Techmeme: Wikimedia Foundation announces CEO Katherine Maher will step down as of April 15, says its annual budget doubled to estimated $140M in 2021 under her leadership (Felix Salmon/Axios)

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February 5, 2021, 9:15 AM

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Megan Graham / CNBC:

Snap says Apple's changes to IDFA will interrupt demand; Unity says IDFA changes will affect how mobile game developers “optimize lifetime customer value” — - Snap and Unity Software, which reported fourth quarter earnings after the bell Thursday, both warned of the upcoming impact …

More: CNET, Financial Times, MacRumors, VentureBeat, Reuters, iPhone Hacks, iDownloadBlog.com, iMore, Ad Age, AppleInsider, The Information, Barron's Online, and AdExchanger

Tweets: @mtatsis, @munster_gene, @munster_gene, @garettsloane, @modestproposal1, and @martinsfp

HBR.org:

Facebook's claims about the size of losses small businesses will suffer due to iOS 14 privacy changes don't hold up under scrutiny and are likely exaggerated — by - Bart de Langhe and - Stefano Puntoni — Summary. — Apple will soon require consumers to opt in if they want to allow businesses …

More: 9to5Mac

Ben Thompson / Stratechery:

Q&A with mobile marketing analyst Eric Seufert on the Facebook-Apple conflict, Apple's real motives for iOS privacy changes, and potential harm to businesses

Catalin Cimpanu / ZDNet:

Google has patched an actively exploited zero-day vulnerability in its Chrome 88 update — Google Chrome 88.0.4324.150 released with a fix. Users advised to update. — Google has released today version 88.0.4324.150 of the Chrome browser for Windows, Mac, and Linux.

More: Google Chrome Releases, Forbes, 9to5Mac, Engadget, The Verge, PCMag, MacRumors, BleepingComputer, TechRadar, Malwarebytes Labs, BGR, The Hacker News, and IT Management

Bloomberg:

Kuaishou's shares jumped 194% in its Hong Kong debut after raising $5.4B in an IPO, valuing the company at $179B — - Tencent-backed short-video startup raised $5.4 billion in IPO — Debut performance is second best globally after Alibaba.com — Kuaishou Technology …

More: Reuters, Agence France-Presse, The Irish Times, CNBC, coinspeaker.com, caixinglobal.com, South China Morning Post, Tech in Asia, TechCrunch, and Wall Street Journal. Tweets: @pingroma

Michelle Chan / Nikkei Asia:

Users in mainland China are flocking to Clubhouse, a rare space outside the country's firewall where they can speak freely with people from Hong Kong and Taiwan

Tweets: @kylebrussell, @chingrachelwong, @mikeelgan, and @yoda

Josh Ye / South China Morning Post:

Chinese-founded Agora, which a source says provides back-end communications tools for Clubhouse, rose 30% on Monday to $73.60 as Elon Musk joined Clubhouse

Cherlynn Low / Engadget:

Google says Pixel users will be able to use their phone cameras to measure pulse and breath rates through the Google Fit app, starting next month — Like many of us, Google is getting more interested in our health. The company is announcing today new features that will allow …

More: The Keyword, The Verge, Android Headlines, NextPit, BGR India, The Economic Times, Phandroid, Pricebaba.com Daily, Pocket-lint, TechRadar, Gizchina, Firstpost Tech, Input, PCMag, Android Beat, Mashable, and AndroidGuys

Tweets: @google, @derekmross, @glenngabe, @thekenyeung, @backlon, @jake_k, and @jeff_delgado

Josh Eidelson / Bloomberg:

In a NLRB filing, the Alphabet Workers Union accuses Google vendor Adecco of violating US labor law by forbidding contract workers from discussing their pay — - New labor group accuses Google vendor of violating labor law — Worker says Facebook post got her suspended by contractor

More: Bloomberg, Insider, Forbes, CNET, and The Verge

Tweets: @josheidelson, @econ_marshall, @googlewalkout, @josheidelson, @mattdpearce, and @gigworkersrise

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Ashwin Manikandan / The Economic Times:

PayPal says it will wind down its domestic payment operations in India by April 1 and focus on its existing cross-border trade business — Mumbai: PayPal Inc. will wind down its payment operations in India this year, a spokesperson said on the condition of anonymity.

More: TechCrunch, KrASIA, Reuters, Inc42 Media, and Neowin

Tweets: @ettech and @anuraag_saxena

Abner Li / 9to5Google:

Google starts rolling out Google News Showcase in Australia, paying local and regional publishers, amid an ongoing dispute over Australia's proposed media rules — Google has a $1 billion plan to pay publishers for content that appears in a cross-service “News Showcase” product.

More: The Keyword, XDA Developers, ZDNet, CNBC, The Irish Times, The Canberra Times, and AdNews News

Tweets: @kent_walker, @cameronwilson, @swan_legend, @aus_media, @googledownunder, @ians_india, @sarafischer, @myllyme, @merryboffin, @googledownunder, and @timvcm

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Felix Salmon / Axios:

Wikimedia Foundation announces CEO Katherine Maher will step down as of April 15, says its annual budget doubled to estimated $140M in 2021 under her leadership — Katherine Maher, the Wikimedia Foundation's CEO, will step down as of April 15, she tells Axios, leaving the nonprofit …

More: Wikimedia Foundation. Tweets: @krmaher, @rashaabdulla, @creativecommons, @monteiro, @tomperriello, @davidakaye, @jenny8lee, @camillefrancois, and @ayanaeliza

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Kyle Bradshaw / 9to5Google:

Google delists the popular Chrome extension The Great Suspender for containing malware and is disabling the extension for those who installed it — This afternoon, Google has delisted the popular extension The Great Suspender for containing malware and is proactively disabling the extension for those who have it.

More: XDA Developers, ZDNet, TechRadar, Fossbytes, Lifehacker, GitHub, Gizmodo, Neowin, SlashGear, Chrome Unboxed, HotHardware.com News, The Verge, Android Central, and Android Police

Tweets: @bcrypt, @obrien, and @chrisnelder

Alex Kantrowitz / Big Technology:

Apptopia: since Trump was banned from Twitter, daily use of Twitter has remained remarkably consistent — Trump's presence on Twitter had no impact on how much people used it, contrary to the popular narrative. … For as long as Donald Trump was president, there was a common misconception that Twitter's fate was tied to his.

More: The Overspill. Tweets: @elipariser, @randfish, @beltzner, @digiphile, @sarthakgh, @elliotturn, and @philnobilejr

Jacob Kastrenakes / The Verge:

Snap says Spotlight had 100M MAUs in January, two months after its launch, with the feature receiving an average of 175K video submissions per day — A surprisingly successful debut — Snap says its TikTok competitor, Spotlight, had 100 million users in January 2021, just two months after it launched.

More: Business Wire, Social Media Today, Hollywood Reporter, WeRSM, and Engadget

Tweets: @ashleyrcarman and @robinwauters

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Salvador Rodriguez / CNBC:

Snap beats with Q4 revenue of $911M, up 62% YoY, vs $857.4M est., DAUs were up 22% YoY to 265M; stock down 7%+ after hours on weak Q1 forecast

More: coinspeaker.com, Snap, Fast Company, and Variety

Tweets: @richlightshed, @karissabe, @charliebilello, @charliebilello, and @megancgraham

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Hamish McKenzie / Substack Blog:

Substack co-founder says Facebook and Twitter getting into paid newsletters is a positive thing for writers and the media ecosystem, implores them to go all in — When Twitter announced that it had acquired the email newsletter provider Revue to create a Substack competitor, I tweeted a smartass response:

More: Twitter. Tweets: @hamishmckenzie, @benwhitelaw, @davewiner, @ericnewcomer, @simonowens, @__justplaying, @eringriffith, @passthejoe, @joshsternberg, @substackinc, @hamishmckenzie, @mattrickard, @quinnypig, @safyhallanfarah, @andydangc, and @pressgazette

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Dean Takahashi / VentureBeat:

Activision Blizzard reports Q4 net revenue of $2.41B, up 21% YoY, driven by a record year for Call of Duty, which had full year premium unit sales up 40% YoY — Activision Blizzard reported earnings today that beat Wall Street's expectations with 21% revenue growth to $2.41 billion for the fourth quarter ended December 31.

More: Activision Blizzard, Yahoo Finance, GamingBolt, MarketWatch, Game Rant, Twinfinite, Benzinga, Wccftech, Windows Central, Forbes, PC Games Insider, Investor's Business Daily, and Bloomberg. Tweets: @slasher

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From Mediagazer

Gary Baum / The Hollywood Reporter:

A look at the first “case” brought before Objection, which aims to use AI to evaluate news stories, and a Q&A with Objection's founder; the site is now dark

Daniel Arkin / NBC News:

Gene Shalit, a longtime film critic for NBC's Today who was with the show from 1970 until his retirement in 2010, dies at 100

Aidan Ryan / The Boston Globe:

A look at an AI-reliant news site for 19 towns south of Boston, which uses public meeting transcripts and LLMs to produce stories and has 350 paid subscribers

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More News

Zeyi Yang / Protocol:

Profile of Maimai, a Chinese site modeled after LinkedIn with a Glassdoor-like forum where users can post anonymously, as it fights China's tech firms in court

Tweets: @dwertime and @zeyiyang

Ingrid Lunden / TechCrunch:

Infinitus, which provides a machine-generated voice calling service for healthcare companies contacting customers, has come out of stealth with $21.4M Series A

More: Crunchbase News. Tweets: @yanda

Andrew J. Hawkins / The Verge:

Ford will increase its investment in autonomous vehicles to ~$7B over 10 years through 2025, $5B of that from 2021 onward, as part of its Ford Mobility efforts

More: Engadget, CNBC, InsideEVs, SlashGear, and CNBC

Mary Ann Azevedo / TechCrunch:

Twitter will move its offline analytics, data processing, and ML workloads to Google's Cloud after agreeing to an expanded multiyear partnership

Tweets: @gusthema, @quinnypig, @googlecloud, and @aaronvalue

Jordan Novet / CNBC:

Unity reports Q4 revenue of $220.3 million, up 39% YoY, on net loss of $83.5M; stock falls 11% after hours on slowing revenue forecast

More: Unity Technologies and GamesIndustry.biz

Tweets: @jordannovet and @megancgraham

Liam Tung / ZDNet:

Five high-ranking Google engineers propose new rules for developers working on “critical” open source projects, including no unilateral code changes

More: The New Stack. Thanks:@steveranger

Jessica Bursztynsky / CNBC:

Pinterest reports Q4 revenue of $706M, up 76% YoY and beating estimates of $645.6M, and 459M global MAUs, up 37% YoY and above estimates of 449.4M; stock up 7%+

More: Pinterest and The Verge

Tweets: @ophirgottlieb, @jbursz, @bnnbloomberg, @jeffmacke, and @mattrosoff

Eric Martin / Bloomberg:

Biden's nominee for Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo says she sees “no reason” Huawei, ZTE, and other Chinese companies should be removed from US blacklist

More: TechRadar, Android Authority, MSPoweruser, The Hill, and TechCrunch

Tweets: @karlbode and @jendeben

Earlier Picks

Brian Krebs / Krebs on Security:

Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter took coordinated action to take down top members of account hijacking forum OGUsers and seized hundreds of accounts

More: New York Times, The Verge, Wired, CyberNews, BGR India, Input, Reuters, Engadget, and CyberScoop

Tweets: @briankrebs, @motherboard, @josephfcox, @briankrebs, @josephfcox, @emma_sandoe, @sarahfrier, @caseynewton, @josephfcox, @josephfcox, @taylorlorenz, @josephfcox, @lorenzofb, @josephfcox, @jason_koebler, and @josephfcox

Mary Ann Azevedo / TechCrunch:

Mexican neobank Flink raises $12M Series A led by Accel

Tweets: @bayareawriter and @sarthakgh. Thanks:@cckarl

Bloomberg:

Sources: Google is exploring a less-stringent Android alternative to Apple's App Tracking Transparency feature, resembling planned Chrome changes

Lauren Kaori Gurley / VICE:

Amazon is quietly transitioning its US warehouse workers to 10-hour graveyard shifts; labor experts say the move is to cut costs and pay for fewer benefits

Kristen V Brown / Bloomberg:

23andMe to go public through a merger with VG Acquisition Corp., a SPAC founded by Richard Branson, at a valuation of $3.5B

More: VICE, PR Newswire, TechCrunch, and The Verge

Tweets: @ashedryden, @bigblackjacobin, @susanwojcicki, @antonioregalado, @sorayadarabi, and @kristenvbrown

The Information:

Source: Apple is planning a $3,000+ mixed-reality headset with 8K displays, eye-tracking tech, and 12+ cameras to track hand movements and show the real world

More: The Verge, UploadVR, WinBuzzer, Tech.co, SlashGear, Ars Technica, Tom's Guide, The Next Web, BGR India, OnMSFT.com, TechRadar, Ubergizmo, Loup TV, Pocket-lint, 9to5Mac, Tom's Hardware, 9to5Mac, HotHardware.com News, Game Rant, VRScout, BGR, MSPoweruser, Input, Trusted Reviews, ExtremeTech, CNET, and Gizmodo

Ryan Tracy / Wall Street Journal:

Incoming head of Senate antitrust subcommittee Amy Klobuchar introduces an antitrust bill that would raise the bar for tech acquisitions

Manish Singh / TechCrunch:

Myanmar's new military government has ordered local telecoms to block Facebook and its family of apps within the country until February 7

More: MediaNama. Tweets: @hninyadanazaw, @netblocks, @tostevinm, and @accessnow