San Francisco, United States | AFP | Video games are following television and music into the cloud, with console-quality play on its way to being a streaming service as easy to access as Netflix or Spotify. Computing power in data centers and devices from televisions to smartphones has surged and …
Read More »Apple market value slips below $1 trillion amid selloff
New York, United States | AFP | Apple shares tumbled Friday a day after quarterly results showing strong profits but weaker-than-anticipated iPhone sales and a disappointing outlook for the key holiday period. In midday trade, Apple skidded 7.3 percent to $206.07, slipping below the $1 trillion milestone it topped in …
Read More »Spotify earnings hit sour note on Wall Street
New York, United States | AFP | Spotify shares took a hit Thursday after a disappointing growth outlook offset the first-ever quarterly profit posted by the streaming music sector leader. Shares in the Swedish-based music group slid 5.7 percent to close at $141.16 after the company’s third quarter earnings report. …
Read More »Typical tweet shorter since character length doubled
San Francisco, United States | AFP | Twitter on Tuesday confirmed that a year after doubling the character limit for tweets, the average length of messages fired off in English actually got a smidge shorter. The news promised to allay concerns that raising the character limit from 140 to 280 …
Read More »Facebook shares roller coaster as it rides change
San Francisco, United States | AFP | Facebook announced plans Tuesday to adapt to users sharing more privately as the leading social network pours money into an ongoing battle with “bad actors” out to misuse its service. Silicon Valley-based Facebook reported that its quarterly profit climbed in the recently ended …
Read More »Twitter tops earnings estimates, lifting shares
Washington, United States | AFP | Twitter reported Thursday stronger-than-expected profits and revenues in the third quarter, igniting a strong rally in shares of the key social network. The San Francisco group delivered a $789 million profit, including one-time gains, compared to a net loss of $21 million in the …
Read More »‘We are fine’: Melania Trump dismisses gossip about marriage
Washington, United States | AFP | Melania Trump dismissed Friday the widespread talk about her husband President Donald Trump’s alleged affairs with a porn star and others, saying she has “more important things to think about.” In an interview with ABC News, excerpts of which were broadcast early Friday, …
Read More »Google launch event overshadowed by privacy firestorm
Washington, United States | AFP | Google was supposed to be focusing Tuesday on its launch of a new smartphone and other devices, but the event was being overshadowed by a firestorm over a privacy glitch that forced it to shut down its struggling social network. The Silicon Valley giant …
Read More »South Africa wine production drying up in water crisis
Paris, France | AFP | South Africa is set for a steep decline in wine production in 2018 as the country grapples with a water crisis ravaging Cape Town and surrounding areas, a Paris-based global organisation said Tuesday. Africa’s top wine producer is set to produce 8.6 million hectolitres of wine …
Read More »Suicide machine draws crowds at Amsterdam funeral show
1971, Netherlands | AFP | A controversial suicide pod that enables its occupant to kill themselves at a press of a button went on display at Amsterdam funeral show on Saturday. Called the “Sarco”, short for sarcophagus, the 3D-printed machine invented by Australian euthanasia activist Philip Nitschke and Dutch designer Alexander …
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