Sign in Subscribe

Consumer

Netflix Offices Raided in Tax Fraud Investigation

French and Dutch authorities raided the offices of streaming giant Netflix in both countries on Tuesday, as part of a preliminary investigation into tax fraud and money laundering, reports Reuters. The investigation, opened by France’s Parquet National Financier (PNF) in November 2022, focuses on potential tax irregularities within the

EU Agrees to Hike VAT on Airbnb, Uber After Estonia Drops Veto

The European Union has reached an agreement to reform VAT rules that will impose tax hikes on online platforms offering short-term rentals and ridesharing services, such as Airbnb and Uber, reports Euronews. This comes after Estonia, home to ride-sharing app Bolt, dropped its opposition to the proposal. Estonia had previously

US Regulators Call for Probe into Temu and Shein

Popular online retailers Temu and Shein are facing mounting scrutiny over the safety of products sold on their platforms. Two US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) commissioners are now urging a formal investigation into the companies, citing concerns over the alleged sale of dangerous items, including some posing risks to

Lyft Slashes Jobs, Scales Back Bikes and Scooters in Efficiency Push

Ride-hailing company Lyft announced another round of layoffs on Wednesday, as reported by the Wall Street Journal, this time targeting its bikes and scooters division. The move comes as CEO David Risher continues his efforts to streamline operations and boost profitability at the Uber rival. While Lyft will maintain its

Snap Bets on Ads, AR to Counter Competition

Snap Inc. CEO Evan Spiegel is striving to boost morale amidst a challenging year for the company, which has seen its stock price plummet by nearly 50%. In an internal letter obtained by Bloomberg, Spiegel reassured employees that Snap is on track for record annual revenue and remains committed to

ByteDance Seeks Record $9.5 Billion Loan

ByteDance, the Chinese tech giant behind TikTok, is seeking a massive $9.5 billion loan, aiming to secure the largest dollar-denominated corporate facility ever seen in Asia, excluding Japan. This news comes from separate reports by Reuters and Bloomberg. Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and JPMorgan are reportedly coordinating the loan, structured

Squarespace Buyout Battle, SoftBank's AI Chip Hunt, and FTC's Google Scrutiny

Cloud & Infra | AI | Consumer | Venture WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 14, 2024 Cloud & Infra Squarespace Investor Opposes $6.9 Billion Buyout Deal Glazer Capital, a shareholder in Squarespace Inc., has publicly opposed the website builder's proposed $6.9 billion acquisition by Permira. Glazer, which claims to control 5.4%

Uber's Drizly Decision, Canva's Share Sale, and the AI Race Heats Up

Good morning, here’s your weekly dose of what happened in the software and e-commerce space last week:  Uber axes Drizly: The alcohol delivery service that fueled countless home happy hours during the pandemic, is calling it quits. Uber, which acquired Drizly in 2021 for $1.1 billion, decided that
Uber's Drizly Decision, Canva's Share Sale, and the AI Race Heats Up

Netflix: A Content Arms Race For The Belt-Tightening Era

In this article, we will do a deep dive on Netflix. If you like this article and would like to receive insights on tech companies in your inbox, please consider subscribing to our newsletter. Marc Randolph, the co-founder of Netflix called his memoir “That Will Never Work”. The title was

Spotify: Product, Business Model, Competitors

In this article, we will look at Spotify by unpacking its trajectory, its go-to-market strategy, and key financial metrics. We will also look at the competitive landscape, the company’s major acquisitions and what could be next for this popular streaming service.