*By Mike Teich*
Amazon shares jumped nearly 4 percent Friday after the e-commerce juggernaut delivered blockbuster earnings results on Thursday.
The tech giant impressed investors by delivering operating profit of $1.9 billion. Amazon's blockbuster numbers reflected its success in retail sales and growth in its cloud services business, said Michael Pachter, an analyst from Wedbush Securities.
Amazon also announced that it would be raising its Prime membership fee by $20, up to $119 a year. Pachter said the "odds are less than 1 percent that there is a decline in membership" as a result of the price hike.
Pachter compared Amazon Prime's cost to Netflix, noting that Prime was priced below Amazon's video-streaming rival and offers content that is "75 percent as good."
MoviePass launched its points-based subscription service ahead of the busy summer season.
OpenAI may pull its services in Europe due to new regulations.
Delaware state officials are hoping artificial intelligence can help evacuate beaches when floods hit.
WeWork said its chief executive and chief financial officer both plan to step down.
Shares of e-commerce giant Alibaba fell as China braces for a new wave of Covid.
Dish Network is in talks to sell wireless phone plans through Amazon, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Best Buy topped profit estimates in its latest quarter but also said consumers are spending more cautiously.
Nvidia topped earnings expectations, citing surging demand amid heightened interest in artificial intelligence.
Lawmakers in several states are embracing legislation to let children work in more hazardous occupations, longer hours on school nights and in expanded roles including serving alcohol in bars and restaurants as young as 14.
Target once distinguished itself as being boldly supportive of the LGBTQ+ community. Now that status is tarnished after it removed some LGBTQ+-themed products and relocated Pride Month displays to the back of stores in certain Southern locations in response to online complaints and in-store confrontations that it says threatened employees’ well-being.
