Wednesday, December 30, 2020

Amazon challenges Spotify with deal to buy Wondery podcast company

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TODAY'S TOP STORIES

Dr. Brad Younggren has a unique perspective on the COVID-19 crisis. He’s the chief medical officer at Seattle-based healthcare startup 98point6; emergency physician and medical director for emergency preparedness at EvergreenHealth Medical Center; and a former U.S. Army physician. So it was with a sense of hope and cautious optimism that he received his first dose of COVID-19 vaccine last week, along with his Evergreen colleagues. Younggren reflected on the past year, and talked about what’s next, in this conversation for GeekWire’s Health Tech Podcast. Listen here

Breaking News: Amazon announced an agreement to acquire Wondery, the Los Angeles-based podcast production company known for hit shows such as "Dirty John," "Dr. Death," and "Business Wars." Financial terms weren't disclosed, but a previous Wall Street Journal report valued the deal at more than $300 million. The acquisition promises to take Amazon further into original audio content, squaring off against Spotify, the streaming music service that has been on its own podcast acquisition spree. 

‘I’ve felt perfectly healthy, very normal’: That’s Jennifer Haller, nearly 10 months after becoming the first person to receive a shot in the first U.S. clinical trial for Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine. With the distribution of vaccines now underway, Haller, a Seattle tech worker, is reflecting on the pandemic, her role in helping people, and the struggle many are facing. Read more.

In other COVID-19 news, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee announced Wednesday that he is extending the state’s “Stay Safe-Stay Healthy” proclamation, and the restrictions it imposes, by one week, until Jan. 11.

Bezos names ship after his mom: SpaceX CEO Elon Musk named his rocket recovery vessels after science-fiction spaceships, but Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos stayed closer to home for the christening of the ship that his Blue Origin space venture will use for at-sea rocket landings. See the surprise reveal

Year in Space: Speaking of aerospace, it was another busy year for companies such as Blue Origin, SpaceX, Amazon, Microsoft, Spaceflight, OneWeb, and Boeing, which this week reached a milestone as the first U.S. passenger flight for a 737 MAX jet flew since the worldwide fleet was grounded. Here are 2020’s top aerospace stories.

Uber hiking prices on Jan. 1: The cost of an Uber trip in Seattle will jump about 24% starting Friday as the ride-hailing company is raising its prices in response to a new law requiring drivers to be paid the city’s minimum wage. The Seattle City Council unanimously voted in September to adopt new regulations designed to ensure Uber and Lyft drivers earn the city’s $16.69 per hour minimum wage in 2021. Read more.

GeekWire’s 2020 news quiz: Test your knowledge of this year’s top headlines with our 20-question test. We had a lot of fun taking it ourselves, as GeekWire editor Todd Bishop faced off against GeekWire managing editor Taylor Soper — who do you think won? Take the quiz, and let us know how you did!

What’s Richard Sherman playing? We caught up with the one-time Seattle Seahawks great and reliable geek who shared which video games he’s playing now (on which console) and how he feels about esports and more. Read the quick Q&A.

Thanks for reading, and see our latest headlines below. — GeekWire managing editor Taylor Soper, taylor@geekwire.com, GeekWire editor Todd Bishop, editor@geekwire.com, and Geek Life reporter Kurt Schlosser, kurt@geekwire.com.

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