CATEGORIES

WHAT IS APPLE DOING WITH ITS APP STORE?

Over the past week or so, Apple has eased some longstanding restrictions that helped make its App Store into a big moneymaker for the company. The company has long required app developers to pay high commissions to Apple on the sales of paid apps as well as purchases of subscriptions or digital items inside their apps.

DO WE NEED HUMANS FOR THAT JOB? AUTOMATION BOOMS AFTER COVID

Ask for a roast beef sandwich at an Arby’s drive-thru east of Los Angeles and you may be talking to Tori — an artificially intelligent voice assistant that will take your order and send it to the line cooks.

FORD HIRES EXEC FORMERLY IN CHARGE OF APPLE'S CAR PROJECT

Ford Motor Co. has hired a former executive from Apple and Tesla to be the company’s head of advanced technology and new embedded systems, a critical post as the auto industry moves to adopt vehicles powered by electricity and guided by computers.

COLLECTIBLE PRICES SKYROCKET, TO THE DISMAY OF HOBBYISTS

Americans have become obsessed with collectibles, bidding up prices for trading cards, video games and other mementos of their youth. The frenzy has brought small fortunes to some, but a deep frustration for those who still love to play games or trade cards as a hobby.

UNTIL 2023? PARTS SHORTAGE WILL KEEP AUTO PRICES SKY-HIGHMONEY

Back in the spring, a shortage of computer chips that had sent auto prices soaring appeared, finally, to be easing. Some relief for consumers seemed to be in sight.

5 WAYS TO REIN IN IMPULSE SPENDING

Since the COVID-19 vaccine started becoming available in the U.S., there have been more opportunities to impulse spend on items and experiences that you didn’t get to enjoy early in the pandemic.

AUTO INDUSTRY: WHAT IS FACT AND WHAT IS FICTION ABOUT GREEN CARS

With all the developments in the auto industry you may think your next car will be electric, including a new federal target that would mean half of all new vehicles sold within a decade will have zero emissions.

FACEBOOK SLAMS UK ANTITRUST WATCHDOG OVER CALL TO SELL GIPHY

Facebook has criticized the U.K. competition watchdog’s provisional decision ordering that it sell offGiphy because it said the acquisition of the company stifles competition for animated images.

4 WAYS TO MANAGE RETIREMENT HEALTH CARE COSTS

Health care in retirement is a big-ticket item. Experts estimate that an average 65-year-old retired couple in 2021 would need about $300,000 in after-tax savings earmarked for health care costs in their post-work life, even with Medicare, according to Fidelity.

US ASKS TESLA HOW AUTOPILOT RESPONDS TO EMERGENCY VEHICLES

The U.S. government’s highway safety agency wants detailed information on how Tesla’s Autopilot system detects and responds to emergency vehicles parked on highways.

IRISH WATCHDOG FINES WHATSAPP $267M AFTER EU PRIVACY PROBE

Ireland’s privacy watchdog has fined WhatsApp a record 225 million euros ($267 million) after an investigation found it breached stringent European Union data protection rules on transparency about sharing people’s data with other Facebook companies.

FTC ORDERS COMPANY TO QUIT SURVEILLANCE APP BUSINESS

The Federal Trade Commission has for the first time banned a company that makes so-called stalker were — software used to surreptitiously track a cellphone user’s activities and location — from continuing in the surveillance app business.

RUSSIA URGES APPLE, GOOGLE TO REMOVE NAVALNY APP FROM STORES

Russia’s state communications watchdog warned Apple and Google on Thursday that they could face fines if they fail to remove an app created by allies of jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny from their stores.

SURVEY: OWNERS FRUSTRATED WHEN LINKING PHONES TO VEHICLES

Automobile quality rose last year, but glitches in pairing smartphones with infotainment systems frustrated owners more than anything, according to a large U.S. survey of auto owners.

SOCIAL MEDIA'S 70-UP ‘GRANDFLUENCERS' DEBUNKING AGING MYTHS

Joan MacDonald’s health was in shambles at age 71. She was overweight and on numerous medications with high cholesterol, rising blood pressure and kidney trouble.

FREE TV SERVICE LOCAST SUSPENDS OPERATIONS AFTER LEGAL LOSS

Locast, a service that streamed local TV for free in about three dozen U.S. cities, is suspending operations after losses in court against the broadcast industry.

APPLE LOOSENS APP STORE PAYMENT RULES IN LAWSUIT SETTLEMENT

Apple has agreed to let developers of iPhone apps email their users about cheaper ways to pay for digital subscriptions and media by circumventing a commission system that generates billions of dollars annually for the iPhone maker.

5 TIPS FOR FOSTERING A SUCCESSFUL HYBRID WORKPLACE

Businesses figured out how to work remotely on the fly when COVID-19 rapidly disrupted our way of working.

GIG APPS FOR A PANDEMIC ECONOMY: PART-TIME, NO COMMITMENT

For months, Gabrielle Walker had been looking for a part-time job. She applied to restaurant chains and retailers like Nando’s and Primark, and she scoured the job search site Indeed.

SPAIN JUDGE NIXES BACKUP SITE FOR DISPUTED HAWAII TELESCOPE

A Spanish judge in a decision cheered by environmentalists has put a halt to backup plans for the construction of a giant telescope in the Canary Islands — eliminating at least for now the primary alternative location to the preferred spot in Hawaii, where there have been protests against the telescope.

COVID-19 RESURGENCE CRIMPS SPENDING, TRAVEL RECOVERY

A COVID-19 resurgence this summer has caused consumers to turn cautious, while investors trim their investments in a travel sector still struggling to recover.

US AUTHORITIES WARN AGAINST FLYING DRONES OVER NATIONAL LAB

Drone pilots beware.

TECH COMPANIES PLEDGE BILLIONS IN CYBERSECURITY INVESTMENTS

Some of the country’s leading technology companies have committed to investing billions of dollars to strengthen cybersecurity defenses and to train skilled workers, the White House announced Wednesday following President Joe Biden’s private meeting with top executives.

FOSSIL LEAVES MAY REVEAL CLIMATE IN LAST ERA OF DINOSAURS

Richard Barclay opens a metal drawer in archives of the Smithsonian Natural History Museum containing fossils that are nearly 100 million years old. Despite their age, these rocks aren’t fragile. The geologist and botanist handles them with casual ease, placing one in his palm for closer examination.

WHAT IS A COVID-19 VACCINE PASSPORT, AND DO I NEED ONE?

What is a COVID-19 vaccine passport, and do I need one?

WHY IT TAKES MONTHS TO SUBDUE SOME WILDFIRES

At nearly every community meeting on firefighting efforts in the U.S. West, residents want to know why crews don’t simply put out the flames to save their homes and the valuable forests surrounding them.

WAYMO EXPANDING AUTONOMOUS RIDE SERVICE TO SAN FRANCISCO

Waymo, the Google self-driving vehicle spinoff, is expanding its autonomous ride-hailing service to San Francisco.

WITH SALES STILL SURGING, BEST BUY RAISES PROSPECTS FOR 2021

Best Buy raised its sales outlook for the year after breezing past Wall Street expectations in the second quarter.

HOW TO CALCULATE AN ELECTRIC VEHICLE'S CHARGE COSTS

One of the challenges people have with electric vehicles is figuring out how much they cost to operate. The price of fully charging an electric vehicle’s battery can vary wildly depending on when and where you charge it.

TEENAGER SEEKS TO BREAK WOMEN'S SOLO FLIGHT RECORD

A Belgian-British teenager took to the skies Wednesday in her quest to become the youngest woman to fly around the world solo.