COMPANY NEWS IN BRIEF

Infineon sees chip shortages

Germany's biggest chipmaker Infineon expects the current global supply shortage to last well into 2023, its chief executive said on Friday.

In an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Reinhard Ploss said when the shortfall in chips would end would be dependent on not just demand, but also on how quickly manufacturing capacity can be expanded.

Construction of new plants and sites where silicon wafers can be processed into chips can take up to two and a half years, he said. Even upgrading existing plants would require up to a year.

"In areas where we have to wait for new semiconductor manufacturing, the chip shortage may stretch into 2023," he said.

He estimated that capacity was about 20 percent short of demand currently in the mobile telephony chip sector, while in other areas, the shortfall is at about 10 percent. -Nampa/AFP

Peloton sued for sales tax

Peloton Interactive Inc subscribers have filed a proposed class action lawsuit accusing the maker of at-home stationary bicycles of improperly charging sales tax on memberships in New York, Virginia and Massachusetts.

In a complaint filed on Thursday night in federal court in Manhattan, Brandon Skillern and Ryan Corken said Peloton should have treated its US$39-a-month "All Access" and US$12.99-a-month digital memberships as tax-exempt "digital goods" in the three states.

They said Peloton has refused to reimburse them for the 6.3% or 8.9% "sales tax" it had collected before Jan. 1, when it changed its taxation practices. Millions of dollars nationwide may have been collected improperly, they said.

Peloton "wilfully and knowingly overcharged its subscribers" to maximize profit, according to the complaint. The New York-based company declined to comment on Friday, saying it does not discuss pending litigation. Lawyers for the plaintiffs had no immediate additional comment.-Nampa/Reuters

Ford counterattacks in 'cruise' dispute

Ford Motor Co said late on Friday it will ask the US Patent Office to rescind trademarks obtained by rival General Motors Co for the terms "Cruise" and "Super Cruise," escalating a brawl GM began by suing Ford over its use of "Blue Cruise" for an automated driving system.

The legal fight between the two Detroit automakers turns on whether "cruise" is a generic term for technology that allows the car to take over some share of driving tasks from a human motorist.

The clash underscores the intensity of competition among established automakers to be seen as leaders in automated driving technology, competitive with Silicon Valley rivals Tesla Inc, Alphabet Inc's Waymo unit and others.

GM filed a federal suit against Ford on July 24, accusing Ford of violating GM trademarks by using the name "Blue Cruise" for a system that enables hands-free driving. read more

GM had previously trademarked "Super Cruise" for its hands-free, partially automated driving technology. It also has trademarked "Cruise," the name of its robo-taxi unit in San Francisco.

Ford reiterated on Friday its position that GM's suit is frivolous. The effort to nullify GM's trademarks for the use of the word "cruise" takes the fight to a new level. -Nampa/Reuters

Disney's recovery ride hinges

Walt Disney Co's path to a sustained recovery in its theme parks business will rest on one question: Can the entertainment giant keep its parks open for the rest of the year?

Disney's chief financial officer, Christine McCarthy, said on Thursday the company's theme parks were expected to be fully staffed by the end of this year to cater to the rising demand.

Those plans could be upended by the spread of the more infectious Delta variant of the coronavirus, which has been ravaging Florida, home to Disney's biggest park, as well as other US states with lower vaccination rates.

"Disney's ability to keep its parks and resorts open is clearly of the utmost importance to their bottom line," said Joe McCormack, analyst at Third Bridge.

While the success of the company's video-streaming operations cheered others on Wall Street, some analysts and investors worried about the prospects for the parks. -Nampa/Reuters

Alibaba male employee suspected

A former male employee of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd is suspected of committing "forcible indecency" against a female colleague, but not rape, according to Chinese police probing the assault.

The investigation is still ongoing, the police bureau of eastern China’s Jinan city, where the incident occurred, said in a statement via Weibo.

The police update came after a female employee went public with an 11-page account on Alibaba's intranet saying her manager and a client sexually assaulted her during a business trip, and that superiors and human resources did not take her report seriously. read more

The male Alibaba employee, whom police only identify by his surname Wang, entered the hotel room of the victim, surnamed Zhou, four times while she was drunk after a business dinner on July 27 and committed “forcible indecency” during one of these visits, according to the police statement.

The client had also committed the act against Zhou on two occasions during the trip, they said. The police said that they had not found enough evidence that Zhou was forced to drink alcohol during a banquet that evening attended by the suspects, as she had claimed. -Nampa/Reuters