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☆ Pentagon identifies Army soldiers killed in helicopter crash in eastern Mediterranean Sea
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( Haley Britzky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

“Chief Warrant Officer 3 Stephen Dwyer, Chief Warrant Officer 2 Shane Barnes, Staff Sgt. Cade Wolfe were truly SOF professionals and are among the nation’s finest soldiers,” Col. Roger P. Waleski Jr., commander of the 160th SOAR (Abn. In 2020, he “fully dedicated himself to the organization” by resigning his commission and becoming a warrant officer, the Army release says. His awards and decorations include the Air Medal with Combat device, Army Commendation Medal and Army Achievement Medal with combat device. He volunteered for an assignment with the 160th SOAR and completed the regiment’s “extensive training and assessment program” this year.

Persons: Stephen R, Dwyer, Shane M, Barnes, Tanner W, Andrew P, Cade M, Wolfe, Stephen Dwyer, Shane Barnes, Tanner Grone, Andrew Southard, Cade Wolfe, ” Col, Roger P, Waleski Jr, “, ”, Jonathan Braga, ” Braga, Barnes ’, Grone, Southard, Lloyd Austin, ” Austin Organizations: CNN, Pentagon, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, Apache, Abn, US Army Special Operations Command, Operations, US European Command, Army Special Operations Command, United States Military Academy, Army, Star, UH, Gonzaga University, Staff, 160th, Hawk, Combat Aviation Brigade, Overseas Service Ribbon, 25th Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Battalion, Overseas Service, Defense, America Locations: Clarksville , Tennessee, Sacramento , California, Gorham , New Hampshire, Arizona, Mankato , Minnesota, Israel, Iraq, Afghanistan, Korea, Hawaii, 160th SOAR

School board members refuse to cede any ground. One was a discordant school board meeting in September that stretched over nearly five hours. The other was a school board candidates forum that drew a full room in October. Since then, the school board has hired its own private security to stand guard at meetings. While she does not have proof, Drane thinks it was retaliation for her vocal resistance against the new school board majority.

Persons: ”, ___, Michelle Obama, Belén Rodas, that’s, Jordan Lynch, Dale Swanson, Swanson, Glenn Youngkin, distresses Frank Morgan, “, Tamara Quick, didn't, ” Rabih Abuismail, ” Kirk Twigg, Twigg, Mark Taylor, Taylor, Toni Morrison, Tom Eichenberg, Abuismail, Lisa Phelps, Fabiana Parker, Parker, Heather Drane, we’re, Drane, It's, Lynch, ” Rodas, ___ Swenson, Serkan Gurbuz Organizations: Spotsylvania School, Democratic, Republican, GOP, Spotsylvania School Board, Rappahannock Conservative Women’s Coalition, Republicans, Liberty, Republican Gov, Virginians, ”, Youngkin, NAACP, Associated Press, AP Locations: FREDERICKSBURG, Va, Spotsylvania, United States, Virginia, ”, Spotsylvania County, America, Spotsylvania ., Rockingham County, Goochland County, South Carolina, Manassas, New York

☆ Amazon algorithm juiced prices, cost US consumers $1 billion new FTC lawsuit documents allege
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-02 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

It has earned Amazon more than $1 billion from US households, newly unredacted portions of the suit allege. Public revelationsThe complaint’s newly unsealed portions, filed Thursday in Seattle federal court, uncover a wide range of previously non-public allegations. More than 70% of Amazon shoppers do not click past the first page of search results, according to the unsealed complaint. In another situation, Amazon allegedly took steps to promote its own, proprietary products — such as the Amazon Kindle tablet — as having been recommended by expert reviewers when the Amazon products had not earned such a recommendation. If the Amazon price went up, the competing retailers would increase their prices as well, according to the complaint.

Persons: Amazon’s, Jeff Bezos, Biden, ”, Tim Doyle, ” Doyle, “, Nessie, David Zapolsky Organizations: Washington CNN, Federal Trade Commission, Amazon, FTC, Amazon Prime Locations: Seattle, Bezos

☆ Vodafone will struggle to get clean exit in Spain
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Toby Melville Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Oct 30 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Vodafone’s (VOD.L) boss Margherita Della Valle is cleaning up the sprawling 21 billion pound telecom group, but it’s a tough job. A potentially messy exit in Spain illustrates the point. Della Valle lacks an obvious partner in the country: local giant Telefónica (TEF.MC) is too big, while rivals Orange (ORAN.PA) and MásMóvil are merging with one another. As a result, Vodafone may have found itself a potentially problematic counterparty for the Spanish business, which Della Valle has put under strategic review. Investors might be reassured that Della Valle is making things happen, but a clean break in Spain looks increasingly unlikely.

Persons: Toby Melville, Margherita Della Valle, Della Valle, Eamonn O’Hare, Expansión, Zegona, Pamela Barbaglia, Liam Proud, Streisand Neto Organizations: Vodafone, REUTERS, Reuters, Orange, Zegona Communications, Virgin Media, Bloomberg, Deutsche Bank, ING, Reuters Graphics Reuters, X, Thomson Locations: London, Britain, Spain

☆ Siemens is case study in China de-risking dilemma
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-04 | by ( Pamela Barbaglia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

That’s unsettling for the likes of Siemens, $62 billion carmaker Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) and $39 billion chemicals group BASF (BASFn.DE). Factor in the German group’s 32% stake in Siemens Energy (ENR1n.DE) and 75% holding in Siemens Healthineers (SHLG.DE), currently worth 46 billion euros, and it adds up to 156 billion euros. The unit and Siemens’ Airport Logistics unit, which press reports say could be another divestment candidate, may only be worth 4 billion euros combined. Moreover, Kaeser already tried to boost Siemens’ valuation by partially spinning off subsidiaries. As of September, Siemens had bought back 2.5 billion euros of shares since starting a 3 billion euro share repurchase programme in November 2021.

Persons: Roland Busch, France’s Legrand, Busch, Joe Kaeser, he’s, Kaeser, Germany’s Bundesbank, Siemens, Goldman Sachs, Judith Wiese, George Hay, Oliver Taslic Organizations: Reuters, Siemens, Germany’s, Barclays, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Volkswagen, BASF, Software, Dassault, Automation, ABB, Smart Infrastructure, Siemens Energy, Siemens ’ Mobility, France’s Alstom, CRRC Corporation, Siemens ’ Airport Logistics, Siemens Healthineers, Toshiba Corp, Energy, BNP, Bloomberg, Financial Times, Thomson Locations: China, Brussels, Beijing, Germany, EMEA, Swiss, Middle Kingdom, Republic, Shenzhen, Sichuan, Chengdu, Southeast Asia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand

☆ Ambani’s retail backers dispel only a little doubt
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Shritama Bose | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Asia’s richest man is raising fresh funds to trim debt and expand the shopping unit of his flagship Reliance Industries (RELI.NS). Ambit Capital, a broking firm, for example ascribes Reliance Retail a $57 billion valuation in a sum of the parts analysis, almost half Bernstein’s estimated $111 billion. Any financial haze around Reliance Retail will naturally clear whenever it publishes a detailed listing prospectus. U.S. private equity giant KKR will invest 20.7 billion rupees ($250 million) into Reliance Retail Ventures, the company’s parent Reliance Industries said on Sept. 11. Reliance Retail is a subsidiary of Reliance Industries.

Persons: Mukesh Ambani, Thakore, Singapore’s GIC, Bernstein, Una Galani, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Reliance Industries, KKR, Abraham, Qatar Investment, U.S, Reliance Retail, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Reliance, HK, India’s Reliance Industries, Reliance Retail Ventures, Thomson Locations: MUMBAI, Qatar, Abu Dhabi, China, Singapore, Saudi Arabia

☆ Former Alibaba CEO Daniel Zhang quits cloud in surprise move amid landmark restructuring
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Hong Kong CNN —Daniel Zhang, the outgoing chairman and CEO of Alibaba, has stepped down from his position running the company’s cloud division in a surprise move announced just months after he assumed the pivotal role. Daniel Zhang, the then CEO of Alibaba, speaks at a conference in Shanghai in November 2022. Han Haidan/China News Service/Getty ImagesEddie Yongming Wu will succeed Zhang as acting chairman and CEO of its cloud unit, Alibaba said Monday. Significant restructuringIn March, Alibaba announced it would split into six separate units, including cloud, e-commerce, logistics, media and entertainment. Analysts said Zhang’s departure from the cloud business came as a surprise, but should not affect a potential IPO of the unit.

Persons: Hong Kong CNN — Daniel Zhang, Zhang, “, “ Mr Zhang, Daniel Zhang, Han Haidan, Eddie Yongming Wu, Alibaba, Joseph C Tsai, Wu, Joe Tsai, Steven Ferdman, Tsai, —, ”, ” Tsai, Jacob Cooke Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, ” Citi, Alibaba, China News Service, Cloud Intelligence Group, Paley International, Paley Museum, CNN, Brooklyn Nets, New York Liberty, South China Morning, Alibaba Group, Analysts Locations: China, Hong Kong, Shanghai, New York, Alibaba

☆ CBS News Names New Chief Executive
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-15 | by ( Benjamin Mullin | More About Benjamin Mullin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

CBS News has named Wendy McMahon as its next chief executive, overseeing the news division, its network of stations and its TV syndication arm. Ms. McMahon was previously president of CBS News and its stations, splitting duties with Neeraj Khemlani, who also held that title. Mr. Khemlani stepped down on Sunday, striking a multiyear deal to develop content for the company. George Cheeks, the chief executive of CBS, said in a note to employees on Monday that Ms. McMahon’s appointment was part of a broader reorganization of the division’s national and local news businesses. “I firmly believe that Wendy is the ideal leader for these groups at this critical juncture,” Mr. Cheeks wrote.

Persons: Wendy McMahon, McMahon, Neeraj Khemlani, Khemlani, George Cheeks, McMahon’s, Wendy, Mr, Cheeks Organizations: CBS, CBS News

☆ CBS announces Wendy McMahon to lead news in wake of Neeraj Khemlani stepping down
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( Liam Reilly | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —Wendy McMahon was named president and chief executive officer of CBS News, the network’s local TV stations, and CBS Media Ventures, the company announced on Monday following the departure of Neeraj Khemlani as co-president of CBS News and stations. She will also oversee content licensing to TV stations and the division’s national advertising sales business. McMahon immediately named veteran journalist and executive at CBS News, Ingrid Ciprian-Matthews, president. I’m excited for the future of CBS News, our local stations and our valuable syndication franchises under her leadership.”On Sunday, CNN reported that Khemlani was stepping down after a little more than two years in the role. “I have some news to share today, and I don’t want to bury the lede,” Khemlani said in a memo sent to staffers Sunday.

Persons: Wendy McMahon, Neeraj Khemlani, McMahon, Ingrid Ciprian, Matthews, “, Wendy, ” George Cheeks, ”, Khemlani, ” Khemlani, I’ve, ” McMahon Organizations: New, New York CNN, CBS News, CBS Media Ventures, CBS, Sunday, CNN Locations: New York

☆ Abrdn’s turnaround is a work in progress
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File PhotoLONDON, Aug 8 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Abrdn’s (ABDN.L) machine is firing on two of its three cylinders. The latter two units are growing, but the stock-picking arm – once Abrdn’s core business – needs more attention. The 1.5 billion pound deal, which closed last year, boosted Abrdn’s exposure to the business of managing savings. Since some of that windfall will disappear when rates fall, Bird needs to speed up his turnaround of Abrdn’s core funds business. The 3.9 billion pound company’s turnaround has a long way to go.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Stephen Bird, Hargreaves, Bird, Neil Unmack, Peter Thal Larsen, Oliver Taslic Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Interactive, Twitter, Siemens, Thomson

☆ Altice’s beaten-up debt is only a bet for the bold
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( Pamela Barbaglia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

REUTERS/Violeta Santos MouraLONDON, Aug 8 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Altice’s debt is a bet for the bold. Patrick Drahi’s telecoms group is sitting on a $60 billion debt burden, and faces rising borrowing costs and a corruption investigation. Drahi will therefore need to sell assets to cut debt, which starts to come due in 2025. Both Altice France and Altice International are trying to sell their data centre businesses, which could raise some 700 million euros, bankers say. Yet Altice France alone has some $19 billion of debt coming due by 2029.

Persons: Patrick Drahi, Violeta Santos Moura, Patrick Drahi’s, Drahi –, Armando Pereira, Altice, Drahi, “, ”, Pereira, Xavier Niel’s, Manuel Magalhaes e Silva, Altice International’s, Alexandre Fonseca, Neil Unmack, Oliver Taslic Organizations: French, REUTERS, Violeta Santos Moura LONDON, Reuters, Altice USA, Altice, Bouygues Telecom, Banco Espírito Santo, Public, Thomson Locations: Paris, France, Moroccan, Europe, United States, Portugal, Israel, Dominican Republic, Orange, Altice France, Banco Espírito, Portuguese, New York, London

☆ Warren Buffett flaunts his green investment thumb
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( Robert Cyran | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

NEW YORK, July 17 (Reuters Breakingviews) - How does Warren Buffett allocate capital? Buffett noted a few years ago how electric utilities need a “massive makeover” involving costs that would chew up BHE’s earnings for decades. Natural gas will also become increasingly important as a backup fuel. Unlike most utilities, BHE doesn’t have to pay a dividend – and neither does Berkshire, because of the faith investors have in the $750 billion company. This frees up capital, giving Buffett an edge where capex and acquisitions are concerned.

Persons: Warren Buffett, Buffett, Greg Abel, Jeffrey Goldfarb, Sharon Lam Organizations: YORK, Reuters, Berkshire Hathaway, Berkshire Hathaway Energy, Dominion, Chevron, Occidental Petroleum, Twitter, Dominion Energy, Brookfield Infrastructure Partners, Thomson Locations: Berkshire, Brookfield

☆ Mission Impossible: Paramount reckoning
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( Jennifer Saba | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

NEW YORK, July 5 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Paramount Global’s (PARA.O) predicament is worthy of its successful “Mission: Impossible” franchise. Over the past year or so, Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa.N) has bought and increased its stake in Paramount to about 15%. Without the funding, her closely held firm might have needed to pledge more of its Paramount stock against a loan. Streaming service Paramount+ is similar to Netflix, whose enterprise is worth 5 times next year’s estimated revenue. “Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One,” from Paramount Pictures, opens in movie theaters on July 12.

Persons: Shari Redstone, Looney, Walt Disney, Sumner, Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, Goldman Sachs, Byron Trott, Rudolph Valentino, Mae West, Marx, Trustbusters, Martin Davis, Sumner Redstone, Simon, Schuster, Walt, Jeffrey Goldfarb, Sharon Lam, Streisand Neto Organizations: YORK, Reuters, Paramount, Warner Bros Discovery, AT, Netflix, Apple, Comcast, Electronic Arts, MSD Partners, Viacom, Audio Communications, CBS, Nickelodeon, MTV, Time Warner, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Tiffany Network, National Football League, Fox, Amazon, MGM, U.S, Penguin Random, Walt Disney, Amusements, Paramount Global, BDT Capital Partners, “, Paramount Pictures, Thomson Locations: U.S, Gulf, Western, NAI

☆ LinkedIn ages like fine wine in Microsoft’s cellar
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( Lauren Silva Laughlin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

NEW YORK, June 28 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Most corporate acquisitions deteriorate over time, but Microsoft’s (MSFT.O) $26 billion deal for LinkedIn keeps getting better. Buying LinkedIn was a bold step for Satya Nadella, who became the software goliath’s third chief executive in early 2014. Paying a 50% premium for LinkedIn and its 430 million users made it one of the technology industry’s largest deals ever and by far Microsoft’s biggest. The war over the “Call of Duty” maker is just one of many things happening at Microsoft that’s overshadowing LinkedIn. Those market dynamics have buoyed LinkedIn, which was only generating $3 billion in revenue when Microsoft bought it.

Persons: Satya Nadella, Steve Ballmer, There’s, Mark Zuckerberg, Tesla, Elon Musk, faddish, Microsoft’s, It’s, Jeffrey Goldfarb, Sharon Lam Organizations: YORK, Reuters, LinkedIn, Nokia, aQuantive, Activision, Microsoft, Facebook, Twitter, Sprout Social, Bing, Thomson

☆ King Charles III rides on horseback in first official birthday parade
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-17 | by ( Lauren Said-Moorhouse | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

London CNN —King Charles III revived a royal tradition by riding on horseback in the first Trooping the Colour of his reign, which marks the British sovereign’s official birthday. The traditional military spectacle on Saturday is a staple in the royal diary drawing huge crowds to central London. Henry Nicholls/AFP/Getty ImagesA horse-drawn carriage carrying the Queen, the Princess of Wales and her children - Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis - followed. The King's grandchildren, Princes George and Louis and their sister, Princess Charlotte, ride in a horse-drawn carriage to the parade ground. After the parade, the royal party will return to Buckingham Palace and watch an extended military flypast.

Persons: London CNN — King Charles III, Charles ’, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince William, Princess Anne, Prince Edward, British Sovereign, Henry Nicholls, Princess, Wales, Prince George , Princess Charlotte, Prince Louis, Bidisha Mamata, ”, King Charles, Princes George, Louis, Princess Charlotte, Alastair Grant, Queen Camilla, Richard Knighton Organizations: London CNN, Horse Guards, Welsh Guards, Blues and Royals, London Guards, Getty, Sovereign’s, Guards, Blues, Royals, CNN, Marines, RAF, 1st Battalion Welsh Guards, Royal Navy, British Army, Royal Air Force, Ministry of Defence, RAF Red Arrows, Air Staff, Air, Commonwealth, Honourable Artillery Company, of London’s Army Reserves Locations: London, Buckingham Palace, St James’s, British, AFP, King, Kensington, United Kingdom, Green

☆ MTV News to shut down as Paramount slashes US workforce
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Liam Reilly | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —Paramount Media Networks announced Tuesday it will shutter MTV News and slash its US workforce by 25%, bringing to an end the iconic music video network’s news division that once covered a range of issues from pop culture to politics and became a household name for Generation X and Millennial adolescents. During the ’90s, MTV News also provided an alternative to traditional cable news that appealed to young Americans. In addition to MTV News, some units in the company are being eliminated altogether, most of which are operations, a Paramount spokesperson said. CNN, The Washington Post, NPR, Gannett, Vox Media, NBC News and others have also cut their workforces in recent months. The Paramount Media Networks division is cutting staff by 25%.

☆ Two U.S. Army Helicopters Crash in Alaska, Killing 3 Soldiers
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Livia Albeck-Ripka | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Two U.S. Army helicopters returning from a training flight crashed in Alaska on Thursday with four people aboard, killing three soldiers and injuring the fourth, Army officials said. The Army’s 11th Airborne Division confirmed the deaths late Thursday, saying that the two AH-64 Apache helicopters had crashed near Healy, Alaska, which is more than 200 miles north of Anchorage. Two of the four soldiers were declared dead at the crash site, and a third died on the way to a hospital in Fairbanks, it said. “This is an incredible loss for these soldiers’ families, their fellow soldiers, and for the division,” Maj. Gen. Brian Eifler, the division’s commanding general, said in a statement. John M. Pennell, a spokesman for 11th Airborne Division, said that he did not yet have details on the injured soldier’s condition.

☆ Kirin investors find vitamin deal hard to swallow
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The $15 billion Japanese company is best known as a brewer, but sources more than half its top line from other businesses. Kirin, led by CEO Yoshinori Isozaki, also reckons the deal will be accretive to earnings per share in the first year. Yet investors immediately wiped some $450 million off the purchaser’s market value on Thursday, almost double the premium it agreed to pay Blackmores’ shareholders. Blackmores may yet show Kirin has adopted a better dealmaking regimen, but investors aren’t holding their breath. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ McKinsey Winding Down Firm’s Bankruptcy Practice
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Alexander Gladstone | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Consulting firm McKinsey & Co. is winding down its bankruptcy practice after numerous lawsuits and government investigations concerning the division’s work advising troubled borrowers, people familiar with the matter said. Some McKinsey partners who had previously focused on bankruptcy advisory work in the firm’s recovery and transformation services, or RTS, division have either been leaving the firm or pivoting to other kinds of work, the people said.

☆ McKinsey Is Shutting Down Its Restructuring Business
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Alexander Gladstone | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Consulting firm McKinsey & Co. is shutting down its corporate-restructuring practice after numerous lawsuits and government investigations concerning the division’s work advising troubled borrowers, people familiar with the matter said. McKinsey has announced internally that its restructuring division would close, the people said. The consulting firm laid off some partners in its restructuring unit, called McKinsey RTS, while others are being absorbed into other practices, they said.

☆ BuzzFeed Encourages Reporters to Write More Stories in Attempt to Turn Profit
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Alexandra Bruell | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

BuzzFeed has reduced the size of its newsroom by about 40% in the past year. BuzzFeed Inc. is encouraging its newsroom to produce more articles in an effort to boost traffic, as its news division continues to lose money and the digital publisher braces for continuing declines in revenue. BuzzFeed News Editor in Chief Karolina Waclawiak told staff at a recent meeting that increasing the news division’s volume and traffic was part of an effort to help the newsroom meet a goal of becoming profitable this year.

☆ DOJ launches new effort to target corporate sanctions evasion
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Hannah Rabinowitz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco announced a new effort by the Justice Department on Thursday to target corporate sanctions evasion and other financial crimes that implicate national security. “To address the increasing intersection of corporate crime and national security, the Department is today announcing significant restructuring and resource commitments within the National Security Division,” Monaco at the American Bar Association National Institute on White Collar Crime Thursday. “Companies are on the front lines of today’s geopolitical and national security challenges,” she said. “Increasingly, corporate criminal investigations carry profound national security implications.”As part of that effort, Monaco said, the Justice Department’s National Security Division will hire more than 25 new prosecutors to investigate “sanctions evasion, export control violations, and similar economic crimes.” Monaco said. The Justice Department has brought several sanctions violations cases in the past year.

☆ Uber and Lyft Claim Big Gains for Their Ad Businesses
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Patrick Coffee | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +4 min

Ride-hailing companies Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. each say their nascent advertising businesses have grown significantly in recent months. PREVIEWThe ride-hailing rivals’ ad businesses are also important for the companies’ growth. Uber said increased ad revenue in the latest quarter was a key growth driver for its overall business. Lyft ad revenue increased “nearly seven times” in the fourth quarter compared with the previous quarter, according to Mr. Greenberger. But the companies’ ad prices offer a glimpse at their respective positions in the market.

☆ DOJ files second antitrust suit against Google, seeks to break up its ad business
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Lauren Feiner | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

The U.S. Justice Department on Tuesday filed its second antitrust lawsuit against Google in just over two years. This lawsuit, focused on Google’s online advertising business, seeks to make Google divest parts of the business and is the first against the company filed under the Biden administration. Google also faces three other antitrust lawsuits from large groups of state attorneys general, including one focused on its advertising business led by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. The company has long denied that it dominates the online advertising market, pointing to the market share of competitors including Meta’s Facebook. Google and other tech companies have also faced increasing scrutiny from abroad, particularly in Europe, where Google has also fought multiple competition cases and new regulations threaten major changes to tech business models.

☆ Fanatics Hires CFO for Collectibles Business After Topps Deal
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Nina Trentmann | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +5 min

Jacksonville, Fla.-based Fanatics said this week that Greg Abovsky started as chief financial officer for the collectibles business earlier this month. As CFO, Mr. Abovsky plans to build out the division’s finance team and its trading card business as it looks to expand. Fanatics plans to expand its portfolio into culture and entertainment cards, said Mike Mahan, chief executive officer of the collectibles business. Fanatics expects its collectibles business will fare well in the coming years, despite the threat of a potential downturn. Both Mr. Abovsky and Mr. Mahan declined to comment on if and when Fanatics could list on the public markets.

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