Industry news

IBM are set to split its business into two separate public traded businesses by the end of 2021. One will focus on the rising demand for hybrid cloud services from enterprise and the other will focus on the delivery of managed infrastructure services. 

By splitting the companies it will position Big Blue better for the new era of the hybrid cloud which has been in process for several years. 

In 2018, IBM acquired Red Hat, an open source cloud firm for $34 billion which has enabled the firm to position its off-premise offering to be more open and less proprietary than those of its competitors. This has helped to transform the open hybrid cloud platform IBM will provide.

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Apple is expected to reveal that the new iPhone will have 5G.

Apple is already late to 5G technology as their rivals Samsung and Huawei have already introduced 5G phones. 

The launch of the new iPhone has been delayed since September due to COVID-19 supplier issues. The pandemic has increased sales for Apple, enabling their stocks to rise by 53% this year.

However, their stocks could take a hit as 5G enabled phones cost between $30 and $100 in the market right now. In 2012 when Apple first adopted 4G, they experienced a 10% decline in gross margins according to Pierre Ferragu, an analyst at New Street Research.

Apple is expected to take precautions in order to reduce this hit. The new iPhone could be released without wall chargers or earphones which will reduce costs on components and shrink packaging, enabling them to ship more units. 

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Mukesh Ambani, the Chairman of Reliance Industries says that this is is the right time for India to become a world leader in AI and make the country lead globally in the field.

According to Mukesh “India has the unique advantage to harness its enormous digital capital for AI-driven development, which is bottom-up and inclusive. This is because of our twin strengths of democracy and demography.”

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Huawei is experiencing a tough period with the US sanctions, however, business is continuing with European 5G network clients. 

They are still searching for a solution to aid millions of Huwaei phone users after Google was banned from issuing technical support for the new Huawei phone model using Android operating systems.

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IBM has announced plans to “spin out” its managed infrastructure service unit which accounts for a quarter of its revenue. 

Big Blue’s share price increased by 8% as the investors welcomed the plan as the managed service unit has become a drag on IBMs growth. 

The rise of the cloud computing industry has seen customers reduce their spending on in-house technology and shifting it to cloud companies like Amazon and Microsoft. 

The spin out would allow IBM to invest in cloud and AI businesses as they return to more sustainable growth.

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As technology emerges with the innovation of 5G, AI and IoT, Nvidia sees the acquisition of Arm as a vital step in creating a name for themselves. Arm s a hardware platform which  Nvidia intends to acquire for £31bn. 

In their recent virtual Summit event they announced the sale to Nvidia in order to provide growth opportunity for the hardware and software developers that rely on its technology.

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After a decade long conflict between tech firms Google and Oracle it has reached the Supreme Court this week.

Oracle is claiming $9bn in damages from illegal use of its software. When Google released their Android mobile operating system, they copied APIs from Java, software developed by Sun Microsystems. APIs allow access to specific functions within a programme. In 2009 when Oracle bought the Sun, they sued Google as they believed that its APIs should have copyright protection.

Many have concerns that if Google loses this case then the other dominant firms in the industry will have more power.

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US chip manufacturer Nvidia is building the UKs most powerful supercomputer. It will use AI to help to solve medical issues such as health problems related to COVID-19.

As the search for a vaccine for COVID-19 evolves both GSK and AstraZeneca will be the first two pharmaceutical companies to use the computer.

The supercomputer is expected to be ready by the end of the year.

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To break up social media giants Instagram and WhatsApp from Facebook Inc would cost billions, harm consumers and disregard laws. 

A document investigating Facebook and other companies such as Google and Amazon for antitrust violations is expected to be released by the House Antitrust Subcommittee later this month. This report could include a plan to separate the platforms and to enforce a series of policies.

Facebooks acquisition of Instagram in 2012 and WhatsApp in 2014 were investigated by the Federal Trade Commission. This investigation was closed with no objections.

Many critics argue that the acquisition of Instagram and WhatsApp has illegally reduced competition in the social media industry.

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Benelux Port in Rotterdam is testing out a blockchain-based application for processing containers.

This follows the movement created by Antwerp Port in Belgium where the Secure Container Release Application has replaced the current method of using PIN codes. 

Blockchain uses a digital token instead of a PIN which will reduce fraud and all associated risk as the tokens cannot be copied or stolen. This will make the port more efficient and safer.

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