Four Democratic members of Congress are calling for an investigation into whether an alleged secret 2018 agreement between Google and Facebook concerning digital advertising violated federal antitrust law. Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Reps. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) and Mondaire Jones (D-NY) wrote a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and Acting US Attorney General Nicholas Ganjei of Texas asking them to determine whether federal charges might be… Source link

  Uber (UBER) is selling its equity stake in the two joint ventures it created with Yandex to Yandex for possibly around $2.8 billion in cash, which is above the $1 billion carrying value that Uber reported at the end of the second quarter. While this transaction will improve the firm’s liquidity position, it will not impact our $69 fair value estimate of this narrow-moat and 4-star stock. Uber will receive $1 billion by the end of this year for all its holding in an autonomous joint… Source link

U.S. private employers added back far fewer jobs than expected in August as the Delta variant’s spread began to take its toll on the pace of the labor market’s recovery. Private payrolls rose by 374,000 in August, ADP said in its closely watched monthly report on Wednesday. Consensus economists were looking for private payrolls to grow by 625,000, according to Bloomberg data. In July, private sector jobs increased by 326,000, according to the firm’s revised monthly print.  By sector,… Source link

August marked the seventh straight month of gains for the S&P 500 (^GSPC) as investors ignored softening U.S. economic data at the hands of the COVID Delta variant.  But investors may be wise to stop ignoring the data, and position for a September rife with market volatility, says the team at Goldman Sachs.  “General mobility statistics have weakened, full-service restaurant indicators have softened, travel intentions appear to have faded and retail traffic declines (off of 2019 levels) have… Source link

Wealthy people are bracing for potentially higher taxes that could hit their bank accounts as soon as this year, while lower- and middle-income Americans could end up enjoying tax breaks from Uncle Sam that were originally only temporary. Last week, the House passed a $3.5 trillion budget plan that may ultimately include numerous Democratic proposals for taxing high-income earners and corporations and expanding tax credits for middle- and low-income earners. Democrats are still writing the… Source link

PARIS (AP) — Google is appealing a 500 million euro ($591 million) fine issued by French regulators over its handling of negotiations with publishers in a dispute over copyright. The dispute is part of a larger battle by authorities in Europe and elsewhere to force Google and other tech companies to compensate publishers for content. “We disagree with a number of legal elements, and believe that the fine is disproportionate to our efforts to reach an agreement and comply with the new… Source link

The Google logo displayed on a smartphone with several newspaper front pages pictured in the background. Hakan Nural | Anadolu Agency via Getty Images Google said on Wednesday it was appealing against a 500 million euro ($591 million) fine imposed by France’s antitrust watchdog in July over a dispute with local media about paying for news content. The fine came amid increasing international pressure on online platforms such as Google, part of Alphabet Inc, and Facebook to share more of the… Source link

The front of the Pixel 5a. It has a great design at any price point. Ron Amadeo … Source link

The amended Telecommunications Business Act was approved by the country’s National Assembly on Tuesday, with the backing of President Moon Jae-in’s party. It will become law once President Moon signs it. Under the new law, developers will be able to select which payment systems to use to process in-app purchases, meaning they may be able to bypass hefty charges imposed by the two longtime leaders. Apple’s commissions, for example, go as high as 30% on some purchases made through the… Source link

Sundar Pichai, senior vice president for Chrome at Google Inc., holds up a new Chromebook Pixel as he speaks during a launch event in San Francisco, California, U.S., on Thursday, Feb. 21, 2013. Google Inc., owner of the world’s most popular search engine, debuted a touchscreen version of the Chromebook laptop, stepping up its challenge to Microsoft Corp. and Apple Inc. in hardware. David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images Google is edging closer to rolling out its own central processing… Source link