Business

Axios reports: Elon Musk just reported some new friends — equity partners for his Twitter takeover, including some of the biggest names in Silicon Valley. Musk has raised $7 billion in funding for his $44 billion purchase of Twitter, according to a filing released by the Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday. Musk said in the filing that he has …

Bloomberg News reports: New Jersey became the first state to ban both plastic and paper bags on Wednesday, leaving companies and shoppers to find creative workarounds to get their groceries home. ShopRite, with more than 100 New Jersey stores, will charge a flat $1.50 per order for reusable bags. Instacart Inc., which fulfills shoppers’ lists for Aldi Inc., Lidl Ltd., …

Axios reports: The New York Times on Wednesday reported its second-best first quarter subscription growth since introducing a digital subscription in 2017, thanks in part to the acquisitions of The Athletic and Wordle in January. While a smaller investment than The Athletic, executives touted the success of Wordle, the viral online game that it paid “in the low seven figures” …

The Hill reports: Elon Musk said on Tuesday that Twitter could start charging a “slight cost” for government and commercial users in comments that come just over a week since he reached a deal to buy the social media platform. “Ultimately, the downfall of the Freemasons was giving away their stonecutting services for nothing,” Musk tweeted initially. “Twitter will always …

Engadget reports: Grindr’s past willingness to share sensitive data may have been more problematic than previously thought. The Wall Street Journal understands precise Grindr user location data was collected from the online ad network MoPub (once owned by Twitter) and put on sale through its partner company UberMedia (now UM) since “at least” 2017. The LGBTQ dating app curbed the …

The Wall Street Journal reports: In private meetings and coaching sessions over the past few weeks, top business leaders have been asking a version of the same question: How can we avoid becoming the next Walt Disney Co.? The fallout from the recent political spat between Disney and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has alarmed leaders across the corporate sphere, according …

From Airbnb’s corporate blog: As we’ve seen the heroic effort of health authorities and medical advancements around the globe, almost two thirds of the world’s population have received at least one dose of a vaccination against COVID-19. And many countries have now implemented living with COVID-19 plans, as it becomes part of our world. As a result of this new …

Deadline Hollywood reports: Regine, who claimed to have invented the term “discotheque” as she ran a nightclub empire that stretched from Paris to Los Angeles, has died. She passed on Sunday at age 92, according to her granddaughter. At its height, her nightlife empire had 22 venues. Born Regina Zylberberg in Belgium, Regine opened her first nightclub in Paris’s Latin …

“In those lower grades, you shouldn’t be teaching sexual orientation and those matters that should not be covered at that age. “But I don’t believe that governors should be punitive against private businesses because they disagree with them. “That is not the right approach either. To me, that is the old Republican principle of having restrained government. “Let’s not go …

Axios reports: Elon Musk is likely to find out that there’s not a big market for his campaign for more free speech on Twitter, according to an Ipsos poll shared exclusively with Axios. Most Americans don’t have a problem with Twitter or other social media companies removing posts that include misinformation, promote violence or pose a risk to the public, …

Reuters reports: A Russian law firm on Friday said it had filed a lawsuit against U.S. tech giant Apple seeking 90 million roubles ($1.28 million) in damages for consumers affected by Apple withdrawing its payment service from Russia. Law firm Chernyshov, Lukoyanov & Partners said Apple had violated Russian consumers’ rights after the company restricted the use of its built-in …

Orlando’s NBC News affiliate reports: The Walt Disney Co. has remained publicly silent since Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a law last week dissolving the Reedy Creek Improvement District, but a letter to investors shows they’re not going down without a fight. The law, which DeSantis signed in a special legislative session, would end any independent special district the Legislature …

Fortune reports: Elon Musk has been busy selling Tesla shares as he prepares to pay for his $44 billion Twitter bid, but he has no further stock sales planned, the billionaire said late Thursday. In five separate Form 4 filings to the SEC published on Thursday, Musk revealed he has already unloaded a combined total of 4.41 million shares on …

Bloomberg News reports: Elon Musk may soon own Twitter Inc. but the billionaire won’t be able to shake his “Twitter Sitter.” A judge on Wednesday rejected Musk’s request to ditch his 2018 deal with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that required a company lawyer to screen all his Tesla Inc.-related tweets. The Tesla CEO, who appears to have clinched …

Defense One reports: Boeing should have rejected then-President Donald Trump’s proposed terms to build two new Air Force One aircraft, the company’s CEO said Wednesday. Dave Calhoun spoke Wednesday on the company’s quarterly earnings call, just hours after Boeing disclosed that it has lost $660 million transforming two 747 airliners into flying White Houses. “Air Force One I’m just going …

Florida Politics reports: Getting rid of Disney World’s government isn’t likely going to hurt the Mouse, Deutsche Bank analysts wrote in a new research note published Tuesday. “We don’t see a material negative outcome from this situation for Disney; and financially speaking, we think it could end up being a positive development,” analysts Bryan Kraft, Benjamin Soff and Connor Murphy …

Reuters reports: Tesla Inc lost $126 billion in value on Tuesday amid investor concerns that Chief Executive Elon Musk may have to sell shares to fund his $21 billion equity contribution to his $44 billion buyout of Twitter Inc. Tesla is not involved in the Twitter deal, yet its shares have been targeted by speculators after Musk declined to disclose …

The New York Post reports: The owners of JCPenney have made an offer to acquire archrival Kohl’s in a deal that could value the department-store chain at upwards of $8.6 billion, The Post has learned. Under the proposal, shopping-mall giant Simon Property and Canada-based Brookfield Asset Management — which together scooped JCPenney out of bankruptcy in December 2020 — have …

CBS News reports: Toyota is again contributing to lawmakers who resisted certifying the official results of the 2020 presidential election, despite the Japanese automaker’s pledge last summer to halt such financial support. The company said at the time, “We are actively listening to our stakeholders and, at this time, we have decided to stop contributing to those members of Congress …

Business Insider reports:  Twitter accepted Elon Musk’s offer to buy the company, it announced Monday — a dramatic coup for the billionaire as he seeks to unlock the social network’s “extraordinary potential.” Musk will pay $54.20 per share for Twitter, matching his original offer, totaling $44 billion. The two parties met Sunday after Twitter executives opted to re-examine Musk’s original …