Allen Institute held talks to acquire Unacademy valuing edtech firm at $800 million in a cut-price deal: sources

The Bengaluru-based Unacademy, valued at $3.4 billion in 2021, will likely be merged with Allen; founders expected to exit. The edtech company has around $160 million of cash in the bank but revenues have been flat after the highs of Covid-19 even as its pivoted to an offline model.

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Judge faults Apple for withholding documents in Epic Games case

A US judge ruled that Apple misused attorney-client confidentiality to avoid disclosing documents in Epic Games' lawsuit regarding App Store practices. Apple must release withheld documents, as attorney-client privilege claims were deemed improper for certain business decisions. This ruling follows accusations by Epic of Apple's non-compliance and broad privilege claims.

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Black Friday weekend sales grow 17-18% on year for ecommerce players

Direct-to-consumer brands and ecommerce marketplaces saw a 17-18% rise in Black Friday order volumes compared to last year, with beauty, wellness, personal care, and home decor driving sales. Gross merchandise value grew over 24%, boosted by festive excitement. Higher average order values were noted in wearables, fashion, and electronics. India embraced the trend with growing consumer interest.

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Apple accused of silencing workers, spying on personal devices

Apple faces a lawsuit accusing it of illegally monitoring employees' personal devices and iCloud accounts while restricting discussions about pay and working conditions. Filed by Amar Bhakta, the suit claims Apple requires software installation on personal devices, enabling access to private data. Apple denies the allegations and asserts its commitment to employee rights.

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ETtech Explainer: Behind PhonePe call to end third-party deals

PhonePe will offer payment solutions directly to merchants, ending partnerships with payment aggregators like Juspay. This move may help merchants save on transaction fees. Juspay, with a new license, will provide full-stack services. The move reflects a trend of payment aggregators building in-house routing technologies for direct merchant integrations.

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Banks boost fraud checks; AI & relationship apps

Happy Monday! Banks intensify checks to tackle rising employee-linked fraud and financial scams. This and more in today’s ETtech Morning Dispatch.

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IT outlook is positive, weakness in stock price to be temporary, say analysts

India's $254 billion software services industry sees temporary weaknesses in stock prices likely caused by US inflation concerns but maintains a positive outlook. Experts predict business growth and an uptick in technology spending as the economic policies of the Trump administration clarify and rate cuts commence.

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