Pulp diction: Samuel L Jackson to voice Amazon’s Alexa – Hollywood star is the first celebrity voice to be rolled out on the virtual personal assistant Interactions with Amazon’s virtual personal assistant Alexa could soon become considerably more entertaining – and profane – after actor Samuel L Jackson signed up to lend his voice to […]

Amazon announces privacy updates as its devices expand deeper into the home – New products include earbuds, eyeglasses and smart oven Privacy improvements follow series of scandals Amazon has announced a new lineup of Echo devices and a slew of privacy updates for existing products, as the company expands further into consumers’ lives. Amazon unveiled […]

Amazon refuses to stop selling Tommy Robinson merchandise – Online retailer continues to sell merchandise including T-shirts with #freeTommy logo Amazon has refused to pull merchandise in support of Tommy Robinson after it and other online companies were accused of profiting from products promoting far-right extremism. Items including T-shirts bearing the image of Robinson – […]

Fraudsters hijack eBay parcels in a postcode lottery – Refunds to buyers rely on Royal Mail tracking using postcodes rather than signatures, and it’s helping thieves Anastasios Siampos was suspicious after selling an iPhone for £275 on eBay. The buyer claimed it was defective and, though Siampos contested this, eBay instructed the buyer to return […]

France to block Facebook’s Libra cryptocurrency in Europe – Finance minister says governments’ monetary sovereignty could be at risk France has said it will block the development of Facebook’s Libra in Europe, dealing the cryptocurrency a fresh blow. The French finance minister, Bruno Le Maire, said plans for Libra could not move ahead until concerns […]

Online shopping forcing women out of work – study – Some 75,000 sales assistant jobs previously taken by women have gone in seven years A surge in shop closures and the growth of automated retail are forcing tens of thousands of women out of work, according to a study of the economic pain caused by […]

Jack Ma, China’s richest man, steps down as chairman of Alibaba – Charismatic 55-year-old entrepreneur to be replaced by Daniel Zhang at e-commerce firm The Alibaba founder, Jack Ma, is stepping down as head of one of the world’s largest e-commerce companies, handing over the reins to his handpicked successor. Ma, who announced his retirement […]

Amazon Europe received €241m in tax credits in 2018 – The retailer reported a pre-tax loss of €493m despite sales rising by 11.6% to €28bn Amazon received €241m in tax credits last year that it can deduct from future bills for its European business, despite efforts by authorities in Brussels to ensure the company pays […]

Margaret Atwood’s Handmaid’s Tale sequel escapes from tight secrecy – Strict measures meant to keep all details of The Testaments confidential until publication have fallen through for some US readers Hundreds of readers in the US have received early copies of The Testaments, Margaret Atwood’s heavily embargoed follow-up to The Handmaid’s Tale, after copies were […]

Amazon accused of handing over ‘diddly-squat’ in corporation tax – Firm attacked even though it says its contribution has nearly tripled since 2017 Amazon has been accused of continuing to underpay corporation tax in the UK despite nearly tripling the payment from a key British division to £14m. Amazon UK Services, the company’s warehouse and […]