Tech

In this articleAAPLSNAPEvan Spiegel, CEO of SNAP Inc.Stephen Desaulniers | CNBCSnap CEO Evan Spiegel on Friday said the social media company is happy to pay Apple’s 30% commission rate on in-app transactions.”We really feel like Snapchat wouldn’t exist without the iPhone and without the amazing platform that Apple has created,” Spiegel said on TechCheck. “In that sense, I’m not sure we have a choice about paying the 30% fee, and of course, we’re happy to do it in exchange for all of the amazing technology that they provide to us in terms of the software but also in terms of their hardware advancements.”Spiegel’s comments come in stark contrast to those of business mogul Barry Diller, who ripped into Apple on Friday for the cut it takes of in-app transactions, saying his companies are “overcharged in a disgusting manner” by Apple.”The idea that they actually justify it by saying, ‘We spend all this money protecting our little App Store,'” Diller said. “I mean, it’s criminal. Well, it will be criminal.”Diller’s comments came on the same day that Apple CEO Tim Cook is testifying in an antirust case focused on the App Store brought by Epic Games, which makes the widely popular video game

Business mogul Barry Diller on Friday ripped into Apple over the fees it charges companies that have applications on the iPhone maker’s App Store.In an interview on CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” the chairman of IAC and Expedia said his companies, and others like them, are “overcharged in a disgusting manner.”For large companies, Apple takes a commission rate of 30% on in-app transactions; for certain smaller developers, the company recently lowered it to 15% after facing criticism.Apple steadfastly defends its policies, saying the money it gets from commission fees goes into maintaining and securing the App Store in a way that ultimately benefits app makers.”The idea that they actually justify it by saying, ‘We spend all this money protecting our little App Store,'” Diller said. “I mean, it’s criminal. Well, it will be criminal,” he predicted.Diller’s comments Friday came on the same day that Apple CEO Tim Cook is set to testify in an antirust case focused on the App Store brought by Epic Games, which makes the widely popular video game Fortnite.Apple has a “quasi-monopoly” along with Alphabet’s Google, which runs the Google Play app store for Android devices, Diller said.Diller took aim at the way Apple forces in-app transactions to flow through the App

A picture taken on June 9, 2016 shows Amazon warehouse in Paris, part of the new service ‘Prime Now’.Eric Piermont | AFP | Getty Images Amazon is shutting down its standalone Prime Now platforms and directing users who want fast delivery on groceries and other goods to order them through the Amazon app or website, the company announced on Friday.The Prime Now app and website will be retired worldwide by the end of this year, Amazon said.”To make this experience even more seamless for customers, we are moving the experience from a separate Prime Now app onto the Amazon app and website so customers can shop all Amazon has to offer from one convenient location,” Stephenie Landry, vice president of grocery at Amazon, said in a blog post.Consumers will be able to choose two-hour delivery on essentials and other goods via the Amazon app or website. Two-hour grocery delivery will be available via Amazon Fresh or Whole Foods, both of which are located in Amazon’s app and website.Additionally, any third-party retailers or local stores that were offered on the Prime Now app will be moved over to Amazon, including Bartell Drugs, a pharmacy chain in Seattle, and Union Square Wines

In this article9618-HKWorkers from Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com prepare parcels for delivery at the company’s main logistics hub for Singles Day on November 11, 2020 in Beijing, China.Kevin Frayer | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesGUANGZHOU, China — The logistics arm of Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com is set to price its Hong Kong initial public offering at 40.36 Hong Kong dollars, near the bottom of the range, a person with knowledge of the matter told CNBC.JD Logistics previously said its IPO on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange would be priced between 39.36 Hong Kong dollars and 43.36 Hong Kong dollars.The company will issue 609.2 million shares. At 40.36 Hong Kong dollars each, the company would raise 24.6 billion Hong Kong dollars ($3.2 billion).The pricing is subject to confirmation, said the person, who did not wish to be identified as they were not authorized to speak publicly.JD declined to comment when contacted by CNBC.JD.com, a rival to Alibaba in China, has been busy in the capital markets. JD.com, which is listed in the U.S., carried out a $3.87 billion secondary listing in Hong Kong last June. The company then listed its health-care unit in Hong Kong in December.However, JD withdrew its

In this articleMSFTA person walks past a Microsoft logo at the Microsoft office in Beijing, China August 4, 2020.Thomas Peter | ReutersBEIJING — Microsoft’s China arm announced Thursday a strategic partnership with Chinese retail tech company Hanshow to collaborate on cloud-based software for store operators worldwide.The deal marks Microsoft’s latest foray into a retail industry that is being forced to accelerate a shift online. The integration of offline with internet-based sales strategies is known as omni-channel retail, and includes grocery delivery, demand for which surged in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.Retail is one of the industries that’s seen some of the biggest disruptions in recent years, Joe Bao, China strategy officer for Microsoft, said at a signing ceremony at the software company’s Beijing offices.The partnership is not just for the China market, but also for bringing China’s technology overseas, Bao said in Mandarin, according to a CNBC translation. He said the agreement comes after five years of Microsoft working with Hanshow.The American software company entered China in 1992, where it has its biggest overseas research and development center. The strategic partnership comes as U.S. and Chinese companies operate in an increasingly tense political environment that has focused on trade

In this articlePANWNikesh Arora, CEO of Palo Alto Networks and formerly SoftBank Group Corp. President and COO, speaks during the SoftBank Academia Special Lecture with Chairman and CEO Masayoshi Son in Tokyo on October 22, 2015.KAZUHIRO NOGI | AFP | Getty ImagesPalo Alto Networks shares rose as much as 6% in extended trading on Thursday after the security hardware and software company announced fiscal second-quarter earnings that were healthier than analysts had expected.Here’s how the company did:Earnings: $1.38 per share, adjusted, vs. $1.28 per share as expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv.Revenue: $1.07 billion, vs. $1.06 billion as expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv.Revenue grew 24% year over year in the quarter, which ended on April 30, compared with 25% growth in the previous quarter, according to a statement.CEO Nikesh Arora said in the statement that there’s greater attention on cybersecurity because remote working became popular during the pandemic, as well as a spate of recent cybersecurity issues — presumably including attacks on Microsoft’s Exchange Server software, vulnerabilities in SolarWinds software and the recent ransomware attack against Colonial Pipeline that shut down a key fuel pipeline.Palo Alto Networks isn’t the only company looking to capitalize on security anxiety. In the

In this articleGOOGLCalifornia Governor Gavin Newsom speaks at the opening of the country’s first federal and state operated community vaccination site during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Los Angeles, California, February 16, 2021.Mike Blake | ReutersCalifornia Governor Gavin Newsom pointed to a recent flood of tech IPOs and Google’s forthcoming development project in San Jose as examples of a California comeback, as a recall campaign and complaints from departing residents draw attention to the state’s troubles.Google chief legal officer and global affairs SVP Kent Walker joined local and state officials, including Newsom, as he signed California bill SB7 at an event in San Jose. The law changes zoning to allow denser housing and speeds up state’s environmental review process for construction projects, which would include Google’s proposed mega campus in San Jose.Newsom and officials thanked Walker several times during the event. “Kent, thank you for highlighting this — this bill is about the investment in the state of California,” Newsom said in a press conference in San Jose Thursday. “This bill is about our comeback. This bill is about our renewal.””To be here with Google and the incredible private sector investment and the faith and devotion to

In this articleSNAPGifting will start to roll out to Snap Stars later this year on Android and iOS.SnapSnapchat users will be able to tip high-profile creators through the app’s chat function later this year, Snap said Thursday. The move pushes the social media company further into creator monetization.Users will be able to purchase tokens in the app and use them to purchase “gifts” to send to creators through story replies. Creators can cash out once they accumulate $100 worth of gifts.Snapchat — which now reaches 500 million monthly active users — will take a cut from the gifts sent, but declined to say how much.Social media companies are adding more ways for creators to monetize their content in order to attract more users. This also helps them diversify revenue away from advertising.Twitter, for example, recently rolled out its Tip Jar for some users to add to their profiles. Twitter has also worked on an offering called “Super Follows,” which could let users pay to see tweets from their favorite accounts.Snap’s stock closed up more than 5% Thursday.Snapchat will also reformat the $1 million-a-day incentive program for Spotlight, its TikTok clone, starting next month. Instead of a daily offering, Snap users

In this articleSNAPEvan Spiegel, CEO of SNAP Inc.Stephen Desaulniers | CNBCSnap said Thursday that its social media app Snapchat has reached 500 million monthly active users.Shares of Snap were up more than 5% on Thursday after the company announced the feat.This is a significant milestone for Snap, a company that refused multi-billion dollar acquisition offers by Facebook before it went public in 2017 and survived an ill-fated redesign in 2018 that its users hated.Snap had never released monthly-active-user figures before Thursday. Rather, the company had always focused on its daily user base, which reached 280 million in April. That’s up 22% compared to a year prior.To be sure, the company’s 500 million monthly users are just a fraction of the 2.85 billion who open Facebook each month.The milestone was announced Thursday at the company’s 2021 Snap Partner Summit, where it also shared a number of new augmented-reality features that could help the company monetize that 500 million monthly user base.Zoom In IconArrows pointing outwardsThere’s a scene in 1995’s “Clueless” where Cher Horowitz uses a computer to quickly glance and superimpose the catalog of clothing in her closet on her body to pick the perfect outfit.At the time, it was a

In this articleBTC.CM=The Treasury Department on Thursday announced that it is taking steps to crack down on cryptocurrency markets and transactions, and said it will require any transfer worth $10,000 or more to be reported to the Internal Revenue Service.”Cryptocurrency already poses a significant detection problem by facilitating illegal activity broadly including tax evasion,” the Treasury Department said in a release.”This is why the President’s proposal includes additional resources for the IRS to address the growth of cryptoassets,” the department added. “Within the context of the new financial account reporting regime, cryptocurrencies and cryptoasset exchange accounts and payment service accounts that accept cryptocurrencies would be covered. Further, as with cash transactions, businesses that receive cryptoassets with a fair market value of more than $10,000 would also be reported on.”Bitcoin reversed course shortly after the Treasury’s announcement and was last seen trading up 1.6%, according to Coin Metrics. Previously in the session, it was up more than 9%.A growing number of Wall Street analysts have over the past month sounded the alarm that regulators at the Treasury and the Securities and Exchange Commission could soon take a more active role in cryptocurrency regulation.Zoom In IconArrows pointing outwardsThe Treasury Department’s release came