The daily business briefing: June 13, 2016

(Image credit: Vesa Moilanen/AFP/Getty Images)

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1. Microsoft to buy LinkedIn for $26.2 billion
2. Brexit concerns weigh down stocks
3. Symantec to buy Blue Coat for $4.65 billion
4. Apple unveiling software innovations
5. Walgreens ends relationship with blood-tester Theranos

published 13 June 2016

1. Microsoft to buy LinkedIn for $26.2 billion

Microsoft announced Monday that it will acquire professional social networking site LinkedIn for $26.2 billion in cash. "Together we can accelerate the growth of LinkedIn, as well as Microsoft Office 365 and Dynamics as we seek to empower every person and organization on the planet," Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said in a statement. LinkedIn, which has more than 400 million members across the globe, will become part of Microsoft's productivity and business processes segment but its site and branding will remain intact.

Mounting fears over a British exit from the European Union dragged down overseas stocks on Monday. European shares fell for the fourth straight day, and the MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell by the most in two months. U.S. stock index futures also slipped, pointing to a lower open for Wall Street. Polls indicate Britain's June 23 "Brexit" referendum will be close. "Everyone's scared," said Tokyo Securities strategist Ryuta Otsuka. "There are too many events coming up for investors to take a plunge."

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Symantec, the biggest security software maker, announced Monday that it would acquire web security provider Blue Coat for $4.65 billion. The deal, which is expected to close by the third quarter, will give the combined companies a broader offering of security technologies as customers shift to cloud services. Blue Coat CEO Greg Clark will lead the company. Symantec's chief, Mike Brown, will step down as has long been expected.

Apple executives will reveal a new round of tech innovations at their annual World Wide Developers Conference on Monday. The announcement is not expected to feature any new gadgets, like a new iPhone or tablet, but instead will focus on changes to software products such as Siri, Apple Music, Apple Pay, Apple TV, and the Apple operating system. Siri, facing growing competition from other virtual assistants, is expected to get some upgrades and be opened up to third-party developers.

Walgreens said Sunday that it was cutting ties with Theranos in a potentially devastating blow to the troubled blood-testing company. Walgreens said it was closing all 40 testing centers in its Arizona stores, effective immediately. Those centers have accounted for most of Theranos' customers. The testing company had promised to revolutionize the industry with simple finger prick tests at far lower costs than conventional ones, but it has faced extensive bad publicity since regulators uncovered problems at its California flagship lab.

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Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.