Business Wars

Finally financially stable, FedEx takes on the US government to overturn regulations that limit the size of the planes they can fly. Convinced the regulations are limiting its growth, FedEx launches a multi-pronged strategy to persuade Congress to change the rules. And UPS realizes it needs to compete directly with FedEx and finally buys its own planes to offer next-day air service. &nbs...

After a disastrous start, FedEx needs to change its sales pitch or it will run out of money before it even has a chance to take off.  Smith resorts to surprising means to raise the money to keep his fledgling company going. UPS is convinced FedEx will be out of business in a matter of months.  But it has its own problems to attend to, as drivers are feeling dissatisfied and start to orga...

It’s the early 1970s, and 27-year-old Fred Smith has an idea for a new kind of package delivery service, one that uses its own planes to deliver packages in under 24 hours. Skeptics tell him the start-up costs are too high and the demand too low, but Smith thinks he’s found a way to make it work. He invests millions of his own money to get the new company started.   But when one thi...

Almost one in three relationships start as online encounters. But the popularity of dating apps isn’t surprising with so many to choose from, and the pandemic may even be boosting dating app use. For more on how COVID-19 has changed online dating, and how apps are adapting, David speaks today with Ashley Carman, a senior reporter covering dating apps for The Verge. Carman is also Co-host of The Ve...

Whitney Wolfe Herd establishes Bumble with a strident anti-misogyny agenda, but that foundation is rocked when shocking accusations of sexual harassment surface against Wolfe Herd’s co-founder.  Meanwhile, the revolutionary gay app Grindr goes through a scandalous upheaval when a Chinese company buys the company and installs a straight president.   And the cyber dating world undergo...

Niche apps are kicking into high gear for users with specific criteria, and there’s something for everyone: muzmatch for Muslims, Mouse Mingle for Disney fans, Twindog for canine lovers, Sizzl for bacon aficionados, Bristl for beard enthusiasts and Dead Meet for morticians and other death professionals.  In the mainstream, Match and Tinder have a new, serious competitor: Whitney Wolfe Herd’s...

What seemed like a run of the mill office romance gone very, very wrong will result in a devastating upheaval in the power structure at Tinder. And repercussions will be felt throughout the industry as Whitney Wolfe exacts some delicious corporate revenge. And as the cyber dating world is rocked by horrific violence against women, apps that put female users in the driver’s seat start to get seriou...

A new app aimed at gay users is about to break open an entirely new feature that will redefine the cyber dating business. And a young man emerging from a shower gets his inspiration for a new hookup site as he wipes the steam from his mirror.  Soon Tinder is on fire, but the conglomerate Match Group is determined to get a stranglehold on the market. And as the industry leaps from computer scr...

Dr. Neil Clark Warren is a 63-year-old theologian and clinical psychologist with a vision for a site he’s certain can lead to romantic success. eHarmony will be the first to take on the powerful Match.com. And Warren believes he is on—quite literally—a sacred mission to offer something that Match.com can’t match. eHarmony’s Christian agenda seems to be working, until the God stuff leads to serious...

It’s 1995, and computer dating is in its infancy. Most people think it’s a dark, sleazy world for desperate losers and horny perverts. But that’s all about to change. Pioneer site Match.com paves the way for cyber dating to move toward mainstream culture, but—in an era when few people even use a computer—it’s going to be a serious struggle. And as the dating market blossoms, burgeoning companies w...

Today we conclude our Diamond Wars series.  These precious stones are known to be undeniably beautiful, rare and a symbol of luxury. But diamonds have also been associated with war, human rights abuses and death. In response, consumers these days are demanding more transparency about where stones are sourced. Some are seeking out less expensive gemstone alternatives or lab-grown diamonds...

It’s the 2000s and the diamond cartel is dead. Now, De Beers must adjust to its new status as the market leader rather than the monopoly. But the threats to its business aren’t going away.   Diamonds are losing their luster with the young, and Zimbabwe’s undermining the industry’s response to conflict diamonds. And most threatening of all, a wave of new start ups are out to disrupt De Be...

It’s the late 1990s and rebel armies in Angola, Sierra Leone and Congo are bankrolling campaigns of mass murder and terror with diamonds. Now, after years of turning a blind eye, the diamond-buying public is starting to notice the bloodshed.  But as the issue of so-called “blood diamonds” rises up the political agenda, De Beers is plotting what might be the boldest move yet in its long histor...

It’s 1966 and De Beers is about to abandon its eleven-year search for diamonds in Botswana. But the geologist behind the search is far from ready to pack up his tools. And De Beers isn’t the only one searching for gemstones. Soon, a major diamond find in Australia will leave the diamond monopoly facing a big dilemma: should it seek to control or to destroy this Antipodean threat? Listen ad-free on...

It’s the early 1950s and West Africa’s growing number of diamond smugglers is causing headaches for De Beers.  Faced with millions of pounds in losses, the diamond monopoly decides it’s time to get tough with the smugglers. But while De Beers battles the illicit diamond traders, in the far east of the Soviet Union a new threat is brewing.  Listen ad-free on Wondery+ here Support us by su...

It’s 1940, and the world is at war. The Allies and Axis powers are scrambling to lock down supplies of the industrial diamonds needed to mass produce their tanks, planes and submarines. But when the White House demands De Beers hands over a year’s supply of industrial diamonds, it soon learns the cartel is as hard to break as the diamonds it sells.  Listen ad-free on Wondery+ here Support us...

It’s 1914 and De Beers’s monopoly is under threat. Diamonds have been discovered on the desolate coast of the German colony of South West Africa. So it hired an ambitious diamond expert named Ernest Oppenheimer and gave him his orders: head to the beach and assess the threat. But then World War One disrupts De Beers chance to do a deal with the German diamond miners. Now, Oppenheimer sees his chan...

It’s 1869 and diamonds have been found in Cape Colony.  Now, diamond hunters from across the world are heading to this remote British outpost in southern Africa, seeking a glittering fortune. And among them are two wide-eyed hopefuls: streetwise Barney Barnato, who hails from the London slums, and Cecil Rhodes, a vicar’s son with a head full of imperialist daydreams. When the diamond rush tur...

Uber and Lyft have made their mark as very different brands. Lyft was born out of a need for more environmentally friendly rideshare options. And is also seen as the “friendlier” of the two companies. While Uber’s former CEO, Travis Kalanick built a reputation for ruthlessness, sexual harassment and “bro culture.” Still, both companies have seen protests from their drivers, who’ve demanded benefit...

New CEO Dara Khosrowshahi is cleaning house after the departure of Travis Kalanick. But after a disappointing IPO, Khosrowshahi has to boost the company’s ailing financials and fight against lawmakers who are siding with aggrieved drivers. Then COVID-19 hits. Uber and Lyft are faced with a crisis that could alter ridesharing forever. Khosrowshahi leans into Uber Eats, while John Zimmer and Logan G...

February 2017, Super Bowl Sunday. Uber CEO Travis Kalanick is taking a black car home when he gets in an altercation with the driver. LIttle does he know, the entire exchange has been captured on a dashcam recording. And when it goes viral, Kalanick will have to fight for his reputation — and his job.  Lyft, meanwhile, spies an opening. As sexual harassment scandals plague their rival and use...

Uber is facing blowback from all directions — the taxi industry, riders, and the most important man in tech: Apple's Tim Cook. Uber’s been engaged in some disreputable activity, and it's finally catching up with them.  Lyft forges ahead and forms a new alliance to fight back against Uber's growing global footprint. But Uber will once again outmaneuver its competitor.  Listen ad-free on W...

It's 2013, and Lyft's CEO John Zimmer is hosting a little celebration for drivers when some very unwelcome interlopers turn up to crash the party. Uber’s Travis Kalanick wants to destroy Lyft at any cost, and he's willing to do what it takes to outmaneuver his competitor and steal its riders and drivers — even if it means playing dirty.  Lyft decides to stick to its environmentalist roots and...

It's the late '90s, and Travis Kalanick is hanging out in his dorm room at UCLA. He’s having a file-sharing party with his friends that leads to his first business. But Kalanick’s forced to grow up quickly as he learns that naïveté can cost you millions and Silicon Valley investors aren’t all they’re cracked up to be.  Logan Green finds inspiration while stuck in horrible LA traffic and adopt...

It’s December 2008, and two friends and fellow tech entrepreneurs, Garrett Camp and Travis Kalanick, can't get a taxi. Camp’s already obsessed with the idea of a service that summons a private driver with the push of a button, but now Kalanick gets the appeal. Together, they'll build Uber, and do whatever it takes to reign supreme.  Meanwhile, recent college grads John Zimmer and Logan Green...