6 h. ago Italian ski pass price rises mean sport may become only for wealthy, watchdog warns

Price increases of as much as 40% will make sport exclusive privilege of the wealthy, says Assoutenti “Completely unjustified” prices rises for ski passes in Italy this winter mean the sport is at risk of becoming the exclusive privilege of the wealthy, the president of an Italian consumers’ association has warned.From the Alps and the Dolomites in the north to the slopes of the central Italian region of Abruzzo, prices are poised to rise by as much as 40% compared with 2021, according to a report compiled by the watchdog, Assoutenti. Continue reading...

Events

7 d. ago The rise of Hearts in Scottish football: Tony Bloom's quadruple, stats of champions, sick Celtic and Rangers

Tynecastle ‘disruptors’ are ruffling even more feathers ahead of Sunday showdown

Sport

1 week ago Luke Littler makes major announcement after split from manager who guided him to World Darts Championship title

LUKE LITTLER has signed with Target Darts after splitting with the management company that oversaw his incredible rise in the sport. The 18-year-old has taken darts by storm after emerging as one of the biggest talents on the oche. He won his first world title earlier this year and has already added a number of...

Politics

2 w. ago What the Xbox Game Pass price hike says about the rising cost of playing games

In this week’s newsletter: The almost 50% increase in the cost of Microsoft’s game-streaming service is step closer to the model of TV, music and filmIn the music, TV and film industries, streaming has completely upended the business model. Instead of buying albums and films, most of us pay for a few subscriptions depending on what we want to watch, and maybe supplement that with the odd vinyl or special-edition Blu-ray. This has been pretty terrible for musicians, who earn approximately $0.004 per play on Spotify, while Spotify itself made $1bn in profit last year (admittedly after many years of operating losses). On the TV front, it’s increasingly annoying for customers: in my household we have to carefully bounce around between five different TV subscriptions depending on what series we’re into, to keep costs down.This model hasn’t really caught on in video games. Apple has its Arcade service that offers premium mobile games for £6.99 a month, but free-to-play games are the norm ...

Economics

2 w. ago Microsoft scraps Xbox Game Pass Ultimate price hike after users slam 'step too far' but with 1 catch

Angry users kicked up a fuss over the price changes and the company has now backtracked - but with certain conditions

Sport

3 w. ago How to avoid impending Xbox Game Pass 53% price hike if you act now

Gamers will need to act fast if they don't want to pay the new Xbox Game Pass prices

Sport

3 w. ago Xbox Game Pass price increase announced, and it costs more than your other monthly subscriptions

Xbox Game Pass has been given a massive overhaul, but it's also seen a massive price increase

Economics

last month The tiny Scots club which came so close to Hampden glory and gave big guns run for their money before it ended in tears

RYAN McGUFFIE was playing snooker the day it dawned on him Gretna could reach the Scottish Cup final. Now, 20 years on, he’ll never forget his big break. Midfielder McGuffie came through the ranks at Annan then landed a big move to Newcastle. But it was his return to Scotland that saw him make a...

Politics