The earnings were the last under founder Jeff Bezos, who handed over CEO duties this month to Andy Jassy, formerly chief executive of its cloud division AWS. Those services continued to perform strongly with a second straight quarter of above 30 per cent growth. So did Amazon's "other" business, which primarily consists of its nascent advertising efforts. Revenues there surged 88 per cent to $7.9bn,
Amazon's overall revenues increased 27 per cent from last year to $113bn, falling short of forecasts for about $115bn, while profits rose 50 per cent to $7.8bn, although Amazon predicted they would fall in the current quarter.
The Internet of (Five) Things
1. US regulators to scrutinise Chinese listings
China-based companies will have to disclose more about their structure and contacts with the Chinese government before listing in the US, the Securities and Exchange Commission said on Friday. The move follows the controversy surrounding Chinese ride-hailing group Didi Chuxing, which was accused of violating data laws in China soon after its US IPO. Here's our explainer on the regulatory assault in China.
2. Chinese tech stocks sink in July
It's the last trading day of July and Chinese tech stocks listed in the US are closing out their worst month since the global financial crisis, following the regulatory crackdown by Beijing. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China index has fallen 22 per cent in July, while shares in Tencent and Alibaba have dropped about 16 per cent and 10 per cent respectively.
3. Ransomware rages on
President Biden signed an executive order on Wednesday aimed at raising online security standards and preventing ransomware attacks on America's critical infrastructure. Here's our chart-driven analysis of the rise of ransomware.
4. Niel tries to take Iliad private
Billionaire entrepreneur Xavier Niel has launched a tender offer to take private Iliad, the French telecoms company he founded 22 years ago, in the latest example of buyers taking advantage of the low valuations of listed European telecoms companies.
5. Black Widow strikes Disney
Scarlett Johansson, whose contract payment as the star of Black Widow was based largely on box-office sales, has sued Disney over how they were depressed by simultaneous streaming of the superhero movie. John Thornhill comments on the ethical debate around using AI software to mimic the voice of chef Anthony Bourdain in the film Roadrunner. Pearson, the educational publisher that used to own the FT, has announced a Netflix-style model through an app that offers US students access to all 1,500 of its titles for a monthly subscription of $14.99.
Tech tools
Sony's camera for VloggersTim Bradshaw discusses the merits of the latest wearable camera concepts in FT Magazine this week, while Sony has come up with something of a dream device for Vloggers. The ZV-E10 is the first Alpha series interchangeable lens vlog camera, "designed from the ground up for vlogging and vloggers", it says. It has a 24.2MP sensor and features such as "Background Defocus", which can smoothly switch between a blurred and sharp background, as well as the "Product Showcase Setting" mode that allows the camera to automatically shift focus from the subject's face to an object being highlighted. The side-opening LCD Screen allows users to connect external mics on top of the camera and let them see the screen in selfie shooting mode and from high and low angles. It will be available in August, priced at £680/€750.
Written by: Chris Nuttall
© Financial Times
