San Francisco / AP Online retail colossus Amazon is seeking a US patent on using selfies — instead of passwords — for shopping when using smartphones. Seattle-based Amazon reasoned that combining sensor and camera capabilities in smartphones with face and gesture recognising software results in higher security than passwords or identification numbers. “Such approaches provide for user authentication without the ...

NEW YORK / AP The Fresh Market, a grocery store chain, has agreed to be acquired by private equity firm Apollo for more than $1.3 billion. The deal, which is expected to close in the second quarter, comes after Fresh Market said in October that it was seeking to possibly sell itself. Apollo said that it is paying $28.50 for ...

Montreal / AFP The UN aviation agency called on Tuesday for regulations on space travel to be enacted within five years in order to bolster a burgeoning space tourism and transportation sector. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) “recognises that sub-orbital and outer space flights will foster new tourism and transport markets, and that investments in related research and development ...