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