Techmeme
April 7, 2020, 12:50 PM

Top News

Alex Hern / The Guardian:
WhatsApp now limits forwarding of viral messages, forwarded five or more times, to one group at a time, to fight the spread of misinformation  —  Restrictions on frequently forwarded messages intended to disrupt false Covid-19 claims  —  WhatsApp is to impose a strict new limit …
Tom Warren / The Verge:
Microsoft expands xCloud beta registration to 11 European countries, rolling out the preview gradually to avoid overloading the internet  —  Microsoft is rolling out the preview gradually due to coronavirus internet impact concerns  —  Microsoft is starting to open up its xCloud game streaming beta to countries across Europe.
Chris Welch / The Verge:
Alex Konrad / Forbes:
Interview with Masayoshi Son on WeWork and the role of the Vision Fund within SoftBank; he expects 15 companies in the Vision Fund portfolio to go bankrupt  —  Covering venture capital, software and startups  —  Between the WeWork debacle and the coronavirus, the markets …
Emil Protalinski / VentureBeat:
Firefox 75 comes with a revamped address bar designed to make searches faster and a few performance tweaks  —  Mozilla today launched Firefox 75 for Windows, Mac, and Linux.  Firefox 75 includes a revamped address bar with significant search improvements, a few performance tweaks, and a handful of developer features.
The Guardian:
Facebook says it will start actively removing false claims that link Covid-19 to 5G, which have started entering the mainstream  —  Perfect storm of conditions helped nonsense theories about 5G and coronavirus to take hold  —  A year ago, hoax theories about the dangers of 5G had barely pierced …
Saheli Roy Choudhury / CNBC:
Samsung forecasts Q1 2020 operating profit of $5.2B, up 2.7% YoY, beating analyst estimates, and consolidated sales of ~$44B; stock is up 3%+  —  - Samsung said it expects 6.4 trillion Korean won ($5.23 billion) in first-quarter operating profit for 2020, up 2.7% from the 6.23 trillion won it posted for the same period a year earlier.
Sarah Frier / Bloomberg:
A book excerpt from Sarah Frier's No Filter covers how Mark Zuckerberg's jealousy held back Instagram and drove off founders, who gradually lost independence  —  Over the past decade, Instagram has become an engine of commerce and cultural influence with few peers—aside from its parent company …
Feargus O'Sullivan / CityLab:
A look at Airbnb's challenges amid the pandemic crisis, as global bookings fall and prospects for the travel accommodation industry turn murky  —  The short-term rental market is reeling from the coronavirus-driven tourism collapse.  Can the industry's dominant player stage a comeback after lockdowns lift?
CNBC:
New York Times:
Some teachers in the US say under 50% of their pupils participate in online learning; absence rate seems higher in low-income households, marking digital divide  —  Teachers at some schools across the country report that less than half of their students are participating in online learning.
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Pinterest adds Shop tabs connected to in-stock inventory, style guides, and more, and says user engagement with Shopping on Pinterest has grown by 44% YoY  —  Given the rise in online shopping attributed to the coronavirus outbreak which has forced consumers to stay home from stores …
More: Digital TrendsThanks:@malliegator
Alex Kantrowitz / BuzzFeed News:
Book excerpt: Apple's Information Systems & Technology group, which makes internal tools, operates in tumult, hampering its output and alienating contractors  —  Life in Apple's Information Systems & Technology division reminds some of a sweatshop.  An exclusive excerpt from Always Day One …
Chris O'Brien / VentureBeat:
Cato Networks, which offers a cloud-based security service that protects remote workforces, raises $77M led by Lightspeed Venture Partners  —  Cato Networks has raised $77 million in venture capital as the company expands the reach of its cloud-based security service.
John Gruber / Daring Fireball:
Source: the 2020 iPad Pros do not have a U1 Ultra Wideband chip  —  Joe Rossignol, MacRumors, “2020 iPad Pro May Not Have a U1 Ultra Wideband Chip After All”: … So the tech specs don't mention it, Apple never mentioned it, and the U1-enabled features in iPhone 11 models aren't there.
Taylor Lyles / The Verge:
Google updates Pixel 4 to require open eyes to use the phone's face unlock feature by default, with the option to disable it  —  Apple's had a similar feature since 2017  —  Google released an update for the Pixel 4 today requiring users to have their eyes open when using face unlock to open the phone.
Christina Farr / CNBC:
Facebook says it's releasing new Data for Good tools, including Disease Prevention Maps, to help public health researchers track social distancing efforts  —  - Facebook's Data for Good team is working on tools for public health researchers to help them figure out if preventative measures …
Stephanie Nebehay / Reuters:
UN says China was the biggest source of applications for international patents last year, with Huawei its biggest filer, pushing US out of long-held top spot  —  GENEVA (Reuters) - China was the biggest source of applications for international patents in the world last year …
More: Wccftech

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Christina Farr / CNBC:
Mike Isaac / New York Times:
Mark Gurman / Bloomberg:
Kyle Wiggers / VentureBeat:
Sahil Patel / Wall Street Journal:
Chance Miller / 9to5Mac: