The latest round of quarterly results from Netflix shows that while the grand-daddy of streaming “still rules” that universe, a combination of upstart and old-guard rivals “have cut into Netflix’s share of viewers’ attention” - NYTimes and WSJ and Bloomberg and MarketWatch
Along with a series of new products, Apple revealed at its event yesterday that it will “release highly anticipated iPhone software next week with a privacy feature that worries digital-advertising companies, most notably Facebook.” The feature requires apps “to get explicit permission from users before tracking them across other apps”—part of a stated commitment to privacy and Cook & friends are using to distinguish themselves from others in Big Tech - NYTimes and WSJ and Bloomberg and Marketplace and Mashable and TechCrunch
China’s recent no-joke moves against Jack Ma’s Alibaba and Ant Group empire, in combination with an aggressive EU antitrust enforcement effort and a nascent bipartisan push for regulation here in the States, suggests that we may be reaching a “global tipping-point” when it comes to reining in Big Tech - NYTimes and Bloomberg
Gaming chat-app of choice, Discord, has broken off negotiations with Microsoft and will shift to laying groundwork for a potential IPO. Microsoft had offered $10 billion for the company - WSJ and MarketWatch
And just like that . . . the Super League is no more. Here’s how it all fell apart in a span of 48 hours (thanks largely to its own brand of Brexit) - NYTimes and WSJ and Bloomberg and MarketWatch
Speaking of, a super league of luxury brand rivals is throwing its moneyed weight behind “a new blockchain consortium that will allow shoppers to track the provenance of their purchases and authenticate goods” - NYTimes
Ratings agency Morningstar [currently part of DBRS] is accusing the SEC of “trying to sidestep congressional constraints with its enforcement action over a ratings methodology the agency apparently ‘does not like.’” The company has moved to dismiss the Commission’s February action that accused it of making “undisclosed ‘adjustments’ to ratings for $30 billion worth” of CMBS between 2015-16 – Law360
P&G warned that it plans to raise prices this fall on a range of products, from diapers to tampons, as the consumer-products company joins its peers in boosting prices (and does so as its sales growth is slowing) - WSJ
In a “vote of confidence” in CEO David Calhoun, Boeing’s board on Tuesday agreed to extend his job for up to 5 more years, pushing him past the company’s normal retirement age of 65 - WSJ and Bloomberg
Ladies and gentlemen, the YOLO economy - NYTimes
Jelani Cobb and David Remnick in conversation about what yesterday’s guilty verdict here in Minneapolis means for the Twin Cities and the nation beyond - NewYorker
Stay safe.
