NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Heavily indebted Indian telecoms firm Vodafone Idea (VODA.NS) won some reprieve on Tuesday as the country’s top court gave mobile carriers 10 years to settle government dues, but the company’s longer-term problems are not over. Vodafone I... More »
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – India’s top court on Tuesday gave telecom firms 10 years to pay back dues they owe to the federal government after they failed to make the payment by the January deadline. Telecom providers in India pay the Department of Telecommunication... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – SoftBank Group Corp on Monday said it spent 398 billion yen ($3.8 billion) buying back 63.2 million shares between July 1 and Aug. 3, part of a repurchase programme that has helped lift its share price to two decade highs. The latest purchase... More »
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Ellen DeGeneres on Thursday sent an emotional message to the staff of her television talk show saying she was taking steps to improve the culture on set following accusations of a hostile working environment. The email followed an inter... More »
LAGOS (Reuters) – Oreoluwa Akinnawo is in his element. Lagos’s bars and restaurants are shut and Nigerians are struggling to socialise. The pandemic is his perfect time to find a soul mate online. “The dating thing during this restriction works perfectly for m... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government will ban Huawei from Britain’s 5G network by ordering telecoms companies to remove its equipment by 2027, Media Secretary Oliver Dowden said on Tuesday. Operators will not be able to purchase 5G comp... More »
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – India’s Reliance Industries said on Sunday Qualcomm Inc’s investment arm will buy a 0.15% stake in its digital unit Jio Platforms for 7.3 billion rupees ($97.1 million). The partnership will help Jio Platforms, the unit that houses Relian... More »
PARIS (Reuters) – Finland’s Nokia Oyj (NOKIA.HE) plans to cut 1,233 jobs at its French subsidiary Alcatel-Lucent International, equivalent to a third of the local workforce, the group said on Monday, confirming an earlier Reuters report. Nokia, which competes ... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. units of China Telecom Corp’s (0728.HK) and China Unicom (0762.HK) urged the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) not to revoke the company’s nearly two-decade old authorization to provide international telecommunications ser... More »
BENGALURU (Reuters) – WeWork’s India franchise said on Tuesday it laid off 100 employees, or 20% of its workforce, as the office-sharing startup joins a slew of firms that are cutting costs and revamping operations as a prolonged nationwide lockdown to curb th... More »
(Reuters) – A special committee of WeWork board members filed a motion in Delaware on Monday to prevent it from being disbanded, as it pursues legal action against majority owner SoftBank Group Corp (9984.T) over an abandoned $3 billion tender offer for the of... More »
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Fans may have to wait until the fall for the “Friends” reunion special as HBO Max executives are holding out hopes of filming it before a live audience rather than shooting the much-anticipated get together remotely with stars under qua... More »
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – Mobile operator Vodacom Group said on Monday it had switched on Africa’s first live 5G mobile network in three cities in South Africa, with further rollouts planned in other parts of the country. Vodacom was recently assigned temporary... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The five-member Federal Communications Commission voted unanimously to approve an order to allow Ligado Networks[MOSAV.UL] to deploy a low-power nationwide 5G network despite objections from the U.S. Defense Department, other federal age... More »
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – Several Dutch cellular broadcasting towers have been damaged by arson or sabotage in the past week by opponents of a rollout of a new 5G telecommunications network, newspaper De Telegraaf reported on Saturday. The paper said there have be... More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s foreign ministry said on Friday that Beijing is opposed to any action by the United States to revoke China Telecom Corp’s authorisation to provide international telecommunications to and from the United States. Chinese foreign minis... More »
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Walt Disney Co will release the live-action epic “Mulan” in movie theaters in July and Marvel’s “Black Widow” in November, the company said on Friday as it reshuffled a schedule disrupted by the global coronavirus outbreak. Among other ... More »
SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea is struggling to retain its lead in global next-generation 5G telecom services, as the coronavirus pandemic further cools sentiment of consumers whose interest in the technology has waned due to cost and quality concerns. The Asia... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday proposed to fine TracFone Wireless $6 million for allegedly violating its rules governing the subsidy program for telecommunications services for low income users. The FCC said TracFone a... More »
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The release of the much anticipated movie sequel to “Top Gun” has been moved to December, Paramount Pictures said on Thursday, the latest disruption in the movie industry caused by the coronavirus epidemic. “Top Gun: Maverick,” starring... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s Shionogi & Co (4507.T), creator of the blockbuster cholesterol treatment Crestor, said on Monday it would tie up with Ping An Insurance Group Co of China (601318.SS), selling a 2.05% voting stake for 33.53 billion yen ($311 million). ... More »
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s space agency Roscosmos said on Friday it would have to adjust its 2020 launch programme because of a halt in satellite production in Europe, amid the coronavirus outbreak. The head of Roscosmos, Dmitry Rogozin, will hold several mee... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Federal Communications Commission confirmed on Friday it voted to propose fining four major U.S. wireless carriers more than $200 million for failing to protect consumers’ location information. The FCC is proposing to fine T-Mobile U... More »
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – U.S. satellite broadband provider Hughes Network Systems may have to shut its Indian operations due to unpaid levies owed to the government, which could put thousands of banking services at risk, a company letter seen by Reuters showed. I... More »
(Reuters) – WarnerMedia is reuniting its “Friends” cast for an untitled, unscripted special for its upcoming streaming service, HBO Max, the company said on Friday. AT&T Inc’s (T.N) WarnerMedia said series stars Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Ma... More »
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) – Malaysia’s own security standards will dictate which companies take part in its planned 5G rollout this year, its communications minister told Reuters on Monday, as the United States pushes countries to exclude China’s Huawei [HWT.UL].... More »
BENGALURU (Reuters) – SoftBank-backed (9984.T) Oyo Hotels and Homes said on Monday losses widened more than six-fold in the year to March 2019, as the India-based hotel chain spent heavily to expand into China. The news comes weeks after Oyo began laying off r... More »
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Beleaguered Indian wireless carrier Vodafone Idea (VODA.NS) will pay 35 billion rupees ($490 million) in telecoms dues to the federal government by Feb. 21, a lawyer for the company said on Monday. Hopes that Vodafone Idea could outlive t... More »
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Indian wireless carrier Vodafone Idea (VODA.NS) will pay 25 billion rupees ($350 million) of the nearly $3.9 billion it owes to government in telecoms dues, TV news station ET Now reported on Monday. The company said it will pay 10 billio... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – New York on Sunday dropped its fight against the $40 billion merger of U.S. wireless carriers T-Mobile US Inc (TMUS.O) and Sprint Corp (S.N), saying the state would not appeal a judge’s approval of the deal. New York Attorney General Letit... More »
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thailand’s telecoms regulator raised 100.52 billion baht ($3.2 billion) in 5G spectrum auctions on Sunday, with operators snapping up 48 licenses ahead of an expected commercial rollout later this year. Thailand’s top mobile operator, Advan... More »
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Joaquin Phoenix won his first Oscar on Sunday for his terrifying performance as an isolated loner who becomes one of the world’s best known comic book villains in “Joker,” and invoked his late brother River Phoenix in one of the most em... More »
MOSCOW (Reuters) – The UK firm OneWeb launched 34 satellites from Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan early on Friday as part of its effort to provide global high-speed internet access using satellite communications by 2021. The Russian Soyuz rocket left Baikonu... More »
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Taiwan’s Wistron Corp plans to assemble printed circuit boards (PCBs) for iPhones at its new plant in southern India, two sources said, highlighting Apple Inc’s push to expand manufacturing in the world’s second-biggest smartphone market.... More »
(Reuters) – Softbank (9984.T)-backed office sharing firm WeWork named real estate industry veteran Sandeep Mathrani as its new chief executive on Saturday. Mathrani will join the company as the CEO from Feb. 18, 2020 and will report to Marcelo Claure, who will... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai said on Friday the telecommunications regulator plans to take action against at least one unnamed wireless carrier over the apparent unauthorized sale of real-time location d... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – WeWork has signed a deal to provide space to 250 employees of gym membership app company Gympass in New York, the latest example of the U.S. office-sharing start-up’s majority owner, SoftBank Group Corp, using its connections to buoy its b... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Hedge funds that push for change at corporations stepped up their demands for asset spin-offs and sales last year, making them part of nearly half of all activist investor campaigns waged in 2019, according to data released on Wednesday. “... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa’s search for a girlfriend to join him on a voyage around the moon will be the subject of a new documentary program, in the latest attention-grabbing stunt by the entrepreneur. 44-year-old Maezawa, who sold ... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – SoftBank Group Corp’s talks to secure $3 billion from Japan’s three biggest banks have stalled as the lenders have hit internal lending limits to the firm, two people said, complicating a $9.5 billion rescue package for WeWork. The Japanese t... More »
BOGOTA (Reuters) – Colombia has awarded bandwidth to three bidders in an auction that raised 5 trillion pesos ($1.5 billion) as part of efforts to improve mobile telephone services and expand internet access. Claro, a subsidiary of America Movil, Tigo de Milli... More »
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Tuesday that he met with AT&T Inc (T.N) Chief Executive Randall Stephenson, who assured him the telecommunications firm will continue investing and strengthening its operations in Me... More »
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Telenor (TEL.OL) reiterated on Sunday Huawei would be involved in building Norway’s 5G network along with Ericsson (ERICb.ST), one of several companies to continue working with the Chinese company despite U.S. pressure. Still, on Friday, t... More »
(Reuters) – T-Mobile US Inc Chief Executive John Legere testified on Friday that he believes U.S. regulators considered Dish Network’s history of attempting to build a wireless network when they approved the merger between T-Mobile and Sprint Corp. A group of ... More »
SAO PAULO (Reuters) – Brazilian delivery app Loggi must formalize work relationships with its motorbike drivers and pay charities 30 million reais as a fine for not previously contracting the workers, according to a Sao Paolo court ruling released on Friday. A... More »
NEW YORK/BANGALORE (Reuters) – SoftBank Group Corp (9984.T) will this week launch a previously agreed tender offer for as much as $3 billion of WeWork shares, including up to $970 million owned by the office sharing company’s cofounder Adam Neumann, two people... More »
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel’s telecoms regulator on Sunday delayed a tender for fifth-generation (5G) cellular frequencies after mobile companies asked for more time. The Communications Ministry in July published the tender in the hope that discounts to cash-... More »
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – South Africa’s MTN Group (MTNJ.J) has signed an expanded roaming and services agreement with the country’s third-biggest carrier Cell C, MTN said on Monday, pushing shares in rival Telkom (TKGJ.J) down more than 5%. The deal puts a dam... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s SoftBank Corp (9434.T) plans to merge internet unit Yahoo Japan with messaging app operator Line Corp (3938.T) to create a $30 billion tech giant, as it bags struggling internet companies to bulk up against rivals like Rakuten Inc (47... More »
(Reuters) – TikTok owner Beijing ByteDance Technology Co Ltd is in talks with big music labels – Universal Music, Sony Music and Warner Music – for global licensing deals to include their songs on its new music subscription service, the Financial Times reporte... More »
(Reuters) – Comic book movie “Joker” is poised to surpass $1 billion in global ticket sales on Friday, becoming the first R-rated Hollywood movie ever to overcome the milestone. “Joker,” a dark origin story from Warner Bros. about Batman’s arch nemesis, had so... More »
(Reuters) – Could “Friends” be getting back together, if only for a one night stand? The Hollywood Reporter and Variety on Tuesday reported that preliminary talks were underway for an unscripted reunion special that would feature all six “Friends” actors and a... More »
(Reuters) – AT&T Inc on Monday unveiled a three-year strategic plan that included selling up to $10 billion worth of businesses next year, paying off all its debt from the purchase of Time Warner and adding two new board members, bowing to pressure from activi... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – AT&T (T.N) and Elliott Management are talking about issues the activist hedge fund raised last month when it pushed for change at the U.S. telecommunications and media conglomerate, two people familiar with the matter said on Thursday. Ell... More »
(Reuters) – HBO Max, the forthcoming streaming service from AT&T Inc’s WarnerMedia, will screen films from Studio Ghibli, the Japanese animation producer behind the Academy Award-winning movie “Spirited Away”. This is the first time a streaming provider has ob... More »
(Reuters) – Shared office space company WeWork Companies Inc is leaning toward a near $5 billion financing package led by JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N), instead of selling a controlling stake to Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp (9984.T), Bloomberg reported bloom.bg/2... More »
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Japan’s SoftBank will invest in Mexican used car platform Kavak, the group’s chief operating officer Marcelo Claure said on Monday, adding to SoftBank’s growing portfolio in Latin America. “We are proud to join with and invest in Kavak ... More »
LONDON/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Backers of Facebook Inc’s (FB.O) Libra cryptocurrency project pledged to forge ahead after selecting a five-member board on Monday, shrugging off the latest member defection by online travel company Booking Holding earlier in t... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Cash-strapped WeWork, the office-sharing company that is trying to negotiate a financial lifeline, has a new problem that may prove costly. It has closed about 2,300 phone booths at some of its 223 sites in the United States and Canada aft... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – WeWork has opened almost as many new locations in the last 3-1/2 months as it did in the whole first half of this year, likely accelerating the speed with which the office-sharing company is burning through cash as increasingly hard-nosed ... More »
BOSTON (Reuters) – Elliott Management, Paul Singer’s $35 billion hedge fund, kept up its blistering pace of pushing for corporate changes during the third quarter, outspending all rivals with campaigns at AT&T and Marathon Petroleum Corp , data released on Fri... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – SoftBank Group (9984.T) CEO Masayoshi Son said is “embarrassed and flustered” by his track record, in comments to Nikkei Business magazine. “When I look at the growth of U.S. and Chinese companies, I feel strongly it’s not good enough,” Son s... More »
NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Police in major U.S. cities were on alert on Thursday as “Joker” opened in movie theaters after weeks of publicity surrounding its disturbing portrait of a bullied loner raised fears it might spark violence. “Joker,” an origin ... More »
BENGALURU (Reuters) – India’s Oyo Hotels and Homes shot out of nowhere to become one of the world’s largest hotel chains with a simple promise of “hassle-free” online booking, transparent pricing and cheerful lodging. But as the Softbank-backed (9984.T) startu... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Vodafone is testing innovative open access radio technology in Britain – a first for Europe – in a move that could break the grip Huawei, Ericsson and Nokia hold on the telco equipment market. OpenRAN, which has been developed by Vodafone an... More »
DUBAI (Reuters) – United Arab Emirates (UAE) telecoms company du saw no evidence of security concerns about Huawei’s 5G technology, the company’s chief technological officer Saleem Albalooshi told Reuters on Sunday. “Huawei is our partner in rolling out our 5G... More »
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – America Movil, the telecoms giant controlled by the family of billionaire Carlos Slim, is growing increasingly bullish that it will receive a license to offer television in Mexico, a prize that has eluded it for nearly three decades. Am... More »
GENEVA (Reuters) – The launch of Facebook’s Libra could be pushed back to tackle the regulatory concerns that have been raised around the world, the head of the organization set up to oversee the cryptocurrency told Reuters. Three months ago, Facebook (FB.O) a... More »
LUSAKA (Reuters) – Zambia’s communications regulator said on Thursday it had canceled the license for Vodafone’s local franchise holder, citing a lack of technical and financial capacity. Vodafone in 2016 licensed Afrimax, a telecommunications service provider... More »
SAN FRANCISCO/NEW YORK (Reuters) – Facebook Inc (FB.O) revealed lofty plans to establish a cryptocurrency called Libra in June, but the project quickly ran into trouble with skeptical regulators around the world. Opposition deepened on Friday, when both France... More »
(Reuters) – Office-sharing startup WeWork is pressing ahead with plans to go public despite lukewarm interest in its shares, three sources said, leaving its largest investor, SoftBank Group (9984.T), with a stark choice: take a haircut or pony up even more cas... More »
JAKARTA (Reuters) – SoftBank-backed ride hailer Grab is in talks to merge OVO, an Indonesian digital payments firm in which it owns shares, with an Ant Financial-backed local peer to build heft and power ahead of archrival Gojek, people familiar with the matte... More »
BERLIN (Reuters) – Wirecard (WDIG.DE) has signed a memorandum of understanding with Softbank’s (9434.T) Brightstar and anticipates “significant transaction volume” out of the deal, the German fintech announced on Monday. Under the agreement, digital financial ... More »
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Latin American delivery app Rappi plans to almost double the number of cities it operates in by year’s end, its co-founder said on Friday, following a $1 billion injection from Japan’s SoftBank that signals growing foreign interest in t... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Britain will make a decision on whether to allow China’s Huawei equipment to be used in its 5G networks in the autumn, the digital minister Nicky Morgan said. “We will make the right decision for the UK. I would hope we could do something by... More »
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp (9984.T) is in advanced talks to invest in Mexican used car platform Kavak and financial technology firm Konfio, several people familiar with the matter said, underscoring the company’s interest in Mexico as ... More »
JAKARTA (Reuters) – Southeast Asian ride-hailing firm Grab on Monday said it will invest $2 billion into Indonesia over five years using capital received from Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp, which wants to increase its exposure to the region’s most populous marke... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Justice Department said it was greenlighting T-Mobile US Inc’s request to acquire rival Sprint Corp after the companies agreed to divest Sprint’s prepaid businesses including Boost Mobile to Dish Network Corp in an effort to cre... More »
OSLO (Reuters) – Norwegian telecoms group Telenor (TEL.OL) said its second-quarter earnings would take a hit from “errors” discovered at Grameenphone GRAE.DH, its Bangladeshi telecoms division. “Grameenphone has discovered some erroneous omissions with regards... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Firefighters were tackling a blaze on Thursday at Warner Bros studios north of London, where the Harry Potter films were shot Fifteen fire engines were at the Leavesden studios in Hertfordshire where the fire started late on Wednesday night,... More »
(Reuters) – Cruise, a U.S. self-driving vehicle company majority-owned by General Motors Co, told Reuters on Friday that a U.S. national security panel approved a $2.25 billion investment in the firm by Japan’s SoftBank Corp. SoftBank has come under increasing... More »
ROME (Reuters) – Italy’s biggest phone company, Telecom Italia (TIM), plans to extend 5G services to six more Italian cities as well as dozens of tourist spots and business hubs by the end of the year. The former monopoly unveiled its 5G mobile services plan o... More »
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Sweden launched an inquiry on Friday into a national network outage at telecoms company Tele2 (TEL2b.ST) in June that knocked out voice calls for a many private customers and companies for several hours. Tele2, Sweden’s second-largest tel... More »
NAIROBI (Reuters) – Ethiopia will award two telecoms licenses to multinational mobile companies, a senior official said on Friday, in the first detailed announcement of the government’s plans for opening one of the world’s last major closed telecom markets. Th... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Commerce Department said on Friday it was adding several Chinese companies and a government-owned institute involved in supercomputing with military applications to its national security “entity list” that bars them from buying ... More »
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The creators of mobile gaming phenomenon Pokemon Go unleashed a new game on Thursday that features Harry Potter and other characters from the wizarding world made famous in best-selling books and blockbuster movies. Harry Potter: Wizard... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – Most investors in SoftBank Group Corp’s $100 billion Vision Fund want to join the group’s forthcoming second fund, and discussions with those investors will begin soon, SoftBank founder and Chief Executive Masayoshi Son said on Wednesday. The... More »
(Reuters) – Collective Health, which makes software for companies to pay workers’ health costs directly, said on Monday it had raised $205 million in new funding led by SoftBank Group Corp’s Vision Fund. The San Francisco, California-based company said it woul... More »
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif./NEW YORK (Reuters) – Some of the world’s biggest tech companies have told their employees to stop talking about technology and technical standards with counterparts at Huawei Technologies Co Ltd in response to the recent U.S. blacklisting... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – UK mobile operator Three on Monday said it would launch its first new-generation 5G broadband service in London in August and would roll out mobile and broadband across 25 towns and cities before the end of the year. Three, which is owned by... More »
(Reuters) – AT&T Inc’s WarnerMedia may price its streaming service between $16 and $17 per month, instead of a multi-tiered plan, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. The package may include HBO, sister channel ... More »
(Reuters) – The producer of the hit television series “The Walking Dead” and other major Hollywood film and TV studios said on Thursday they would reconsider locating productions in Georgia if a new state law restricting abortions takes effect. WarnerMedia, CB... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump pressed Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Monday to even out a trade imbalance with the United States and expressed confidence, despite Japanese wariness, that “good things” would come from North Korea. Trump i... More »
SINGAPORE/MANILA (Reuters) – Mobile phone retailers in some Asian countries are refusing to accept Huawei devices for trade-ins, as more consumers look to offload their device on worries Google suspending business with the Chinese firm will disrupt services. G... More »
(Warning: This story contains spoilers for the final episode of “Game of Thrones.”) By David Gaffen (Reuters) – After eight seasons and 73 episodes, HBO’s long-running smash series, “Game of Thrones”, wrapped up on Sunday, with one more shocking demise and an ... More »
SHANGHAI (Reuters) – Chinese state media on Monday criticized the United States for its complaints about intellectual property theft, calling them a “political tool” intended to suppress China’s economic development. The U.S. has lobbed complaints about Chines... More »
(Reuters) – Financing group Greensill Capital on Monday confirmed SoftBank Group Corp’s Vision Fund has invested $800 million in the British company, a vote of confidence in the UK finance sector that has been navigating Brexit challenges. Greensill, which pro... More »
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexico’s consumer watchdog, Profeco, said on Friday it won a class-action lawsuit against the local unit of U.S. telecommunications giant AT&T Inc for undue charges and poor service. Profeco said that in 2013 it sued telecommunications ... More »
BERLIN (Reuters) – Vodafone wants the German government to facilitate the rollout of ultrafast fiber broadband connections to homes and businesses by investing in the “last mile” of networks, the company’s Germany chief was quoted saying. Germany has been slow... More »
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Some 17.4 million Americans watched the first episode of the final season of television’s “Game of Thrones” – a record audience for the medieval fantasy series, cable channel HBO said on Monday. HBO said Sunday’s live U.S. television au... More »
