be in place until Israel allowed an “uninterrupted and sufficient flow” of aid into Gaza. Trade between the two countries was worth almost $7bn last year. Israel’s foreign minister accused Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of acting like a “dictator”. Israel Katz said on X that Mr Erdogan was “disregarding the interests of the Turkish people and businessmen and ignoring international trade agreements”. He added that he had instructed the foreign ministry … Continue reading Turkey halts trade with Israel over ‘humanitarian tragedy’ in Gaza

Australia’s newest budget airline has gone into voluntary administration, after abruptly cancelling all of its flights on Tuesday. Bonza’s financial woes have left thousands of passengers stranded around the country. Operating since last year, the carrier had been the first to launch in Australia since 2007. Aviation remains one of the nation’s most concentrated industries, dominated by Qantas and Virgin Australia. “We apologise to our customers who are impacted by this and we’re working as quickly as possible to determine a way forward that ensures there is ongoing competition in the Australian aviation market,” Bonza said in a statement. The … Continue reading Passengers stranded as Australian airline enters administration

Tesla’s shares have jumped after reports the firm has cleared an important regulatory hurdle in China by partnering with search giant Baidu. The reports come after chief executive Elon Musk made a surprise visit to meet the country’s number two leader, Premier Li Qiang. The deal with Baidu brings Mr Musk a step closer to rolling out Tesla’s self-driving technology in China. The agreement with Baidu that is being reported would allow Tesla to go ahead with some autonomous driving technology in China. Baidu’s mapping and navigation services would aid Tesla’s self-driving technology, including assisted parking, but full autonomous technology would … Continue reading Tesla shares jump after reports of China deal

It was in such a shocking turn of events that Meta’s financial landscape was jarred to hit the rocks following an announcement made by none other than its very own Chief Executive, Mark Zuckerberg. The fallout was immediately visible, with the company’s shares going down like a ton of bricks, wiping close to $200 billion in market value. This created a financial storm after recently released financial results showed that costs were skyrocketing in comparison to revenues that analysts had expected to be achieved. Most of these costs were accounted for by Meta’s big investments in artificial intelligence (AI). It … Continue reading Meta stock plummets $200b post mark Zuckerberg announcement

Music streaming giant Spotify has announced record profits of over €1bn after a year of cutting costs and laying off staff. The Swedish company has been growing its user base for years, offering subscribers access to podcasts and audiobooks. But its quarterly gross profit came at the expense of missing its forecast for monthly active users. Last year it cut 17% of its workforce in a move to clamp down on costs. Spotify’s CEO Daniel Ek said last December about 1,500 jobs would be axed as part of “substantial action to rightsize our costs” so that the company could meet … Continue reading Spotify turns up volume to make record profits

Shares in US tech giant Meta have sunk in US after-hours trading despite better-than-expected earnings. The Facebook and Instagram owner said expenses would be higher this year as it spends heavily on artificial intelligence (AI). Its shares fell more than 15% after it said it expected to spend billions of dollars more than it had previously predicted in 2024. Meta has been updating its ad-buying products with AI tools to boost earnings growth. It has also been introducing more AI features on its social media platforms such as chat assistants. The firm said it now expected to spend between $35bn … Continue reading Shares of Facebook owner Meta plunges after it reveals spending plans

UK-based mining giant Anglo American says it has been approached by larger rival BHP about a potential multi-billion dollar takeover offer. Anglo American told the BBC that the proposal is currently being reviewed by its board of directors but did not reveal the value of the offer. If the deal goes ahead it would be one of the mining industry’s biggest mergers in years. Anglo American – which operates mines in countries like Chile, South Africa, Brazil and Australia – has a stock market value of around £29bn. Australian-based BHP is the world’s largest publicly listed mining company with a … Continue reading Mining giant BHP proposes buyout of Anglo American

Shares in Chinese bubble tea chain Sichuan Baicha Baidao, which is also known as Chabaidao, have fallen by more than 30% in their first day of trading on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Chabaidao’s market debut was the Asian financial hub’s largest initial public offering (IPO) so far this year. The poor performance underscores the difficulties the city is facing in attracting investment. Chabaidao, which means 100 varieties of tea, is China’s third-biggest fresh tea drinks chain by retail sales. The Chengdu-based company raised about $330m in the IPO even as the offering was met with tepid interest from investors. … Continue reading China bubble tea chain plunges in Hong Kong debut

The US competition watchdog has sued to block fashion accessory giant Tapestry’s $8.5bn takeover of rival Capri. Tapestry owns handbag makers including Coach and Kate Spade, while Capri’s brands include Michael Kors. The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said if allowed, “the deal would eliminate direct head-to-head competition between Tapestry’s and Capri’s brands”. In response Tapestry said “the FTC fundamentally misunderstands both the marketplace and the way in which consumers shop”. Together, the firms employ about 33,000 staff globally but the FTC argued the deal could reduce wages and their benefits. Coach and Kate Spade are known for what their … Continue reading US watchdog sues to block $8.5bn handbag takeover