Tag Archives: Investment & Company Information

EU reportedly opens another probe into Google’s ads pricing

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The European Commission has opened a new probe into Google, this time focused on the company's massive online advertising business, Bloomberg reports. European Union regulators have already fined Google billions for violating the Digital Markets Act, and being found guilty of anticompetitive behavior in online advertising could add to that total.

While the Commission has yet to announce a formal investigation, Bloomberg writes that it has started contacting Google's customers and competitors for information about its dominance across multiple online advertising markets. Regulators are particularly concerned that Google could be "artificially increasing the clearing price" of ad auctions "to the detriment of advertisers." If the company is found to be violating the EU's competition rules, Google could be fined 10 percent of its global annual sales.

Google's approach to advertising to minors was reportedly already under investigation by the EU as of December 2024, and besides fines, regulators have ordered the company to open up Android to competing AI assistants and share search data with rivals. In the US, there's also precedent for finding Google's approach to online advertising anticompetitive.

A US federal judge found that Google is a monopolist in online advertising in April 2025, the conclusion of a legal battle that started with a Department of Justice lawsuit accusing the company of dominating the ad market and using its control to charge more and keep a larger portion of ad sales. The DOJ ultimately wants Google to sell its ad tech business, but a final decision hasn't been reached as to how the company's anticompetitive behavior should be remedied.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/eu-reportedly-opens-another-probe-into-googles-ads-pricing-194435095.html?src=rss

Spotify now has more than 750 million monthly users

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Spotify announced Tuesday that it hit 751 million total monthly active users (MAUs) for quarter-four of 2025. That record-high is an 11 percent jump from the year before and a significant bump from the third quarter's 713 million MAUs. 

The quarterly earnings report also showed a 10 percent jump year-over-year in Premium subscribers, from 263 million to 290 million. Europe makes up the greatest number of the Swedish company's premium subscribers (36 percent), with North America coming second at 25 percent. 

Spotify contributes a few factors to its growth, including AI. "We consider ourselves the R&D department for the music industry. Our job is to understand new technologies quickly and capture their potential, which we’ve done time and again," Gustav Söderström, Co-CEO of Spotify, said in a statement. The entire industry stands to benefit from this [AI] paradigm shift but we believe those who embrace this change and move fast, will benefit the most.” In late 2025, Spotify announced it would get rid of some of the AI "slop" on its platform and have "artist-first AI music products" — though the specifics were very vague. 

The company also claims that December's Spotify Wrapped was bigger than ever, with over 300 million engaged users and 630 million shares across 56 languages. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/music/spotify-now-has-more-than-750-million-monthly-users-124103630.html?src=rss

Sony’s holiday PS5 sales dropped 16 percent compared to last year

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Sony has now shipped 92.2 million PlayStation 5 consoles in total around the world, but sales were down sharply over the holiday season compared to last year. In its latest earnings report, the company said it shipped eight million PS5s during its key third quarter, 1.5 million (16 percent) lower than in the same period last year. The gaming division still made more profit, though, thanks to a boost in software sales and a low yen.

Sony’s first two quarters this fiscal year saw an increase in PS5s sold, so the holiday decline is a bit surprising. That said, sales during the same period the previous year were an outlier at 9.5 million units sold, far and away its best period since the console went on sale in November 2020.

Software sales, however, were exceptional in Q3 this year. Sony sold 97.2 million games compared to 95.9 million the year before, and boosted digital sales to 76 percent, up 2 percent year-over-year. Sony said it also saw a record 132 million monthly active users on the PlayStation Network. New games on the horizon for PS5 include Resident Evil Requiem (February 27), Avowed (February 17) and Bungie’s Marathon (March 5).

With PS5 sales down a bit, it does raise the question of when the company’s next console is coming. The PS4 went seven years before being replaced, but given continued strong sales, high RAM prices and recent hardware updates, analysts figure that the PS5 is likely to have a longer life cycle. When the PS6 does arrive, however, it could offer triple the performance of the PS5.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/sonys-holiday-ps5-sales-dropped-16-percent-compared-to-last-year-130000476.html?src=rss

Disney announces Josh D’Amaro will be its new CEO after Iger departs

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Stop me if you've heard this one before. Disney has announced a successor to outgoing CEO Bob Iger, effective in March. Josh D’Amaro, current chairman of Disney Experiences, was tapped for the role in a unanimous vote by the company's board of directors.

D’Amaro has been at Disney for 28 years, where he oversaw theme parks, cruises and consumer products including video games. The company had previously appointed Bob Chapek, the Disney Parks chairman at the time, as successor to Bob Iger in 2020. At the time, Iger had served as CEO since 2005. But Chapek only lasted until 2022, when Bob Iger returned to take the helm once again amid company struggles. Disney formed a committee to find an appropriate successor in 2023, with Iger mentoring potential candidates along the way.

Iger's time at the helm saw the media giant make a number of significant moves such as launching the Disney+ streaming service, buying Hulu and acquiring 20th Century Fox's film and television studios. Iger will continue to serve as a board member and senior advisor until his retirement at the end of the year.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/disney-announces-josh-damaro-will-be-its-new-ceo-after-iger-departs-161616420.html?src=rss

The Switch just surpassed the DS as Nintendo’s best-selling console ever

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The original Switch just became Nintendo’s best-selling console ever with 155.37 million units as of December 31, 2025, overtaking the DS which sold 154.02 million units from 2004-2011. It was part of a holiday surge that saw the company move 7.01 million Switch 2s (and 17.37 million through Q3 of its fiscal year), making it the “fastest-selling dedicated video platform released by Nintendo to date,” the company said in its earnings report.

Despite being supplanted by the Switch 2, the Switch keeps selling decently (1.36 million units in Q3 fiscal 2026), due to its relatively cheap price. Nintendo reported last year that it was just trailing the DS in sales and would likely surpass it after Christmas. The Switch is now just 4.63 million units behind Sony’s PS2, the best-selling console of all time — so Nintendo would have to keep selling it for at least a couple more years to get the record.

The Switch 2, meanwhile, has been a sales machine. With high holiday sales that exceeded expectations, Nintendo should easily reach its 19 million sales goal for fiscal 2026 ending March 31 this year. The company has already (easily) busted through its original sales forecast of 15 million consoles set earlier in 2025.

Game sales were also strong, with Mario Kart World hitting 14 million units and Donkey Kong Bananza selling 4.25 million since the Switch 2’s launch. With all that, the company saw 803.32 billion yen in sales for Q3 ($5.2 billion), up 86 percent over last year but a bit less than expected, and 159.93 billion yen in profit ($1.03 billion), 20 percent higher than the same period last year.

Whether the company can continue that may depend on the strength of its upcoming game lineup. Two of those key titles are Mario Tennis Fever expected on February 12 and Pokemon Pokopia arriving in March.

Updated Feb 3, 2026: The post has been updated to show the correct number of Switch units Nintendo would have to sell to catch Sony’s PS2.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/nintendo/the-switch-just-surpassed-the-ds-as-nintendos-best-selling-console-ever-083700901.html?src=rss

OnlyFans is reportedly in talks to sell a 60 percent stake to a San Francisco investment firm

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OnlyFans is looking to cash out once again, but this time in a deal that would value it at several billion dollars less than a potential sale that previously fell through. As reported by TechCrunch, the online platform known for subscription-based pornographic content is in talks to sell a majority stake to Architect Capital, an investment firm based in San Francisco.

According to the report, the proposed deal includes $3.5 billion in equity and $2 billion in debt, which values OnlyFans at $5.5 billion. TechCrunch also reported that Architect Capital and OnlyFans are currently in exclusive talks, where the website's owner can't negotiate with other potential buyers for a certain amount of time.

With no set timeline yet for the deal, the deal is far from an official closing. Last year, OnlyFans' owner Leonid Radvinsky was also negotiating with another investment firm, Forest Road Company, to sell the platform. Although that deal never went through, the talks leading up to the sale valued OnlyFans at a much higher $8 billion. The London-based website, which still doesn't want to be known as just a porn site, is still growing and reported a nine percent increase in gross revenue for its 2024 fiscal year, earning more than $7.2 billion.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/onlyfans-is-reportedly-in-talks-to-sell-a-60-percent-stake-to-a-san-francisco-investment-firm-191842666.html?src=rss

Apple just reported its best-ever quarter for iPhone sales

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Apple shared its latest quarterly financial results today and the news is once again very, very good for the Cupertino company. The quarter ending December 27, 2025 marked "the best-ever quarter" for iPhones, which generated a record high revenue of nearly $85.27 billion for the business. Apple doesn't disclose the number of devices sold any more, but even with the prices for many of its latest generation of smartphones surpassing $1,000 a pop, that's still got to be a heck of a lot of iPhones. 

"The demand for iPhone was simply staggering," CEO Tim Cook said on the conference call to discuss the results. "This is the strongest iPhone lineup we've ever had and by far the most popular."

That wasn't the only massive number in the earnings report. Services revenue also logged its biggest quarter yet, growing 14 percent over the same period last year to reach just over $30 billion. It was also Apple's biggest quarter to date for total revenue, which was nearly $143.76 billion for the already fabulously wealthy company.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/apple-just-reported-its-best-ever-quarter-for-iphone-sales-234135513.html?src=rss

Apple acquires Q.ai for a reported $2 billion

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Apple has acquired Israel-based startup Q.ai, a move that could provide a much-needed boost to the tech giant's capabilities in artificial intelligence. Although Apple has not disclosed terms of the deal, sources told Financial Times that the arrangement is reportedly valued at nearly $2 billion. If that figure is accurate, the Q.ai acquisition marks Apple's second largest acquisition to date, followed by its purchase of Beats for $3 billion back in 2014.

Johny Srouji, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware technologies, said in a statement that Q.ai "is a remarkable company that is pioneering new and creative ways to use imaging and machine learning." Apple hasn't shared any specifics about how it plans to leverage the startup, but its past work indicates the possibility of Apple moving deeper into AI-powered wearables. "Patents filed by Q.ai show its technology being used in headphones or glasses, using 'facial skin micro movements' to communicate without talking," the Times reported. 

The startup's founding team, including CEO Aviad Maizels, will join Apple as part of the deal. This acquisition marks Maizels' second sale to Apple; he previously founded a three-dimensional hearing business called PrimeSense that Apple bought back in 2013.

For several months, many tech insiders have speculated that an acquisition might be Apple's best path forward to catching up in the AI race. In the company's Q3 earnings call in July 2025, CEO Tim Cook acknowledged that "We’re open to M&A that accelerates our roadmap." A deal like this one could eventually lead to Apple developing its own fully in-house AI chatbot rather than relying on a competitor like Google to power artificial intelligence in its Siri assistant.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/apple-acquires-qai-for-a-reported-2-billion-190017949.html?src=rss

Tesla is killing off its Model S and X cars to make robots

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Tesla will “basically stop the production” of its Model S and X electric vehicles next quarter, CEO Elon Musk has announced at the automaker’s earnings call for the 2025 fiscal year. “It’s time to bring the Model S and X program to a end with an honorable discharge, because we’re really moving into a future that’s based on autonomy,” Musk said. You can still buy the vehicles as long as there are units to be sold, and Tesla promises to support them for as long as people have them. Once they’re gone, though, they’re gone for good, because Tesla is converting their production space in the company’s Fremont factory into a space for the manufacturing of Optimus humanoid robots.

Model S is Tesla’s second vehicle and has been in production since 2012, while the Model X SUV has been in production since 2015. Their shine has faded over the years, however, and the newer Model 3 and Y now make up the bulk of the company’s sales. For the entirety of 2025, for instance, Tesla delivered 1,585,279 Model 3 and Y vehicles but only sold 418,227 Model S and X units. The company also had to stop selling Model S and X in China in mid-2025, because they were being imported from the US and were subject to China’s tariffs that were put in place in response to US President Donald Trump’s tariffs on imported goods.

In the call, Musk said that Tesla’s long-term goal is to be able to manufacture 1 million Optimus robots in the current Model S and X production space. At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland a few days ago, the CEO announced that Tesla will start selling Optimus to the public by the end of next year. Musk has big plans for Optimus and once said that it’s bound to become the “biggest product of all time,” bigger than cellphones, “bigger than anything.” But the humanoid robot has been failing to live up to the hype during demonstrations, and Musk is known for his overly optimistic timelines.

The company’s earnings report has also revealed that Tesla invested $2 billion in Musk’s other company, xAI. Tesla’s shareholders notably sued Musk in 2024 for starting xAI, which they argued is a direct competition to the automaker. The CEO has been claiming for years, after all, that Tesla is an AI company and not just an EV-maker. Still, Tesla’s shareholders approved Musk’s $1 trillion pay package in late 2025 on the condition that the company reaches a market value of $8.5 trillion.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/tesla-is-killing-off-its-model-s-and-x-cars-to-make-robots-010621101.html?src=rss

Yahoo is adding generative AI to its search engine

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Yahoo has announced a new AI-powered "answer engine", dubbed Yahoo Scout. The new tool is available now in beta and is powered by Anthropic's Claude.

The company says Scout "synthesizes" info from the web, as well as Yahoo's own data and content when constructing responses to user's natural-language search queries. Yahoo says the interface will include interactive digital media, structured lists and tables and visible source links aimed at making answers easier to verify. (Disclosure: Yahoo is the parent company of Engadget.)

Alongside Scout, Yahoo is announcing an "intelligence platform" across its varied products. This will include features like AI summaries in Yahoo Mail, “key takeaways” in Yahoo News and game breakdowns in Yahoo Sports. Scout will also integrate into Yahoo Shopping to offer insights and shoppable links, and Yahoo Finance, where it can populate company financials, analyst ratings and explain stock moves as they occur. Yahoo says the answer engine behind Scout will become more personalized and focus on "deeper experiences" as time goes on.

Google offered a glimpse of generative AI in search back in 2023, and the company's AI Mode for search was made widely available in the US last year. The company has been similarly at work integrating its AI model across its product portfolio, including Gmail and shopping.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/yahoo-is-adding-generative-ai-to-its-search-engine-172706249.html?src=rss