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Technology

Disney nears tipping point as streaming profits start to offset cable decline

(Reuters) - Bob Iger returned to Walt Disney as CEO in 2022 with a bold promise of making streaming profitable.

Technology

KKR raises tender offer price for Fuji Soft acquisition

TOKYO (Reuters) -Private equity firm KKR has raised its tender offer price for Fuji Soft by 7% to 9,451 yen ($60.86) a share, the Japanese software developer said on Friday, narrowly surpassing a rival offer of 9,450 yen from Bain Capital.

Technology

Putin will look into YouTube disruptions, Kremlin says

MOSCOW (Reuters) -President Vladimir Putin is looking into slow speeds and disruptions on YouTube in Russia after the country's top cinema official raised the matter with him, the Kremlin said on Friday.

Technology

Singapore clears South Korean Hanwha's buyout of Dyna-Mac

(Reuters) -Singapore's competition regulator cleared South Korean conglomerate Hanwha Group's S$790.6 million ($589.30 million) takeover offer for oil contractor Dyna-Mac on Friday.

Technology

Samsung Electronics plans $7.2 billion buyback after share price plunges

SEOUL (Reuters) -Samsung Electronics has decided to buy back shares worth 10 trillion won ($7.17 billion) over a one-year period to boost shareholder value, after shares plunged to more than four-year lows earlier in the week.

Technology

Man who stole and laundered roughly US$1bil in bitcoin is sentenced to 5 years in prison

A computer expert who stole bitcoin worth billions of dollars at current prices – and then spent years laundering some of the hacked cryptocurrency with help from his wife – was sentenced on Nov 14 to five years in prison.

Technology

Stiff business: Berlin startup will freeze your corpse for monthly fee

Becca Ziegler is only 24, but she already has her death planned out: her corpse will be deep-frozen to -200°C (-328°F) with liquid nitrogen.

Video games

White supremacist, Nazi content spread on Steam game service

In August, a teenage boy wearing a neo-Nazi symbol stabbed five people in Eskişehir, Türkiye. Shortly after, authorities found his profile on Steam, the most popular online video-game marketplace.

Social media

After Trump’s victory, US election falsehoods shift left

Right-wing falsehoods about voter fraud fell off a cliff after Donald Trump’s victory in the US election, but American liberals took a page from their playbook to push wild conspiracy theories that have fueled doubt about the democratic process.

Internet

Review fatigue? Consumers are less likely to share feedback after a purchase

Reviews posted online by users have become adjustment variables, so central to any company’s strategy that they can make or break a business.

AI

AI weather models have shown promise this hurricane season

When Hurricane Beryl was rushing across the Atlantic basin in July, the weather forecasting tool made by Google Deepmind, the tech company’s artificial intelligence unit, saw something other models missed.

AI

AI could help scale humanitarian responses. But it could also have big downsides

As the International Rescue Committee copes with dramatic increases in displaced people in recent years, the refugee aid organisation has looked for efficiencies wherever it can – including using artificial intelligence.

Social media

Australia’s plan to ban children from social media proves popular and problematic

How do you remove children from the harms of social media? Politically the answer appears simple in Australia, but practically the solution could be far more difficult.

Video games

Blizzard brings back old ‘Warcraft’ games as global franchise turns 30

The video-game publisher Blizzard will release new versions of several old Warcraft strategy games to commemorate the fantasy franchise’s 30th anniversary.

Internet

Russians say YouTube access ‘restored’ after plea to Putin

Russian media reported Thursday evening that many YouTube users were able to watch normally following months of slow video speeds in the country, after President Vladimir Putin promised to look into the issue.

AI

Activist: ‘Terrible’ AI has given tech an existential headache

Technology firms are ceaselessly promoting new AI products, but climate activist Sage Lenier says AI is useless, unsustainable and has given the industry an existential problem.

Technology

Netflix hopes for live sports knockout with Paul-Tyson fight

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A showdown between former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson and social media influencer-turned-fighter Jake Paul on Friday is the latest one-two punch from Netflix, as the media giant hopes to cash in on sports' sprint to streaming.

Social media

Bluesky has added one million users since the US election as people seek alternatives to X

Social media site Bluesky has gained one million new users in the week since the US election, as some X users look for an alternative platform to post their thoughts and engage with others online.

Technology

South Korean LG Display to invest additional $1 billion in Vietnam, local govt says

HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam has awarded a licence to South Korea's LG Display that will see it raise its investment in the northern port city of Haiphong by $1 billion, the city's authorities said late on Thursday.

Cybersecurity

Opinion: Replace your passwords with passkeys for an easier login experience

If you're tired of memorising passwords, then give passkeys a try.