Thomas Ricker

Following talks first reported two years ago, ESPN is acquiring the NFL Network and rights to the fan-favorite RedZone Channel in exchange for the league taking a 10 percent stake in the sports network. It’s all fodder for ESPN’s upcoming streaming service which could launch this month for $29.99. ESPN parent Disney reports earnings later today so expect to hear more then.

The boutique e-bike maker that squeaked through bikeaggeddon proclaiming it wouldn’t be the next VanMoof is reportedly in trouble. Deliveries and repairs are taking months, payments have been missed, and debt is mounting, according to De Tijd. Last week, the Belgian company missed a deadline to publish its annual figures.

This might be a one-off after Apple reportedly shipped 600 tons of iPhones from India in April to avoid tariff threats, but a new report from Canalys tracks with Apple’s intention to move the totality of its US iPhone production to the country by the end of 2026. China doesn’t like it and Trump’s gonna be real pretend mad.

The Torras Ostand case made me a kickstand convert and the Ostand Q3 Air improves upon on it in every way that matters. The MagSafe-compatible iPhone case offers better protection and improves the kickstand to make it more durable and useful without sacrificing pocket-ability. Too bad the price is nearly double at $65.99 / €56.95

Increasingly frustrated users of Google’s smart home platform just got tossed a lifeline. After apologizing for Google Assistant’s reliability, the platform’s chief product officer offered this promise:

Reportedly in testing since June, I’ve now been served three of these unskippable “Ad break” ads over the last two days. It’s jarring, and has accelerated my desire to quit the platform that’s increasingly less fun and flooded with AI slop.