Techmeme
January 31, 2019, 9:30 AM

Top News

The Verge:
Apple shuts down Facebook's ability to distribute internal iOS apps, blocking staff transportation app and early releases of Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger  —  Facebook's internal iOS apps simply don't launch anymore  —  Apple has shut down Facebook's ability to distribute internal iOS apps …
Rob Price / Business Insider:
Memo: Facebook confirms Apple disabled access to internal iOS apps and says it's “working closely” to reinstate “our most critical internal apps immediately”  —  - Facebook employees are furious after Apple temporarily crippled the company by revoking its developer certificate.
Josh Constine / TechCrunch:
Facebook:
Facebook reports Q4 net income of $6.9B, up 61% YoY, revenue of $16.9B, up 30% YoY, DAUs of 1.52B, up 9% YoY, and headcount of 35,587, up 42% YoY; stock up 11%+  —  Facebook, Inc. (Nasdaq: FB) today reported financial results for the quarter and full year ended December 31, 2018.
Bloomberg:
Sources: Apple tests USB-C iPhones and iOS dark mode for 2019, plans updated 10" iPad this spring, laser-based 3D cameras to aid AR on iPhones as soon as 2020  —  - Company is testing a triple camera system for 2019 phones  — New low-end iPads and an updated iPhone XR also in the works
Nick Summers / Engadget:
Nintendo reports Q3 profit of ~$1.5B, up 36% YoY, on revenue of $5.6B, up 26% YoY, sells 9.41M Switch consoles, but cuts its fiscal year target from 20M to 17M  —  Nintendo sold 9.41 million Switch consoles in the three months leading up to December 31st, 2018, bringing lifetime sales to 32.27 million.
Kyle Wiggers / VentureBeat:
Google says Google+ for consumers will shut down April 2; all content posted by consumer accounts, including Google+ pages, photos, and videos, will be deleted  —  In late 2018, Google announced that it would shut down Google+, its beleaguered social network, for consumers due to “low usage” …
Kyle Wiggers / VentureBeat:
IDC: 375.4M smartphones shipped in Q4 2018, down 4.9% YoY, closing out worst year; Apple shipped estimated 68.4M iPhones, down 11.5% YoY, Samsung top vendor  —  The smartphone market isn't looking too hot.  In a report published today, research firm International Data Corporation (IDC) …
Microsoft:
Microsoft Q2: revenue of $32.5B, up 12% YoY; Productivity and Business Processes revenue of $10.1B, up 13% YoY; Intelligent Cloud revenue of $9.4B, up 20% YoY  —  Microsoft Cloud Strength Fuels Second Quarter Results  —  REDMOND, Wash. — January 30, 2019 — Microsoft Corp. today announced …
Sam Byford / The Verge:
Samsung reports Q4 revenue of $53.3B, down 10% YoY, operating profit of $9.7B, down 29% YoY, says earnings primarily affected by falling demand for memory chips  —  Samsung Electronics has turned in an earnings report in line with its guidance, as happens every quarter.
CNBC:
Intel names Robert Swan CEO, its seventh one in 50 years, following the ouster of Brian Krzanich in June 2018  —  - Analysts and media outlets speculated early on about several possible candidates, including two female executives who had left Intel in the relatively recent past.
Athena Jones / CNN:
New York AG, in precedent-setting settlement, finds selling fake followers and likes or using stolen IDs on social media is illegal in its case against Devumi  —  New York (CNN Business)A company that brought in millions of dollars in revenue by creating fake social media posts and comments …
TechCrunch:
Google disables its Screenwise Meter app on iOS, which coaxed users into sharing info in a manner similar to Facebook's Research app but with better disclosure  —  It looks like Facebook is not the only one abusing Apple's system for distributing employee-only apps to sidestep the App Store and collect extensive data on users.

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