Year: 2017

Microsoft Employees sue over PTSD Claims

Dan Uff January 12, 2017 0

“Two Microsoft employees who had to watch ‘horrific images’ of murder, child pornography and bestiality as part of their ‘online safety’ job have sued the company after developing post-traumatic stress disorder,” June Williams reports for Courthouse News.

“Henry Soto and Greg Blauert say Microsoft failed to warn them about the dangers of the job and failed to provide psychological support. They sued the company in King County Court on Dec. 30, alleging negligence, disability discrimination and violations of the Consumer Protection Act,” Williams reports. “The men were customer service workers assigned to Microsoft’s online safety program, responsible for deciding whether content should be removed or reported to law enforcement.”

“They say they never were told about dangerous psychological impacts of the job, which included viewing child pornography, and were not allowed to turn down the assignment,” Williams reports. “Instead of providing trained therapists for the safety team, Microsoft developed a ‘Wellness Program’ that advised employees who were disturbed by images to take ‘walks and smoking breaks’ and redirect thoughts by playing video games, the men say.”

Read more in the full article here.

iOS will hit $1 Trillion in Revenue for Apple sometime in 2017

Dan Uff January 12, 2017 0

“In its first 10 years, the iPhone will have sold at least 1.2 billion units, making it the most successful product of all time,” Horace Dediu writes for Asymco.

“The iPhone also enabled the iOS empire which includes the iPod touch, the iPad, the Apple Watch and Apple TV whose combined total unit sales will reach 1.75 billion units over 10 years,” Dediu writes. “This total is likely to top 2 billion units by the end of 2018.”

“The revenues from iOS product sales will reach $980 billion by middle of this year. In addition to hardware Apple also books iOS services revenues (including content) which have totaled more than $100 billion to date,” Dediu writes. “This means that iOS will have generated over $1 trillion in revenues for Apple sometime this year.”

Read more in the full article – here.

Cramer: Apple better get more revenue streams because iPhone is long in the tooth

Dan Uff January 12, 2017 0

(CNBC): Apple has to become more than just a smartphone company if it hopes to succeed in the long term, CNBC's Jim Cramer said Thursday.

Cramer said the tech Giant will need to develop more revenue streams, considering its iconic device, the iPhone, is a decade old.

"The iPhones are 10 years old and that's a long time. That's a very long time for a product that we still care about, right? Most products 10 years ago we don't use anymore," he said on "Squawk on the Street."

Cramer was responding to comments by Silicon Valley investor and Donald Trump transition team member Peter Thiel in a Q&A with The New York Times. When asked if "the age of Apple is over," Thiel confirmed.

"We know what a smartphone looks like and does. It's not the fault of Tim Cook, but it's not an area where there will be any more innovation," Thiel told the Times.

Apple has recently seen a fall in its iPhone sales. On Thursday, The Wall Street Journal reported the company is planning to build a significant new business in original TV and movies.

Disclosure: Jim Cramer's charitable trust owns shares of Apple.

Amazon.com

Amazon.com just got slapped with a $1 Million fine for Misleading Pricing

Dan Uff January 12, 2017 0

(Recode): Some deals are too good to be true. And, for Amazon, they will cost the company.

A Canadian enforcement agency announced today that Amazon Canada will pay a $1 million fine for what could be construed as misleading pricing practices.

The investigation centered on the practice of Amazon displaying its prices compared to higher "list prices" — suggested manufacturer prices (MSRPs) designed as marketing gimmicks to make people think they are getting a deal, even though it's often the case that no shopper ever pays that price.

"The Bureau's investigation concluded that these claims created the impression that prices for items offered on www.amazon.ca were lower than prevailing market prices," Canada's Competition Bureau said in a statement. "The Bureau determined that Amazon relied on its suppliers to provide list prices without verifying that those prices were accurate."

An Amazon spokesman declined to comment.

As chronicled by the New York Times, Amazon began removing these so-called list prices on many items in the U.S. last year. The Competition Bureau also said the company has made changes on its Canadian site "to accurately represent the savings available to consumers."

The Competition Bureau's investigation ran from May 2014 to May 2016. Amazon Canada will pay an additional $100,000 to cover the costs of the investigation.

—By Jason Del Rey, Re/code.net.