In today’s Bulldog wrapup of technology and life science news:

  • Samsung Electronics buys auto-systems maker Harman for $8B
  • Facebook glitch made it appear some users had died
  • Pfizer lowers cost of Prevnar vaccine for some charity use
  • Computer outage briefly grounds flights on several airlines
  • Chinese e-shoppers spend billions on Singles Day

The details:

  • Samsung Electronics buys auto-systems maker Harman for $8B

Samsung Electronics said Monday it has agreed to acquire auto-systems maker Harman for $8 billion as the South Korean giant eyes the growing market for connected cars.

Samsung will pay $112.00 per share in cash for the Stamford, Connecticut-based company, making the acquisition Samsung’s biggest ever.

Overseas acquisitions are high on Samsung’s agenda. Last month, the company bought artificial intelligence firm Viv Labs, founded by creators of Apple’s Siri. It also recently bought a cloud service company, a mobile payments firm and a connected home startup.

Harman provides connected cars and audio systems with safety and entertainment features. More than 30 million cars are equipped with its auto systems. The majority of its $7 billion in annual sales in the year that ended Sept. 30 came from auto-related technologies.

“Upon closing, the transaction will immediately give Samsung a significant presence in the large and rapidly growing market for connected technologies, particularly automotive electronics, which has been a strategic priority for Samsung,” the company said in a statement.

Samsung is a latecomer to the market for connected cars. In December 2015, the company made its ambitions for the self-driving car sector known by announcing that it will create a business division to focus on auto systems and components for autonomous driving. Apple and Google were already working with global automakers to supply their auto systems, CarPlay and Android Auto.

  • Facebook glitch made it appear some users had died

Some Facebook users received an unsettling shock Friday.

Many of the social-media site’s users saw their Facebook profile page topped with a message that referred to the process for “memorializing” the page of someone who has passed away. The message said Facebook hoped the users’ loved ones would find comfort in seeing posts that others shared about them. Even Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s page had the death notice.

Facebook did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the problem. But it appears that the company may already have fixed the glitch.

  • Pfizer lowers cost of Prevnar vaccine for some charity use

Drugmaker Pfizer says it’s reducing what it charges humanitarian groups for its blockbuster vaccine against pneumonia, ear and blood infections.

Pfizer Inc.’s move to reduce Prevnar 13’s price to $3.10 per dose — but only for the groups’ use with refugees and in other emergency settings — follows pressure since 2009 by groups such as Doctors Without Borders.

The biggest U.S. drugmaker previously preferred tax-deductible donations, which don’t impact Prevnar’s much-higher price. Pfizer’s top-selling product, which requires three doses, brings it some $5 billion a year.

  • Chinese e-shoppers spend billions on Singles Day

In a bright spot for China’s cooling economy, online shoppers spent billions of dollars Friday on “Singles Day,” a quirky holiday that has grown into the world’s busiest day for e-commerce.

The country’s biggest e-commerce brand, Alibaba Group, said sales by the thousands of retailers on its platforms passed 100 billion yuan ($15 billion) after 19 hours of the event. That is four times the $3 billion research firm comScore says Americans spent in total last year on Cyber Monday, the country’s biggest online shopping day.

Rivals including JD.com, VIP.com and Suning offered deep discounts on clothing, smartphones, travel packages and other goods to attract shoppers.

  • Computer outage briefly grounds flights on several airlines

Travelers on several airlines had trouble checking in for flights and waited out delays Friday after a computer outage at a company that runs airline technology systems.

American Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Alaska Airlines and Southwest Airlines confirmed that a technology glitch briefly interrupted their operations.

The airlines blamed their difficulties on a breakdown in systems operated by Sabre Corp., a Texas company that provides software and other technology services to airlines and hotels.

A Sabre spokeswoman said the systems were running again by early Friday afternoon. She said she did not know the cause of the breakdown.