I have talked before of how much I dislike clickbait (so much so that this will have the same title) and sensational headlines. At the same time, I can’t help but click on said ridiculous headlines because I just have to know. This week, I saw two that led the pack.
- Apple made more revenue from iPhone in a single quarter than Google has ever made from Android
- How Elon Musk stole my car
Google was in the news a lot this week due to disclosures from its five-year battle against Oracle. According to a lawyer for Oracle, Google’s Android operating system has generated $31B in revenues and $22B in profit for Google. Thus the first clickbait above. Not only are iPhones (hardware) and the Android OS (mobile operating system) in entirely different categories, they also differ in how profit margins are generated. Apple sells the iPhone 6 for $649, while only costing $200 in components and manufacturing. Google develops Android as a platform, gives the code for free and makes money from ads supplied by Google on Android phones and via the Google Play Store.
The comparison is so egregious (I have to use a fancy word here because it is that appalling) and unfortunately these days, people glance at headlines like these and wisely nod their heads, “Oh yeah, of course, that completely makes sense.”
The second headline on the other hand is a cry for attention to Tesla to say, “We’re sorry we made a mistake, here’s a Tesla for you at the price we initially agreed with.” Elon Musk did not actually steal the car, rather a car from the test fleet was mistakenly offered for sale.
I get it. There’s so much noise out there that in order to be heard, you have to shout a little louder. It’s like when they tell you, don’t cry “help” to get people’s attention. Scream “fire” instead because people might ignore the former but rarely would they ignore the latter. Unfortunately, it’s up to us readers to discern the facts from sensationalism.
Here are this week’s most relevant news in tech and retail:
In tech:
- New prime number discovery breaks record at 22 million digits
- Facebook is opening an Oculus research office in Pittsburgh
- Google: Google paid Apple $1 billion to be the search engine on your iPhone; Google launches free Wi-Fi service in India with Mumbai Central Station; Google just published a free, three-month course on deep learning
- Auto: Apple opening R&D facility in hotbed for driverless car research; Tesla sues German supplier over failed Model X falcon doors; Uber hails victory after Transport for London drops restrictions
- Space: 9th planet http://m.caltech.edu/news/caltech-researchers-find-evidence-real-ninth-planet-49523; Successful drone ship landing proves elusive for SpaceX
In retail:
- China: Meituan-Dianping, China’s Largest Group Deals Site, Closes Massive $3.3B Round At $18B Valuation; Alibaba teams up with Nvidia in $1B bet on cloud computing
- Walmart: Walmart’s E-Commerce Push: It’s Among Top Companies Posting Jobs For Software Developers; Walmart wants to sell Suburbia clothing chain in Mexico; Walmart to give pay raises to most of its workers
- Apple applies to open stores in India
- Amazon: Amazon Offering Refunds on Sales of All Two-Wheeled Hoverboards; Amazon exec: Our drones will deliver in 30 minutes or less; Amazon steps up recruitment as it expands in Europe; Amazon veers into labor law fight zone for hurried deliveries
- Avon soars after discussing overseas growth, vowing to cut costs
Quiddity 