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New mobile versions of PUBG and Fortnite, both distributed by Tencent Holdings, raised the spectre of gamers spending more time on smartphone rather than more luxurious but less convenient consoles A key takeaway from Sony’s and Nintendo’s earnings is that console games are alive and well. While both companies reported softness in sales and shipments of console hardware – the PS4 and Switch, respectively – revenue and unit sales from software remained strong. That means consumers who bought the devices over the past year or so aren’t bored and weren’t lured to smartphone platforms to the extent many feared. New mobile versions of PUBG and Fortnite, both distributed by Tencent Holdings, raised the spectre of gamers spending more time on the ubiquitous smartphone rather than more luxurious but less convenient consoles. ALSO READ:  Sony records 24% rise in Q1 profit over surge in game software sale Both titles can be thought of as gaming versions of the Hun...

While Starbucks holds the crown in the $13.8 billion US coffee market, Nescafe and Nespresso hold the top ranks globally, according to Euromonitor Nestle SA and Starbucks Corp. are joining forces to rejuvenate their coffee empires. Nestle will pay the Seattle-based chain $7.15 billion upfront in cash for the rights to sell Starbucks coffee products in retail and food-service channels, the companies said Monday. Nestle will use the Starbucks brand in its Nespresso and Dolce Gusto capsule systems next year. The deal is Nestle’s first tie-up with a major rival in coffee. Nestle expects the deal to contribute positively to its earnings per share and organic growth targets from 2019. The business has annual sales of $2 billion. Starbucks said it will use the proceeds to accelerate share buybacks, now expecting to return about $20 billion through repurchases and dividends through fiscal 2020. The alliance underlines Nestle’s efforts to capture more upscale java drinkers...

The company also spent at historic levels, nearly tripling capital expenditure for the quarter to $7.7 billion Alphabet Inc .’s first-quarter results came with a clear message to Wall Street: The company is embarking on a new spending binge to chase its biggest rivals. Google ’s parent posted the strongest sales growth in almost four years on Monday, indicating marketers kept flocking to its services amid rising scrutiny of digital ads. But the company also spent at historic levels, nearly tripling capital expenditure for the quarter to $7.7 billion. Almost all of that spending went to buttress newer cloud and consumer-device businesses that lag behind leaders Online Shopping for Electronics, Apparel, Computers, Books, DVDs & more Inc. and Apple Inc. After neglecting these markets for years in favour of its main ad businesses and riskier moonshot bets, Alphabet is now splurging to catch up. "The big story from the results was the significant rise in expen...

Analysts said the purge aimed to go beyond corruption and aimed to remove potential opposition to Prince Mohammed's ambitious reform agenda Saudi Arabia's future king has tightened his grip on power through an anti-corruption purge by arresting royals, ministers and investors including billionaire Alwaleed bin Talal who is one of the kingdom's most prominent businessmen. Saudi Prince Arrest  Alwaleed, a nephew of the king and owner of investment firm Kingdom Holding, invests in firms such as Citigroup and Twitter. He was among 11 princes, four ministers and tens of former ministers detained, three senior officials told Reuters on Sunday. The purge against the kingdom's political and business elite also targeted the head of the National Guard Prince Miteb bin Abdullah, who was detained and replaced as minister of the powerful National Guard by Prince Khaled bin Ayyaf. The allegations against Prince Alwaleed include money laundering, bribery and exto...

H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise The US has resumed premium processing of H-1B work visas in all categories, months after it was suspended temporarily to handle the huge rush of applications for the work visas popular among Indian IT professionals. Premium processing of H-1B visa was suspended in April to handle huge rush of new petitions. In September, the country opened up some categories of the  H-1B visas  for the fast processing. "Premium processing is now available for all types of H- 1B petitions," US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said yesterday. Also Read :  New Rs 100 notes coming next year, printing to begin in April The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. The technology companies dep...

The arsenal uncovered in Mesquite comes on top of at least 16 firearms discovered in the Vegas hotel room Authorities have said they had recovered a weapons cache including firearms, explosives, and ammunition from a house owned by  Las Vegas  gunman Stephen Paddock, as they upped the death toll from the attack to 59. Sheriff Joseph Lombardo said officers searching the house in Mesquite, Nevada recovered "in excess of 18 additional firearms, some explosives and several thousand rounds of ammo, along with some electronic devices we're evaluating at this point." Lombardo said the death toll from the Sunday night assault on an open-air concert on the Vegas Strip had risen to 59, while 527 people had been injured. ALSO READ:  At least 58 dead, more than 500 hurt in Las Vegas shooting; gunman killed He said law enforcement were working four separate crime scenes: Paddock's room at the Mandalay Bay hotel, the concert venue, the gunman's house in Mesqui...

The relics include sets of copper plates that are believed to have been inscribed in 9-10th century Current Affairs   : Prime Minister   Narendra Modi   has gifted his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu replicas of two sets of relics from Kerala, regarded as key artefacts of the long Jewish history in India. Modi, who arrived in Tel Aviv, Israel on July 6 for a three-day visit, presented the relics to   Netanyahu   at his home. They comprise two different sets of copper plates that are believed to have been inscribed in 9-10th Century, the Prime Minister's Office said. The first set of copper plates is a cherished relic for the Cochin Jews in   India.   It is regarded as a charter describing the grant of hereditary royal privileges and prerogatives by the Hindu King, Cheraman Perumal (often identified as Bhaskara Ravi Varma) to the Jewish leader Joseph Rabban.   Read Full Story

The blasts reportedly went off at the end of the concert near the box office area of the venue At least 19 people have been killed and 50 injured in an explosion which is treated as a "terrorist incident", at a pop concert by US star Ariana Grande in the Manchester city in the   UK Attack   , police said today. "Police were called to reports of an explosion at Manchester Arena. So far 19 people have been confirmed dead with around 50 others injured," Greater Manchester Police said in a statement. "This is currently being treated as a terrorist incident until police know otherwise," the statement said. Eyewitnesses reported hearing a loud "bang" from inside the venue, which was playing host to a concert by American pop star Ariana Grande. Video footage from the scene showed bloodied victims being helped by emergency services. Also Read :   Manchester blast: Singer Ariana Grande tweets she is 'broken' and sorry Grande is s...

According to reports, airlines routinely overbook their flights leading inconvenience to passengers On April 9, a passenger was forcibly removed from a  United Airlines  flight from Chicago O’Hare to Louisville after the carrier was unable to find volunteers to accommodate four of its employees on standby. Dramatic videos of the incident have gone viral on YouTube and social networks, and I reckon the resulting cost of this PR disaster will likely make United’s CEO wish he had sent in a private jet to ferry those employees to Louisville (which the airline could easily have afforded, given its net income of US$2.3 billion in 2016). ALSO READ:  United shares fall after worldwide backlash over dragged passenger Many articles have reported that airlines routinely overbook their flights, and sometimes passengers have to accept (voluntarily or not) the inconvenience of getting to their destination later than planned. As an airline economist, I do not recall, howev...

The iPad Air 2 is replaced by a new model simply called the iPad costing $329 Apple is refreshing and cutting prices on two of its iPads, but held back on updating its higher-end tablets. A much-speculated 10.5-inch   iPad   didn't materialise, nor did new versions of iPad Pros aimed at businesses and creative professionals. Apple unveiled the new iPads through a press release rather than a staged event, the opposite of the process reserved for bigger product releases, which typically are unveiled in September or October, in time for the holiday shopping season. The tablet market is in an extended decline after a few years of rapid growth. According to IDC, tablet shipments fell 20 percent, to 53 million in the final three months of 2016, compared with the same period in 2015. The iPad Air 2 is replaced by a new model simply called the iPad. It retains a 9.7-inch screen, but the display is brighter and the processor faster. Its price starts at $329 for 32 gigabyt...