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Bosch to Cut Hours for 10,000 Workers in Germany

The logo of Bosch is seen at an office building in Kyiv, Ukraine July 6, 2020. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko/File Photo
The logo of Bosch is seen at an office building in Kyiv, Ukraine July 6, 2020. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko/File Photo
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Bosch to Cut Hours for 10,000 Workers in Germany

The logo of Bosch is seen at an office building in Kyiv, Ukraine July 6, 2020. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko/File Photo
The logo of Bosch is seen at an office building in Kyiv, Ukraine July 6, 2020. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko/File Photo

Robert Bosch, the world's largest car parts supplier, will reduce the working hours and pay of around 10,000 employees in Germany, going beyond previously announced reductions and in addition to thousands of job cuts announced on Friday.

In the latest sign of the challenges facing Germany's auto sector due to weak demand and competition from cheaper Chinese rivals, Bosch had said on Friday it would cut up to 5,550 jobs, a day after saying it would cut the working hours of 450 staff, Reuters reported.

Staff mostly on 38- or 40-hour contracts at sites around Germany will have their hours reduced to 35 hours, a spokesperson said on Saturday, confirming a report by dpa news agency.

The slowdown in the German car sector has also shaken Volkswagen, which is in an escalating dispute with workers over plans to close plants in Germany, and Mercedes , which has vowed to make tougher cost cuts.

 

 

 

 

 

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Apple and Google Face UK Investigation into Mobile Browser Dominance

The logo of Google LLC is shown at an entrance to one of their buildings in San Diego, California, US, October 9, 2024. REUTERS/Mike Blake
The logo of Google LLC is shown at an entrance to one of their buildings in San Diego, California, US, October 9, 2024. REUTERS/Mike Blake
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Apple and Google Face UK Investigation into Mobile Browser Dominance

The logo of Google LLC is shown at an entrance to one of their buildings in San Diego, California, US, October 9, 2024. REUTERS/Mike Blake
The logo of Google LLC is shown at an entrance to one of their buildings in San Diego, California, US, October 9, 2024. REUTERS/Mike Blake

Apple and Google aren't giving consumers a genuine choice of mobile web browsers, a British watchdog said Friday in a report that recommends they face an investigation under new UK digital rules taking effect next year.

The Competition and Markets Authority took aim at Apple, saying the iPhone maker's tactics hold back innovation by stopping rivals from giving users new features like faster webpage loading. Apple does this by restricting progressive web apps, which don't need to be downloaded from an app store and aren't subject to app store commissions, the report said, The AP reported.

“This technology is not able to fully take off on iOS devices,” the watchdog said in a provisional report on its investigation into mobile browsers that it opened after an initial study concluded that Apple and Google effectively have a chokehold on “mobile ecosystems.”

The CMA's report also found that Apple and Google manipulate the choices given to mobile phone users to make their own browsers “the clearest or easiest option.”

And it said that the a revenue-sharing deal between the two US Big Tech companies “significantly reduces their financial incentives” to compete in mobile browsers on Apple's iOS operating system for iPhones.

Both companies said they will “engage constructively” with the CMA.

Apple said it disagreed with the findings and said it was concerned that the recommendations would undermine user privacy and security.

Google said the openness of its Android mobile operating system “has helped to expand choice, reduce prices and democratize access to smartphones and apps" and that it's “committed to open platforms that empower consumers.”

It's the latest move by regulators on both sides of the Atlantic to crack down on the dominance of Big Tech companies. US federal prosecutors this week unveiled their proposals to force Google to sell off its Chrome browser as they target its monopoly in online search.

The CMA's final report is due by March. The watchdog indicated it would recommend using the UK's new digital competition rulebook set to take effect next year, which includes new powers to rein in tech companies, to prioritize further investigation into Apple’s and Google’s “activities in mobile ecosystems."