Spotify shares were down more than 7% in after-hours trading Wednesday, after the company provided weak user growth projections for the first quarter of 2022.
Why it matters: Overall, the company did well in 2021, beating Wall Street expectations on revenue and earnings. But its performance has been overshadowed recently by a scandal over how it handles misinformation on its platform, specifically from popular podcaster Joe Rogan.
CNN boss Jeff Zucker's previously undisclosed relationship with a longtime senior colleague, which led his resignation Wednesday, was with CNN chief marketing officer Allison Gollust.
Why it matters: Gollust had once served as the communications director for former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. CNN fired anchor Chris Cuomo for breaching media ethics by advising his brother, the former governor, during the sexual misconduct investigation that led to his resignation.
Pfizer is the fourth most admired company in the world on Fortune magazine’s annual list, marking its best-ever performance and its first time since 2006 in the top 50.
It was more admired than Disney, Starbucks and Netflix, trailing only Apple, Amazon and Microsoft.
Why it matters: Pfizer has gonefrom villain to hero in the eyes of many, its image undergoing a rapid transformation as the company draws credit for jointly developing a lifesaving COVID-19 vaccine.
Shares for Meta, Facebook's parent company were down roughly 20% in after-hours trading on Wednesday in response to weak earnings and growth forecasts. Most notably, the daily active user count for Facebook declined by roughly 1 million compared to last quarter.
Why it matters: The earnings miss proves the vulnerability of its business model being tied to advertising against social networking, as opposed to search.
International banks can transfer money to Afghanistan for humanitarian reasons without fear of violating U.S. sanctions against the Taliban, the Treasury Department said in a guidance out on Wednesday.
Why it matters: The Afghan economy has been dependent on foreign aid and investment, and the takeover by the Taliban, which had been under U.S. sanctions since 2001, had put financial institutions in the middle of the global clash.
CNN boss Jeff Zucker shocked the media world Wednesday by announcing he is resigning from CNN, the company that he’s led since 2013, because of a relationship with a longtime senior colleague that he failed to disclose.
Why it matters: Zucker is one of the most powerful executives in the industry and was a driving force behind CNN's new push into digital subscriptions.
The National Football League yesterday was rocked by a racial discrimination lawsuit, brought by recently fired Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores. It could change the way teams are bought and sold, and even may put a new one in play.
Driving the news: Flores, who hopes his complaint will become a class action, mostly focuses on hiring practices — including alleged "sham" interview processes with the New York Giants and Denver Broncos. But his list of request injunctive reliefs includes:
SeaWorld (NYSE: SEAS) has offered to buy Cedar Fair (NYSE: FUN), a Sandusky, Ohio-based theme park and hotel operator.
Why it matters: The theme park industry is back at that part of the roller coaster where it cautiously rises higher. SeaWorld reported record revenue and profit in Q3 2021, while Cedar Fair reported record net revenue and in-park per capita spending.
Mary Trump said Tuesday she pulled her podcast, "The Mary Trump Show," off of Spotify over alleged COVID-19 misinformation on Joe Rogan's podcast, saying she hopes to be a "part of a growing avalanche."
Why it matters: Mary Trump, the niece of former President Trump, joins Neil Young, Joni Mitchell and at least three other musicians in the boycott over content moderation on the streaming platform.
The New York Times on Wednesday said that with the addition of The Athletic, the digital sports publisher it acquired for $550 million, it has surpassed 10 million paid subscriptions, well ahead of its initial goal to reach that milestone by 2025.
Why it matters: The achievement reinforces the Times' position as the world's largest subscription news company. The Gray Lady is now targeting "at least 15 million subscribers by year-end 2027."
The electric vehicle market is poised for both rapid growth and fundamental reshaping as a tsunami of new models start reaching drivers.
The big picture: Global EV sales — battery-electric and plug-in hybrid combined — more than doubled last year to around 6.6 million vehicles. They accounted for 8.6% of the global light-duty vehicle market, compared to about 2.5% in 2019, per a new International Energy Agency commentary.
Dune Analytics, a Norwegian crypto analytics company, hit a $1 billion valuation after raising $69.4 million in Series B funding led by Coatue. Multicoin Capital and Dragonfly Capital also participated.
Why it matters: The round vaults Dune to unicorn status, as investor appetite for crypto assets continues to soar.
Energy Vault,one of a few startups looking to commercialize gravity-based storage tech using solid materials, has reached a deal to develop projects in China.
Driving the news: The company on Tuesday announced a $50 million licensing agreement with Atlas Renewable, which is majority-owned by the Chinese company China Tianying.
ABC News has suspended "The View" co-host Whoopi Goldberg for two weeks after she said on air that the Holocaust was "not about race," the network confirmed on Tuesday night.
Driving the news: Goldberg, who's been with the show since 2007, will be suspended immediately according to a memo from ABC News president Kim Godwin.
