Technology

  Bloomberg The Wi-Fi icon — a dot with radio waves radiating outward — glows on nearly every internet-connected device, from the iPhone to thermostats to TVs. But it’s starting to fade from the limelight. With every major US wireless carrier now offering unlimited data plans, consumers don’t need to log on to a Wi-Fi network to avoid costly overage ...

  Bloomberg Apple Inc. doesn’t have a specific goal for market share in China, where it faces the fiercest local competition anywhere, Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook said. China has unique characteristics, in that its mobile payment market is well ahead of the US and local consumers have a greater willingness to change habits, Cook said at a panel discussion ...

  Bloomberg Forget robotic vacuum cleaners, medical assistants or butlers, for now industrial robots represent the greatest slice of the $34 billion global robotics market. The classic industrial robot is a deaf and blind arm carrying out repetitive tasks reliably without a break. That also means they must be fenced off from people working on factory production lines, in case ...

  Bloomberg For decades, cyclists hoping to stay fit through the winter have been presented with the same choice: bundle up and brave the elements or resign themselves to hours of frustration on an indoor training device. Basically, a cyclist can suffer from frostbite or boredom. No longer. We live in a marvelous age of technical innovation, where a robot ...

  Bloomberg Google, the primary revenue driver for Alphabet Inc., announced changes to its advertising policies after major brands pulled ads from the platform because they appeared alongside offensive content, such as videos promoting terrorism or anti-Semitism. The US company said in a blog post it would give clients more control over where their ads appear on both YouTube, the ...

  Bloomberg Toshiba Corp.’s memory chips business is attracting more potential bidders ahead of an end-March deadline, including Japanese government-backed entities, people with knowledge of the matter said. The Development Bank of Japan is considering a joint offer with US financial bidders, people familiar with the matter said, asking not to be identified discussing a private matter. The electronics conglomerate ...

  Bloomberg Ericsson AB has taken the unusual step of publicly setting a price tag on what it will cost to license the telecommunications company’s technology for the next generation of high-speed mobile phone networks. Ericsson said it will cap royalties at $5 per phone for higher-end handsets, though it would go as low as $2.50 for less expensive devices. ...

  Bloomberg Samsung Electronics Co.’s new Galaxy S8 will employ facial-recognition technology for mobile payments within months of release, adding cutting-edge security to help the marquee device stand out from rivals such as Apple Inc.’s iPhone, people familiar with the matter said. The Galaxy S8 to be unveiled later this month will blend fingerprint, iris and facial detection to verify ...

  Bloomberg Swatch Group AG said it’s developing an alternative to the iOS and Android operating systems for smartwatches as Switzerland’s largest maker of timepieces vies with Silicon Valley for control of consumers’ wrists. The first product using the Swiss-made system will be a Tissot smartwatch to be introduced at the end of 2018, Swatch Chief Executive Officer Nick Hayek ...

  Bloomberg Google Inc. is scaling up investment in Africa by laying fiber optic cable, easing access to cheaper Android phones and training a workforce in digital skills as the US technology giant seeks to expand on the continent. “We laid about 1,000 kilometers (621 miles) of fiber in Uganda and we are busy doing about 1,000 kilometers in Ghana,’’ ...