In this Nov. 13, 2019 file photo, a Disney logo forms part of a menu for the Disney Plus movie and entertainment streaming service on a computer screen in Walpole, Mass.
From Wall Street to Silicon Valley, these are the top stories that moved markets and had investors, business leaders, and entrepreneurs talking this week on Cheddar.
Streaming Suits Disney Well
Thank goodness for streaming because other than that, the House of Mouse had some rough news in its latest earnings report. Pandemic-related theme park closures cost the company $2.6 billion dollars last quarter and it expects to lose another billion this year because of COVID. But fans have been tuning in: Disney+ more than doubled the number of its subscribers from a year ago to more than 94 million, ESPN+ subscribers are up 83 percent, and Hulu subscribers are up nearly a third. Though the company also beat expectations on income and revenue, the stock still dipped on Friday.
Cannabis Is the New GameStop
Pot rode the meme stock wave this week, with several of the biggest players, like Canopy Growth, Tilray, Aurora Cannabis, and Aphria seeing spikes early on — then precipitously falling. The Reddit crowd seems to be behind this latest market rollercoaster ride, and Congress has taken note. Next Thursday, the House Financial Services Committee will hold a hearing called “Game Stopped? Who Wins and Loses When Short Sellers, Social Media, and Retail Investors Collide.” Committee Chair Rep. Maxine Waters told Cheddar she expects it to be a "learning experience for everybody."
Bumble's Great First Date
Bumble, the parent company of the namesake female-first dating app joined the Nasdaq Thursday, and it looks like there was an attraction with investors. The stock rose, closing Friday at $75.46 per share. The company's 31-year-old founder and CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd is now a billionaire — the youngest woman to accomplish that feat by taking her company public. Tariq Shaukat, Bumble's president, told Cheddar the plan now is to grow users and the types of products the company offers.
Shopify Surge
E-commerce tech platform Shopify announced Tuesday that it has a new deal to help shoppers spend via social media. Its Shop Pay checkout option began rolling out immediately on Instagram and is expected to hit Facebook Shops in the next few weeks. This means shoppers will have the option to use Shopify to pay for items instead of PayPal or credit cards. $SHOP jumped on the news and continued trading at that level for the rest of the week.
Old Bank, New Currency
BNY Mellon, which has its roots as America's oldest bank, is definitely caught up here in the 21st century. It announced that it will begin dealing in crypto — holding, transferring, and issuing digital currencies for its asset-management clients. For those looking to spend, rather than save, this week Tesla announced that it bought about $1.5 billion in Bitcoin and is getting ready to accept it for its high-end vehicles.
The New York Times and President Donald Trump are fighting again. The news outlet said Wednesday it won't be deterred by Trump's “false and inflammatory language” from writing about the 79-year-old president's health. The Times has done a handful of stories on that topic recently, including an opinion column that said Trump is “starting to give President Joe Biden vibes.” In a Truth Social post, Trump said it might be treasonous for outlets like the Times to do “FAKE” reports about his health and "we should do something about it.” The Republican president already has a pending lawsuit against the newspaper for its past reports on his finances.
OpenAI has appointed Slack CEO Denise Dresser as its first chief of revenue. Dresser will oversee global revenue strategy and help businesses integrate AI into daily operations. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently emphasized improving ChatGPT, which now has over 800 million weekly users. Despite its success, OpenAI faces competition from companies like Google and concerns about profitability. The company earns money from premium ChatGPT subscriptions but hasn't ventured into advertising. Altman had recently announced delays in developing new products like AI agents and a personal assistant.
President Donald Trump says he will allow Nvidia to sell its H200 computer chip used in the development of artificial intelligence to “approved customers” in China. Trump said Monday on his social media site that he had informed China’s leader Xi Jinping and “President Xi responded positively!” There had been concerns about allowing advanced computer chips into China as it could help them to compete against the U.S. in building out AI capabilities. But there has also been a desire to develop the AI ecosystem with American companies such as chipmaker Nvidia.
U.S. sports betting is booming as NFL and college football fuel massive activity. BetMGM CEO Adam Greenblatt breaks down trends, growth, and what’s next.
President Donald Trump says a deal struck by Netflix last week to buy Warner Bros. Discovery “could be a problem” because of the size of the combined market share. The Republican president says he will be involved in the decision about whether federal regulators should approve the deal. Trump commented Sunday when he was asked about the deal as he walked the red carpet at the Kennedy Center Honors. The $72 billion deal would bring together two of the biggest players in television and film and potentially reshape the entertainment industry.
Disney's changes to a program for disabled visitors are facing challenges in federal court and through a shareholder proposal. The Disability Access Service program, which allows disabled visitors to skip long lines, was overhauled last year. Disney now mostly limits the program to those with developmental disabilities like autism who have difficulty waiting in lines. The changes have sparked criticism from some disability advocates. A shareholder proposal submitted by disability advocates calls for an independent review of Disney's disability policies. Disney plans to block this proposal, claiming it's misleading. It's the latest struggle by Disney to accommodate disabled visitors while stopping past abuses by some theme park guests.
With a merger this big, creators, studios, and theaters all face uncertain futures. Here’s what experts are worried about and what good could come from it.
With disengagement rising and hybrid work shifting, 'Everybody Matters' author Bob Chapman explains why treating people well could define the future of work.
We sat down with Ali Furman, U.S. Consumer Markets Industry Leader at consulting firm PwC to ask what trends she garnered from the initial data this year.
