Techmeme
February 19, 2014, 5:35 PM

Top News

Facebook:
Facebook to acquire WhatsApp for $4B cash, $12B in Facebook shares, and $3B in restricted stock units  —  Facebook to Acquire WhatsApp  —  Facebook today announced that it has reached a definitive agreement to acquire WhatsApp, a rapidly growing cross-platform mobile messaging company …
Mark Zuckerberg / Facebook:
I'm excited to announce that we've agreed to acquire WhatsApp and that their entire team will be joining us at Facebook.  —  Our mission is to make the world more open and connected.  We do this by building services that help people share any type of content with any group of people they want.
Jeff John Roberts / Gigaom:
Wheeler unveils new proposed rules for network neutrality, will try to stop “improper blocking”  —  The FCC announced its response to an explosive court decision that ended “net neutrality” last month: it will not appeal the decision, but scramble to impose new rules.
Bloomberg:
Google Capital Lands $300 Million and Leaps Into Web Education  —  Google Inc. (GOOG)'s new investment arm has $300 million in fresh capital to put to work this year and is starting the dealmaking with its first foray into Web education.  —  Google Capital, established by the search company …
Jon Brodkin / Ars Technica:
Google Fiber chooses nine metro areas for possible expansion  —  Google Fiber is ready to expand, as Google has identified nine metro areas scattered around the country as possible sites of deployment, the company said.  —  “We've invited 34 cities in nine metro areas across the US to work …
Ellis Hamburger / The Verge:
Loop Wallet review: mobile payments are finally everywhere you want to be  —  Loop tricks any cash register into thinking your phone is your credit card  —  NFC was supposed to be the future.  —  My next phone was going to include the technology, which would let me pay at any cash register …
Josh Lowensohn / The Verge:
Google I/O is back June 25-26 and you'll need to win a lottery to attend  —  Google just announced dates for its annual I/O developers conference, an event that has typically brought new products and updates to other services.  This year's conference will be held from June 25-26 …
Nick Summers / Businessweek:
New Tinder Security Flaw Exposed Users' Exact Locations for Months  —  Internet security researchers in New York say that a flaw in Tinder, the super-popular hookup app, made it possible to find users' precise location for between 40 and 165 days, without any public notice from the company.
Digits:
Apple's smartphone market share in China grows to 7%, now back in top 5 smartphone vendors  —  Apple Gains Some Ground in China Smartphone Market  —  Apple seems to be gaining some ground in the world's largest smartphone market.  —  In China, Apple's market share rose slightly …
Terrence O'Brien / Engadget:
Ubuntu phones arriving in 2014 from Meizu and BQ Readers  —  Canonical is finally poised to enter the mobile market.  After years of teases, promises and demos, the company has locked up the first two manufacturers of Ubuntu phones.  Meizu and BQ Readers will be releasing handsets …
Nathan Ingraham / The Verge:
BlackBerry's CEO is ‘outraged’ by T-Mobile's attempts to convert its customers to the iPhone  —  BlackBerry's new CEO John Chen is taking issue with what appears to be a fairly innocent T-Mobile promotion.  Last week, T-Mobile sent out an email to some customers currently using …
Kevin C. Tofel / Gigaom:
Leaked HTC One 2014 picture shows dual rear cameras  —  HTC is planning to introduce its newest HTC One on March 25 and if the reliable @evleaks is correct, this is what the phone will look like: … Rumors of two rear cameras appear valid based on the leaked press shot of the new HTC One …
Leena Rao / TechCrunch:
eBay Acquires PhiSix To Integrate 3-D Virtual Try On Technology Across The Marketplace And More  —  It looks like 3-D virtual try-on technology will soon make an appearance on eBay.  The marketplace giant is announcing the acquisition of PhiSix, a company that develops 3-D visualization and simulation technologies for clothing.
Eileen Yu / ZDNet:
Xiaomi kicks off global expansion with Singapore launch  —  Summary: Chinese smartphone darling, Xiaomi, has kicked off its global expansion plans in Singapore where its Android devices will go on sale this Friday, marking the company's first foray into markets outside of Greater China.
Benjamin Mayo / 9to5Mac:
Apple bringing iTunes Festival to the US for the first time at SXSW, for five nights in March  —  Apple has announced that it is bringing the iTunes Festival to the United States for the first time, after being a UK-only event since it began in 2007.  The festival will be held at SXSW …
Emil Protalinski / The Next Web:
Microsoft SkyDrive becomes OneDrive, gets camera backup for Android, real-time co-authoring, and easier video sharing  —  Microsoft today officially relaunched SkyDrive as OneDrive, giving its existing users access to their files on the new service by simply logging in at onedrive.com.
Jon Russell / The Next Web:
Nokia Treasure Tag is a $30 Lumia accessory to help keep valuables safe - goes on sale in April  —  Nokia is introducing a new way to keep valuables safe on the go using your smartphone.  Nokia Treasure Tag is a smart peripheral that syncs with Lumia devices to help keep track of keys …

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