Author: 5hspx

Lumen Technologies (NYSE:LUMN), a global communications services stock, has been getting a fair bit of attention on Reddit lately. The company recently partnered with Microsoft to bolster its capabilities to serve AI demand. Lumen shares are down more than 90% from their all-time high in 2007, but are up more than 200% since announcing their deal with Microsoft. After Google's Gemini sidelined Reddit's most popular stocks today, I had to scroll through the trends alone. A quick search on r/wallstreetbets, the subreddit at the epicenter of the pandemic meme stock boom, turned up multiple mentions of $5.45 billion market cap…

Economic and financial sanctions often backfire, the most notable example being the weaponization of the dollar against Russia, which triggered a global movement towards de-dollarization, the exact opposite of the strategic intent of the punitive measures. Despite this historic miscalculation, Senator Marco Rubio of Florida has introduced a bill in Congress to punish countries that dedollarize, aiming to shut out financial institutions that promote dedollarization from the global dollar system. Rubio's bill, ominously called the “Sanctions Evasion Prevention and Mitigation Act,” would require the US president to impose sanctions on financial institutions that use China's CIPS payment system, Russia's SPFS…

Grief takes on a new dimension in a world where artificial intelligence can bring the dead back to life. From Canadian singer Drake using an AI-generated version of Tupac Shakur's singing voice to an Indian politician addressing crowds years after his death, technology is blurring the line between life and death. But beyond their curious fascination in entertainment and politics, through a series of groundbreaking but potentially controversial initiatives, AI “zombies” may soon become a reality for people reeling from the loss of loved ones. So how would an AI “resurrection” work, and would it be as dystopian as we…

Company logoConsumer DataConsumer DataDublin, Aug. 09, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The “Retail Loyalty Programs in Western Europe 2024” report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com.Western Europe is seeing a new wave of loyalty program marketing as consumers seek savings opportunities during tough economic times. For retailers, loyalty programs are a win-win: they increase engagement while collecting valuable first-party data. But in a competitive loyalty market, changing consumer expectations are key.Key question: How are loyalty programs evolving, and which features are most appealing to consumers?Key stat: At least 90% of European consumers are willing to share their personal data in exchange for…

Greetings from Tokyo. 79 years ago today, the city of Nagasaki in western Japan was devastated by an atomic bomb. Nagasaki and Hiroshima remain the only places in the world to have experienced such destruction. Every summer, ceremonies are held in both cities to silently pray for peace and to renew our commitment to realizing a world free of nuclear weapons.This year's event is attracting more attention than usual because of the Nagasaki city's decision not to invite the Israeli ambassador – a decision that saw other ambassadors, including those from the United States and Britain, withdraw in protest -…

The Duchess of Sussex has been hit with a blow after her soon-to-launch lifestyle brand suffered a trademark misstep.Meghan Markle is seeking to trademark the name of her service, “American Riviera Orchard,” for international use ahead of its full launch next year.However, MailOnline reported that in July, around four months after the registration application, records showed there were several “irregularities” that needed to be “corrected”. Lawyers for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have reportedly received notices from the US Patent and Trademark Office about a range of issues, including the misclassification of yoga blankets, picnic baskets and recipe books.Meghan…

A strong earthquake struck off the coast of southern Japan on Thursday, raising concerns that a major quake could strike as soon as this week. advertisementJapanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida called off a visit to Central Asia amid fears of a “major earthquake” in the near future after a powerful earthquake struck off the coast of southern Japan on Thursday.Authorities said nine people were injured on Japan's southern main island of Kyushu, but most of the injuries were minor. No serious damage was reported and a tsunami warning for the quake was later lifted.However, the quake prompted seismologists to hold…

By Rob Dawson August 9, 2024 4:04am ETManchester United's Anthony admitted he is still struggling to adjust to his rise from a difficult upbringing in Brazil to becoming a Premier League footballer.The forward has come under heavy criticism for his performances since his £85million move to Old Trafford from Ajax in 2022.Editor’s Recommendation2 RelatedWhile the 24-year-old insists he is not looking for excuses, he says the transition from growing up in a favela to life as a millionaire footballer has been “difficult”.”It's hard to deal with all this because we started from nothing and now we have almost everything easily,”…

Fraud has become big business, to say the least. In an interview with PYMNTS' Karen Webster, Featurespace's chief operating officer Tim Vanderham said the money from illicit gains far exceeds the revenues of the world's largest companies, “when you think about the billions of dollars coming out of fraud around the world.” The conversation took place against the backdrop of a Wall Street Journal article detailing the rise of fraud dens, which essentially function as sophisticatedly equipped business centers with separate departments for training fraudsters, “onboarding” unsuspecting victims, and the KPIs used to determine whether a particular scam will be…

Following a string of better-than-expected financial results, Disney is looking to spend big in Europe. Speaking to the FT this morning, Mouse House's head of EMEA, Jan Koeppen, said the company plans to spend at least $5 billion on blockbuster films and TV shows on the continent over the next five years. But given the circumstances, this spending is not much more than the previous five years, and may even be less: In June, Koeppen revealed that Disney had spent around 3.5 billion pounds ($4.5 billion) on production in the UK alone over the past five years. The success of…