Pokemon Go Makes Cutbacks

 

The maker of the Pokemon Go video game, Niantic, says it will cut a quarter of its workforce as the gaming industry faces a slowdown in demand after downloads surged during the pandemic. The firm will also close its studio in Los Angeles and cancel two games. "We have allowed our expenses to grow faster than revenue," US-based Niantic's chief executive John Hanke said in a statement. Pokemon Go became a global phenomenon when it was released in 2016. At the time, technology giant Apple said the augmented-reality game broke its app store record for the most downloads in a week. "The top priority is to keep Pokemon Go healthy and growing as a forever game," Mr Hanke said. However, he also said that since the game's launch, "the mobile market has become crowded and changes to the app store and the mobile advertising landscape have made it increasingly hard to launch new mobile games at scale." A total of 230 workers from across Niantic, including those in its game platform team, will be affected by the job cuts.

Pokemon Staff to Go

No More WHSmith Stores

The boss of WH Smith has said the retailer won't be opening any more UK High Street stores. Instead it will focus on UK airports and train stations, as well as opening shops in the US and Europe, its chief executive Carl Cowling told the BBC. "We've got a very healthy High Street business in the UK. But we've got no ambitions to grow that," he said. WH Smith has about 550 UK High Street stores and opening more "would just be a duplication", he told the BBC. "When you look at the main cities across England, Wales and Scotland, we are present in those cities," Mr Cowling said. Over the past 20 years, WH Smith has expanded its presence in airports, train stations, motorway service areas and US-based casino resorts. Mr Cowling told the BBC World Service Marketplace Morning Report that WH Smith's biggest growth market is the US. It has captured about 12% of the retail market in US airports, he added. "Our ambition is to get to 20% over the course of the next four years and then that will mean probably only the best parts of 150 stores," he said. He added that WH Smith will spend about £120m this year opening shops in the US and Europe.

WH Smith Stores

Entrepreneur Cage Fight

Two of the world's most high-profile technology billionaires - Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg - have agreed to fight each other in a cage match. Mr Musk posted a message on his social media platform Twitter that he was "up for a cage fight" with Mr Zuckerberg. Mr Zuckerberg, the boss of Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta, then posted a screenshot of Mr Musk's tweet with the caption "send me location". Mr Musk then replied to Mr Zuckerberg's response with: "Vegas Octagon." The Octagon is the competition mat and fenced-in area used for Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) bouts. The UFC is based in Las Vegas, Nevada. Mr Musk, who turns 52 later this month, also tweeted: "I have this great move that I call 'The Walrus', where I just lie on top of my opponent & do nothing." He later tweeted short videos of walruses, perhaps suggesting his challenge to Mr Zuckerberg may not entirely be serious. Meanwhile, 39-year-old Mr Zuckerberg has already been training in mixed martial arts (MMA) and has recently won jiu-jitsu tournaments.

Cage Fight

Failing To Pay Minimum Wage

 

WH Smith, Marks & Spencer and Argos are among a string of companies named for failing to pay the minimum wage. More than 200 firms face penalties of nearly £7m and must reimburse workers for breaches dating back over a decade. WH Smith, Marks & Spencer and Argos all said the breaches were unintentional and had been swiftly remedied. It is unclear how much they paid in fines, but the government said penalties amounted to up to 200% of the arrears owed. According to the business department, some 63,000 workers were left "out of pocket" because of the breaches, most of which occurred from 2017-2019. WH Smith was the worst offender, having failed to pay more than £1m to over 17,600 workers. The retailer said it had misinterpreted rules around uniforms, having asked staff to wear specific coloured trousers, skirts and shoes without reimbursing them for it. Sainsbury's, which owns Argos, was told to repay £480,093.58 to 10,399 workers. It said a payroll error identified in 2018 had affected some Argos store workers and drivers dating back to 2012, before Sainsbury's acquisition of Argos. The retailer said it had launched an immediate investigation and "put this right at the time".

Minimum Wage

Furby Comeback

US toy giant Hasbro has brought back the iconic Furby robotic creature, which was hugely popular when it was launched a quarter of a century ago. The firm hopes a new generation of children will "discover their own curious little creature". The new Furby has its familiar bulbous eyes, yellow beak and colourful fur. It also speaks in gibberish and responds to hugs, pats and tickles. The announcement comes as the toy industry faces a slowdown in demand. "Over the past few years, we've done a lot of research to understand what kids would want to see in a new Furby," said Kristin McKay, a vice president and general manager at Hasbro. The new toy is programmed to have more than 600 responses. It can react to commands, mimic sounds, dance and be "fed". Furby, which was originally launched in 1998, quickly became popular around the world. In the first three years after being launched, more than 40 million of them were sold, Hasbro says. However, as the Furby phenomenon faded it was retired in 2016. The relaunch of Furby comes as the toy maker attempts to boost lacklustre sales. In its latest quarterly earnings, released in April, Hasbro said it expected the toy and games market to remain flat or decline this yearr.

Furby

Walkers Mash-Up

PepsiCo‘s Walkers has launched three new limited-edition crisp flavours, inspired by its Wotsits, Monster Munch and Doritos brands. The crisps feature the appearance and texture of classic Walkers crisps but are flavoured with the traditional taste of the company’s Doritos, Wotsits and Monster Munch crisps. Walkers’ new range is currently available at Tesco stores in the UK in multipacks containing 5 bags of crisps for £1.95, with further expansion to follow. The Wotsits-inspired crisps are available in the ‘really cheesy’ flavour. The Doritos-inspired crisps are available in ‘chilli heatwave’ and Monster Munch in its pickled onion flavour. These flavours will be available on a Walkers crisp base for a limited time only. Jonny Roberts, senior brand manager at Walkers at PepsiCo, said: “We know that shoppers are after two main things when they turn to savoury snacks – enjoyment and excitement – and through some of our most iconic flavours and brands, Walkers new limited time flavours will help deliver on both of those needs”.

Walkers Mash-Up

Bud Light Boycotted

Bud Light has lost its position as the best-selling beer in the US after facing a boycott, new figures show. In the four weeks to 3 June sales were down by almost a quarter, according to consulting firm Bump Williams. Some drinkers in the US stopped buying Bud Light after transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney showed off a personalised can of the beer. It means Modelo Especial has taken the top spot, with 8.4% of US beer sales by value in the period. Bud Light had kept its position as America's best-selling beer for the first five months of the year, according to an analysis by consulting firm Bump Williams of data from research firm Nielsen. However, the figures show that sales of Bud Light have slumped since April, when Ms Mulvaney posted an image on Instagram of a personalised can of Bud Light that the beer maker had sent her. The boycott triggered a slide in the price of shares of Bud Light's parent company Anheuser-Busch InBev and the firm has put two executives on leave.

Bud Light Boycott

Virgin Galactic Set to Launch

 

Sir Richard Branson's space tourism company Virgin Galactic says it will launch its first commercial flight before the end of this month. The firm is targeting a launch window for the flight, which is called Galactic 01, from 27 June to 30 June. After the announcement to investors, Virgin Galactic shares jumped more than 40% in extended New York trading. Virgin Galactic said the first flight will be a scientific research mission with its second commercial spaceflight will follow in early August, and it expects to operate monthly spaceflights from then on. It marks a key milestone for the 19-year-old Virgin Galactic, which has had to overcome a series of accidents and technical challenges. Virgin Galactic has sold more than 800 tickets to people who want to ride over 80km (260,000ft) above Earth. The flights are designed to give passengers views from space at the top of its climb and allow them a few minutes to experience weightlessness. They cost $450,000 (£352,170) per person.

Virgin Galactic

Inflation Across Europe

Loo roll, butter and ketchup are more expensive in the UK compared to some of our biggest European neighbours, research for the BBC suggests. But the UK is the cheapest for nappies and frozen pizza, consumer analysts Circana found. We compared the prices of 23 food and non-food items in France, Germany, the UK, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands. When we added up the cost of buying them all, Germany came out as the cheapest and France the most expensive. British households' budgets are being squeezed as overall food prices remain 19% higher than a year ago. The main UK supermarkets have denied making extra profits from high prices and many have already been cutting the price of items like bread and butter. But Ananda Roy at Circana thinks retailers can go further. "The prospect for UK households to continue paying more than they do already, even if inflation levels out, is untenable for many," said the global senior vice president of strategic growth insights. "As commodity prices come down steadily, there is potential for retailers and brands to do more for hard-pressed consumers in the UK," added Mr Roy.

Inflation

Crisp Investment

Walkers - the makers of British crisp classics such as Wotsits and Monster Munch - is to see a £58m investment and up to 100 new jobs created at its Leicester site. Owners PepsiCo said it was its biggest investment in the UK for 25 years. The site - one of the world's biggest crisp and snack factories - is marking its 75th anniversary. PepsiCo said the investment would see a new manufacturing line installed and existing machinery replaced. It will also mean major work on the employee facilities for the site's 1,120-strong workforce, including training areas, a new on-site restaurant and meeting rooms. PepsiCo said the investment would help secure the future of the factory and position Walkers for further growth in the long-term. It said the planned production line would help increase capacity at the factory and enable the production of more Walkers snacks, notably Wotsits and Monster Munch, which have grown in popularity in recent years. The cash will also be spent on replacing ovens, so they will be powered by renewable electricity, which PepsiCo said would help cut around 1,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions a year, as well as the installation of compact packaging equipment to cut plastic from snack multipacks.

Crisps

Dog Toy Copyright Row

The US Supreme Court has sided with whiskey brand Jack Daniel's in its lawsuit against a company that sells a lookalike poop-themed toy for dogs. The dog toy says "Old No. 2 on your Tennessee Carpet", while the famous whiskey bottle reads "Old No. 7 Tennessee Sour Mash Whiskey". In a unanimous decision on Thursday, the top US court found that the toy is a trademark violation. The decision throws out an appeal that found that the toy was a "non-commercial" parody, subject to First Amendment free speech protections, and throws the case back to lower courts. The bottle of liquor says "40% alcohol by volume", while the "Bad Spaniels Silly Squeaker" chew toy reads "43% poo by volume" and "100% Smelly". The packaging includes a label noting that it is not affiliated with Jack Daniel's. Lawyers for the Tennessee whisky company said they found no humour in the pun. "Jack Daniel's loves dogs and appreciates a good joke as much as anyone. But Jack Daniel's likes its customers even more, and doesn't want them confused or associating its fine whiskey with dog poop," Lisa Blatt, attorney for Jack Daniel's, wrote in court papers.

Dog Toy Trademark

Mars Recyclable Wrappers

 

Mars Wrigley UK has confirmed that a selection of the Mars chocolate bars will be wrapped in recyclable paper packaging. The bars will be available for a limited time at Tesco stores across the UK. The packaging will act as a pilot and the learnings from the launch will be incorporated with other packaging trials to help reach an ambition to have 100% of the company’s packaging reusable, recyclable, or compostable. Mars Wrigley UK’s Research and Development Centre’s packaging expert Richard Sutherland-Moore said: “We are exploring different types of alternative packaging solutions for our confectionery products. “For Mars bar, the challenge was to find the right paper packaging solution with an adequate level of barrier properties to protect the chocolate whilst guaranteeing the food safety, quality and integrity of the product to prevent food waste.” The company is in the process of redesigning more than 12,000 packaging types in order to fit in with current recycling infrastructure, or waste systems that will exist in the future. Mars also noted that its top 300 executives now have remuneration linked to delivering against its packaging goals.

Mars Go Green

Stack Splits Opinion

Plans for a new shipping container leisure venue in Whitley Bay have split opinion among businesses in the town. Danieli Group wants to build a Stack complex in the former Empress Ballroom at Spanish City. Stack bosses said it would bring the building back into use and attract people to the area. While some businesses welcomed the scheme, others said it would harm the town centre regeneration by drawing trade away to the seafront. The plans for the former Empress Ballroom include a live entertainment stage, street food outlets, bars and a roof terrace. Mark Hirb, owner and manager of the Crab and Waltzer, said: "It won't help me, it is not going to be in my favour. There are enough eateries here now. "I think another one is going to hurt." Tony Patton, owner of the Dog and Rabbit pub, said he believes it could "set back the regeneration of the town centre". He added that it could have a "pied piper effect" and take "everyone to the seafront" and away from the town. But others have welcomed the plan, including Nicholson's Butchers owner Kathryn Meadows who said it would be "fabulous" and "bring more people to the town". North Tyneside Council is due to decide on the application later this year.

Stack Whitley Bay

Builder Turned Barber

A former builder has opened a barber shop in his back garden. David Hollick, 56, from Swadlincote, said he fancied a career change after 30 years in the building trade. He spent 11 months building and fitting out a shed in his back garden that now serves as a 1950s-style barber shop, complete with plumbing for a sink and toilet. He said: "I got bored and wanted a new challenge in life. For years, I've been saying I need to do something else." Mr Hollick said he had returned to college three years ago to study to be a barber - something he did alongside his building work. "I worked in the building trade for many, many years," he said. "The building trade's not easy. "It's a lot of hard, heavy lifting. I thought I fancied having a go [at hairdressing]. "I went and enrolled on a college course." He then got a job at a salon in Church Gresley, near Swadlincote, before deciding to open his own business on 9 May. His salon contains one red leather barber's chair - giving room for one customer to get a cut - and a bench where others can wait. However, he said having a business based at the bottom of the garden has its perks.

Builder to Barber