Category: BUSINESS

Uber is launching its bike-share company Jump in Europe

olivia Craig
COVID 19 Read consumer

In the two months since Uber bought bike-share startup Jump, the company’s bright red bikes have already rolled out across a few US cities — and now they’re coming to Europe. Onstage at today’s NOAH Conference in Berlin, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi announced that the company would be expanding beyond its traditional taxi rides with plans to roll out electric bike rentals in the German capital by the end of the summer, with more European cities to come. It’s a move that raises eyebrows for a few reasons. European cities are already flooded with…

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Pitch: Pinterest to give advertisers promoted video tool that takes up the width of the entire screen

Pinterest is continuing its push into video as a potential avenue for advertisers by today saying that it will offer advertisers a promoted video tool that takes up the width of the entire screen. While Pinterest normally offers users a grid that they can flip through — compressing a lot of content into a small space — taking up the full width of the screen with a promoted video would offer advertisers considerable real estate if they’re looking to get the attention of users. The company also said it’s hired…

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China’s largest car-hailing service Didi redesigns ar-pooling platform after passenger death

China’s largest car-hailing service Didi, has redesigned its platform after being criticized for the ‘socialization’ feature that saw drivers inappropriately commenting on the looks of female passengers reports ZDNet. The service has been halted since May 12 after a 21-year-old flight attendant reportedly died at the hands of a 26-year-old driver in China’s Henan province on May 6. The flight attendant had booked a ride through Didi and was allegedly killed by the driver who was also found dead in a river by police, according to Chinese news reports. Didi…

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Microsoft reportedly working on $400 Surface tablets to compete with the iPad

Dianne Jacobs

Microsoft is working on a new line of budget Surface tablets to better compete with Apple’s low-cost iPad options, according to a report from Bloomberg. According to the report, the new Surface tablets won’t just be smaller, cheaper Surface Pros. Rather, Microsoft is said to be completely redesigning the devices, with 10-inch screens instead of the 12-inch size currently found on the Surface Pro, rounded corners that more resemble an iPad than the more rectangular Surface design, and USB-C for charging. Most importantly, priced at $400, they will be more…

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Lyft Tests its Monthly Subscription Service

Dianne Jacobs

Lyft is moving ahead with tests of the All-Access plan, a monthly subscription service for rides through the Lyft platform. A select group of riders will see an option to sign up for a waitlist to be part of Lyft’s next round of All-Access invitations. “Testing our newest All-Access Plan is the next step in moving rideshare from one based on ownership, to one based on subscription,” a Lyft spokesperson said.“We’re excited to roll this out to more passengers in the coming weeks and continue offering Lyft’s affordable, convenient, and…

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Uber Vehicle Allegedly Saw but Ignored Woman it Struck

Dianne Jacobs

The cause of the fatal crash of an Uber self-driving car appears to have been at the software level, specifically a function that determines which objects to ignore and which to attend to, The Information reported. This puts the fault squarely on Uber’s doorstep, though there was never much reason to think it belonged anywhere else. Given the multiplicity of vision systems and backups on board any given autonomous vehicle, it seemed impossible that any one of them failing could have prevented the car’s systems from perceiving Elaine Herzberg, who…

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Apple faces battery pledge complaints

Dianne Jacobs

Apple has been accused of finding unnecessary faults with iPhones and thereby profiting from a battery replacement initiative. When the US firm announced it had been slowing down iPhones in order to “preserve battery life” in December last year, it apologised for not telling people sooner. Facing a consumer backlash, it promised owners of the iPhone 6 and more modern models a discounted or free battery replacement. It said: “We are able to do the work we love only because of your faith and support – and we will never…

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Companies Buy Online Reviews by Offering Amazon Customers Full Refunds in Exchange for Five Star Ratings

Dianne Jacobs

An investigation has revealed that fake reviews for internet products are being bought and sold online. The  investigation found companies using Facebook to offer Amazon customers full refunds in exchange for five-star reviews of their products. They are also able to buy bogus five-star recommendations on Trustpilot, one of the world’s leading and most trusted review websites, according to BBC 5 live Investigates. Such online review sites are becoming increasingly popular with businesses and customers. Some three quarters of British adults use them, of which half believe they have seen…

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EU Investigating Apple’s Purchase of Shazam

Dianne Jacobs

The EU has launched an investigation into Apple’s acquisition of music identification service Shazam. It’s concerned that the deal could shrink consumer options for mobile music streaming services within the EEA (European Economic Area). In February, multiple countries, including Austria, France, Iceland, and Spain, requested that the European Commission assess the acquisition to determine whether it’s allowed under a European Union merger law. The deal, according to the commission, “may have a significant adverse effect on competition in the European Economic Area.” That request is now being acted on, with…

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Uber expands privacy settlement with FTC

Dianne Jacobs

Uber is expanding the proposed settlement it made with the Federal Trade Commission last August pertaining to data mishandling, privacy and security complaints that date back to 2014 and 2015. In August, Uber agreed to 20 years of privacy audits. That proposed settlement happened prior to Uber’s disclosure of the massive 2016 data breach that affected some 57 million riders and drivers. Now, Uber will be subject to “additional requirements,” according to the FTC. “After misleading consumers about its privacy and security practices, Uber compounded its misconduct by failing to…

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