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The Briefing

By Martin Peers, Jessica Lessin and the team at The Information

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Recent Editions

Customers checking into an Apple store in San Francisco in June. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

What’s Different for Tech in the Second Wave: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jul 1, 2020 5:31pm PDT
What’s interesting about the latest in pandemic-related news, from a business perspective, is what has changed since the beginning—and what hasn’t. As infections rise sharply, we’re seeing reports of a second wave of layoffs as businesses that had reopened close again. What’s different from late March, though, is... What’s interesting about the latest in pandemic-related news, from a business perspective,...
YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Google’s Latest TV Price Hike: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 30, 2020 5:48pm PDT · 3 comments
Two years ago, I ditched my cable television subscription for YouTube TV, an internet bundle of television channels wrapped in the kind of slick interface you would expect from the Google-owned streaming service. The next year, YouTube bumped the price up to $50 a month from $40, which I accepted reluctantly because they added HGTV and some... Two years ago, I ditched my cable television subscription for YouTube TV, an internet bundle of...
Apple CEO Tim Cook. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Apple’s News Loss: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 29, 2020 5:31pm PDT
The value of Apple’s free News app shrank just a little on Monday after the New York Times said it would pull the few articles it made available for the service. More broadly, The Times’ decision suggests why Apple may face headwinds in its efforts to make its giant services business even bigger.The Times didn’t like the fact... The value of Apple’s free News app shrank just a little on Monday after the New York Times...
A Zoox self-driving vehicle last month. Photo by Bloomberg
Amazon’s Self-Driving Car Bet: The Information’s Tech Briefing
By Martin Peers · Jun 26, 2020 5:31pm PDT
A Zoox self-driving vehicle last month. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Amazon’s Self-Driving Car Bet: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 26, 2020 5:31pm PDT
Amazon’s decision to spend more than $1 billion buying self-driving car developer Zoox—a story we broke last night—made me wonder: Is Amazon really committing to spend the billions more that are necessary to develop fully automated taxis, as its announcement implied? Amazon’s pockets are deep, but perhaps not that deep.... Amazon’s decision to spend more than $1 billion buying self-driving car developer...
Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google's parent Alphabet. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Google’s Concession to News Publishers: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 25, 2020 5:08pm PDT
News executives around the world are almost certainly feeling triumphant, thanks to news that Google has agreed to pay some publishers overseas for news content. It marks a significant step in publishers’ long effort to get tech giants to pay for their content. Facebook has already begun to pay publishers a little for stories that appear... News executives around the world are almost certainly feeling triumphant, thanks to news that...
A restaurant in New York that reopened this week. Photo by AP
The Briefing

Reopening: One Step Forward, Two Back: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 24, 2020 5:17pm PDT · 1 comment
The rapid pace of reopening across parts of America, leading to spikes in Covid-19 infection rates, suggests we’re taking two steps back for every step forward. On the job front, in the tech industry, the picture is also mixed. The pandemic is still causing layoffs—Sonos, for instance, said this week it will cut 12% of its global... The rapid pace of reopening across parts of America, leading to spikes in Covid-19 infection...
Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Canada’s Tech Lure: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 23, 2020 5:40pm PDT
Most major tech leaders have called out the wrongheadedness of President Trump’s H-1B visa halt. But probably the most telling comment came from Twitter chairman Patrick Pichette, a Canadian, who tweeted that all H-1B seekers should “just look to the North, where we welcome you.”Tobi Lutke, CEO of Canada-based Shopify, tweeted... Most major tech leaders have called out the wrongheadedness of President Trump’s H-1B visa...
Apple CEO Tim Cook on the company's online-only Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday. Photo by Bloomberg
Apple’s Chip Shift: The Information’s Tech Briefing
By Martin Peers · Jun 22, 2020 6:55pm PDT
Apple CEO Tim Cook on the company's online-only Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Apple’s Chip Shift: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 22, 2020 6:55pm PDT
In 2008, when Apple acquired a semiconductor startup called P.A. Semi, I asked Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO at the time, why he would bother buying a chip company. “We’ve got some cool stuff we’re going to do,” he told me, then a reporter at The Wall Street Journal. On Monday, more than 12 years after that... In 2008, when Apple acquired a semiconductor startup called P.A. Semi, I asked Steve Jobs,...
Apple CEO Tim Cook. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Tech’s Anti-Apple Campaign Builds: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 18, 2020 5:32pm PDT
This might be what’s called a tech bandwagon. Within two days of news that the European Commission is investigating Apple over its App Store rules, a flood of companies’ complaints about the issue have appeared. It all culminated in a Bloomberg report on Thursday quoting Microsoft president Brad Smith calling for antitrust regulators... This might be what’s called a tech bandwagon. Within two days of news that the European...
Attorney General Bill Barr. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Trump’s Escalating Attacks on Tech: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 17, 2020 5:30pm PDT
The Trump administration on Wednesday escalated its attacks on Section 230 liability protections for tech companies, with the Justice Department issuing a 25-page paper that suggested how lawmakers could overhaul the law. Democrats immediately denounced the proposal, which they see as an effort by President Trump and Attorney General Bill Barr... The Trump administration on Wednesday escalated its attacks on Section 230 liability protections...
An aerial shot of Menlo Park in Silicon Valley. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

How Lockdowns Changed Venture Capital: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 16, 2020 5:46pm PDT
One of the good things that may come out of the pandemic lockdown is an increase in venture investment in startups outside Silicon Valley. That’s one takeaway from our story today about how some VCs have bowed to the inevitable and made investments in founders after having met them only on Zoom.With face-to-face meetings on hold, founders... One of the good things that may come out of the pandemic lockdown is an increase in venture...
eBay's Silicon Valley headquarters. Photo by AP
eBay’s Cyberstalking Drama: The Information’s Tech Briefing
By Martin Peers · Jun 15, 2020 5:07pm PDT
eBay's Silicon Valley headquarters. Photo by AP
The Briefing

eBay’s Cyberstalking Drama: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 15, 2020 5:07pm PDT
Auction site eBay has gone through some fascinating corporate drama lately, including a power struggle on its board involving activist investor Elliott and the departure of CEO Devin Wenig last year. But nothing can compare to the extraordinary allegations made by the Justice Department in a cyberstalking case filed on Monday against former... Auction site eBay has gone through some fascinating corporate drama lately, including a power...
Google Pay on a smartphone. Photo by AP
The Briefing

Google’s Well-Timed Digital Pay Advance: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 12, 2020 6:02pm PDT
For those betting on which technologies would emerge from the pandemic stronger than before, contactless payments seemed like a safe one. For years, most Americans ignored features from Apple, Samsung and Google that let users hold their phones near checkout-stand readers to pay. A nation of borrowers found reaching for the physical credit card... For those betting on which technologies would emerge from the pandemic stronger than before,...
A DoorDash delivery person picking up an order in Washington D.C. Photo by Bloomberg.
The Briefing

Instacart, DoorDash Raise Money: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 11, 2020 6:25pm PDT
What goes up must come down. After the common sense-defying rally of recent weeks, a sell-off was overdue. But the size of the fall—the S&P 500 dropped nearly 6%, while the Nasdaq lost more than 5%—was still surprising. It’s a reminder of just how volatile stocks are likely to remain while the threat of the virus... What goes up must come down. After the common sense-defying rally of recent weeks, a sell-off was...
Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Uber Misses Out: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 10, 2020 5:18pm PDT
Shareholders in Uber have a reason to be disappointed today, as Uber’s takeover target, Grubhub, decided to join forces instead with a European firm, the aptly named Just Eat Takeaway. Hopes had been high for the past year or so among investors that some of the U.S. food delivery firms would combine, helping everyone lose less money.Alas,... Shareholders in Uber have a reason to be disappointed today, as Uber’s takeover target,...
Facial recognition technology being demonstrated at a conference in China last year. Photo by Bloomberg
A Reckoning on Facial Recognition? The Information’s Tech Briefing
By Martin Peers · Jun 9, 2020 6:16pm PDT
Facial recognition technology being demonstrated at a conference in China last year. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

A Reckoning on Facial Recognition? The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 9, 2020 6:16pm PDT
IBM’s decision to stop offering facial recognition technology is likely to amplify calls for other big technology companies—notably, Amazon—to do the same. As IBM CEO Arvind Krishna said in a letter to several members of Congress, Big Blue’s decision reflected concerns about the technology’s potential use as a tool... IBM’s decision to stop offering facial recognition technology is likely to amplify calls...
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Bezos Shows the Limits to Amazon’s Customer Obsession: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 8, 2020 6:45pm PDT
Among the dozen or so leadership principles that Amazon employees are expected to learn and operate by, “customer obsession” is the first, and, in many ways, the most sacred. In more than two decades following the company, I can’t think of a time when I heard an executive bash an Amazon customer, and certainly not in any kind... Among the dozen or so leadership principles that Amazon employees are expected to learn and...
AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

HBO Max’s Edge; Grubhub’s Latest Suitors: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 5, 2020 7:30pm PDT
Two years after a federal court approved AT&T’s $81 billion purchase of Time Warner, we are finally seeing how the telecom giant aims to create synergies from the deal. Exhibit A is AT&T’s decision to exempt new streaming service HBO Max from AT&T data caps. That means AT&T customers can stream the service more... Two years after a federal court approved AT&T’s $81 billion purchase of Time Warner, we...
ZoomInfo's logo at the Nasdaq stock market where it went public on Thursday. Photo by Nasdaq
The Briefing

IPO Market Reopens: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 4, 2020 6:19pm PDT
The IPO market is open for business! That’s clearly the message of the past two days, when both ZoomInfo and Warner Music debuted to strong reception. Thursday’s opening of ZoomInfo, a subscription software data analytics firm, in particular seemed like old times. The stock opened up double its IPO price, before easing off a little... The IPO market is open for business! That’s clearly the message of the past two days, when...
Mark Zuckerberg. Photo by Bloomberg
Little Support for Zuckerberg’s Hands-Off Policy Among The Information Subscribers: The Information’s Tech Briefing
By Martin Peers · Jun 3, 2020 6:00pm PDT
Mark Zuckerberg. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Little Support for Zuckerberg’s Hands-Off Policy Among The Information Subscribers: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 3, 2020 6:00pm PDT
A majority of The Information subscribers responding to our survey think Facebook should attach warning labels or fact-check Trump’s posts. Only a quarter think the social network should leave the posts alone, and 17% think Facebook should take down the incendiary posts.Those findings, in a poll we conducted Wednesday, suggest that the... A majority of The Information subscribers responding to our survey think Facebook should attach...