U.S. attorney general urged to consider blocking AT&T deal for Time Warner

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Seven consumer advocacy groups wrote to Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Thursday to ask him to consider blocking AT&T's plan to buy Time Warner on the grounds that it will lead to higher prices and slow innovation in showing video online. Common Cause, Consumer Federatio...

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Music streamer SoundCloud has cash until fourth quarter after layoffs

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - SoundCloud, the world's biggest music-streaming service, is still struggling to find a business model - it now has just enough cash to last until fourth quarter, after laying off 40 percent of its staff, a representative said on Thursday. The Berlin-based start-up is different ...

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Snap shares draw bullish options bets after slipping below IPO price

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Options traders were placing bets this week that shares of Snap Inc (SNAP.N) were primed for a rebound after slipping below their initial public offering price of $17. Shares of the Snapchat parent have slumped since a red-hot March IPO, falling below their initial sale price on...

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FCC approves new spectrum for vehicle radar systems

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Communications Commission on Thursday approved allocating a larger consolidated block of spectrum for use by motor vehicle and aircraft radar systems to help avoid crashes. The FCC first approved 1 GHz of spectrum in 1995 for motor vehicles to use radar that a...

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Thieves Used Infrared to Pull Data from ATM ‘Insert Skimmers’

A greater number of ATM skimming incidents now involve so-called “insert skimmers,” wafer-thin fraud devices made to fit snugly and invisibly inside a cash machine’s card acceptance slot. New evidence suggests that at least some of these insert skimmers — which record card da...

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Thieves Used Infrared to Pull Data from ATM ‘Insert Skimmers’

A greater number of ATM skimming incidents now involve so-called “insert skimmers,” wafer-thin fraud devices made to fit snugly and invisibly inside a cash machine’s card acceptance slot. New evidence suggests that at least some of these insert skimmers — which record card da...

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LPC: EagleTree to buy video game gear maker Corsair - sources

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Middle market private equity firm EagleTree Capital is in advanced discussions to acquire Corsair Components, a U.S. manufacturer of computer peripherals and hardware geared toward the professional gaming market, for more than $500 million, two sources familiar with the matter s...

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All-girl Afghan robotics team cleared to compete in United States

KABUL (Reuters) - A team of Afghan girls are on their way to compete in an academic robotics competition in the United States after American officials agreed to allow them to enter the country despite initially denying them visas. "We were disappointed, and we were feeling bad, but now we are very h...

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Foreign carmakers call on China to soften electric car quotas

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Global automotive manufacturers have appealed to the Chinese government to soften proposals for electric and hybrid car quotas, a letter seen by Reuters showed. The letter is a joint protest against China's new energy vehicles (NEVs) proposals, which include a goal for hybrid a...

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Goldman Sachs relaxes dress code for techs in fight for talent

(Reuters) - Traditionally buttoned-up Wall Street bank Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N) has relaxed the dress code for its computer engineers in a bid to attract tech talent with a more casual environment. The fifth-largest U.S. bank by assets told employees in its technology division to "exercise jud...

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French government to appeal pro-Google court tax ruling

PARIS (Reuters) - The French government said on Thursday it would appeal against a court ruling in Google's favour with regard to 1.1 billion euros ($1.25 billion) in tax. "We will appeal this judgment in defence of the interests of the state," budget minister Gerald Darmanin said in answer to a par...

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Carmakers demand changes to China's electric car quota: WirtschaftsWoche

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - The world's four biggest automotive industry associations have written to China's government to demand it change its plans for strict sales quotas for electrically powered vehicles, German weekly magazine WirtschaftsWoche reported, citing the letter. The associations, based in ...

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Yandex and Uber to merge in Russia and five eastern European countries

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Yandex, the "Google of Russia", and Uber have agreed to merge their ride-sharing businesses in Russia and five eastern European markets with Yandex as leading partner, the companies said on Thursday, marking another pullback from Uber's breakneck global expansion that comes a y...

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Telecoms group Altice to launch online bank in Europe by early 2019: source

PARIS (Reuters) - French billionaire Patrick Drahi plans to launch an online bank by spring 2019 across the euro zone countries where his telecoms group Altice operates, a source close to the matter said on Thursday. Mobile operators are stepping up pressure on the traditional banks that dominate th...

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German military aviation command launches cyber threat initiative

BERLIN (Reuters) - The German military's aviation safety chief has launched a new initiative against cyber threats, citing research that he said shows hackers can commandeer military airplanes with the help of equipment that costs about 5,000 euros ($5,700). A defense ministry spokesman told Reuters...

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Trump Hotels discloses data breach at 14 properties

(Reuters) - Trump International Hotels Management LLC said late on Tuesday a data breach at a service provider compromised card payment details at 14 of its properties. The compromised information included payment card numbers and card security codes for some of the hotel chain's reservations proces...

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Google wins challenge against 1.1 billion euro French tax bill

PARIS (Reuters) - U.S. internet giant Google (GOOGL.O) on Wednesday won a court challenge against demands by French authorities that it pay 1.1 billion euros ($1.3 billion) in back taxes. The Paris administrative court ruled that Google Ireland Limited was not subject to corporate and value-added ta...

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Tech firms protest proposed changes to U.S. net neutrality rules

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Facebook, Twitter, Alphabet Inc and dozens of other major technology companies are participating in an online protest on Wednesday to oppose proposed changes to U.S. net neutrality rules that prohibit broadband providers from giving or selling access to certain intern...

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New Silicon Valley fund aims to connect auto companies and startups

DETROIT (Reuters) - Autotech Ventures, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm, said it had raised $120 million from automotive companies and financial investors for a fund that will invest in startups working on transportation services and digital vehicle technology. The fund will try to connect star...

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U.S. should not block Chinese chip acquisitions: China think-tank

BEIJING (Reuters) - The United States should not block Chinese acquisitions of U.S. semiconductor technologies, a leading state think-tank in Beijing said on Wednesday, as Washington heightens scrutiny of Chinese investments in the sector. Acquisitions and joint ventures are becoming more difficult ...

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