Techmeme
February 24, 2015, 5:05 PM

Top News

Nathan Olivarez-Giles / Wall Street Journal:
Pebble Time smartwatch: color display, 20% thinner body, microphone, new “Timeline” interface, to retail for $199 with pre-sale on Kickstarter now  —  Pebble Unveils Color-Screen Time Smartwatch as Apple Threat Looms … Smartwatch pioneer Pebble is facing the toughest threat of its short life: the Apple Watch.
Lisa Eadicicco / Business Insider:
Steven Levy / Backchannel:
IDC:
Android and iOS take 96% of smartphone OS market in Q4 and calendar year 2014  —  Android and iOS Squeeze the Competition, Swelling to 96.3% of the Smartphone Operating System Market for Both 4Q14 and CY14, According to IDC  —  Android and iOS inched closer to total domination …
Joey-Elijah Sneddon / OMG!:
Google says Chromebook Pixel 2 is coming soon, pulls video of announcement made at an event  —  Google Say Chromebook Pixel 2 Will Go On Sale Soon  —  Google has confirmed that a second generation Chromebook Pixel will go on sale ‘soon’.  —  Speaking at the Team Work 2015 event this week …
Mark Gurman / 9to5Mac:
Apple to overhaul Genius Bar, changing appointments and using phones as pagers  —  Apple will soon make a significant change to retail store Genius Bar appointments to improve the customer experience, according to several sources briefed on the upcoming shift.
Mike Isaac / New York Times:
Reddit now prohibits posting nude photos or videos of sex acts without prior consent from the people depicted in them  —  In Privacy Update, Reddit Tightens Restrictions on Nude Photos  —  For nearly a decade, Reddit, the huge online message board, has been known for its freewheeling stance on letting its users govern themselves.
Mic Wright / The Next Web:
Visa announces credit card tech that could speed up Apple Pay's arrival in Europe  —  Visa Europe has announced that it's introducing a secure way to pay with your smartphone while keeping your credit card details concealed.  Bringing the method to Europe could speed up the arrival of Apple Pay …
Owen Williams / The Next Web:
Sense sleep tracker now available for purchase, shipping to backers today  —  After a wildly successful Kickstarter campaign in 2014 that raised $2.4 million, Hello is today announcing that the Sense sleep tracker is shipping for Kickstarter backers and pre-orders of the devices.
Carmel DeAmicis / Gigaom:
Snapchat's “Our Stories” are generating tens of millions of views  —  Screenshots of Twitter users whose snaps saw tens of millions of views in a Snapchat “Our Story”  —  Screenshots of Twitter users whose snaps saw tens of millions of views in a Snapchat “Our Story”
Juli Clover / MacRumors:
Apple Acquires Popular Instrument and Effect Plug-In Maker Camel Audio  —  Apple appears to have acquired popular music plug-in and effect maker Camel Audio, based on information found on corporate registry site Companies House [PDF].  Camel Audio's address has been updated to 100 New Bridge Street …
Darrell Etherington / TechCrunch:
Google Tests Live Chat With Businesses From Search Results  —  Google is testing out a service that incorporates live chat with businesses right into search results, via a new link that shows whether a business is currently available, and immediately launches a chat via Google Hangouts (on either desktop or mobile) if they are.
Brian Ellin / Medium:
Medium adds tags, simplifies posting, and redesigns presentation of posts as it aims for shorter, off-the-cuff content  —  New ways to write and read on Medium  —  Here at Medium, we're always striving to make it easier for you to share your stories and ideas—but sometimes things get in the way.
Hayley Tsukayama / Washington Post:
FTC fines marketers of two apps that claim to detect melanoma  —  A screenshot of advertising for MelApp.  (Courtesy of the FTC.)  —  The Federal Trade Commission on Monday announced two enforcement actions against the makers of two smartphone apps — “Mole Detective” and “MelApp” …
Kurt Wagner / Re/code:
Twitter's global head of developer and platform relations, Jeff Sandquist, is departing after less than 18 months  —  Twitter's Global Developer Lead Jeff Sandquist Departing  —  Twitter's global head of developer and platform relations, Jeff Sandquist, is leaving the company at the end of the week …

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Google:
Damian Paletta / Wall Street Journal: