Rumours: Facebook Inc in talks to buy WhatsApp

Facebook Inc(NASDAQ:FB ) is in talks to acquire cross-platform mobile chat program, WhatsApp, TechCrunch reported citing sources.

WhatsApp was founded in 2009 and it provides the smartphone application across all operating systems such as Android, Blackberry, iOS and Windows. It works on phones that support text messages, transfer of images, audio and video messages. According to reports the application has about 100 million daily users, presence in about 250 countries on a variety of platforms.

The report in TechCrunch did not have any details about the likely size of the deal nor how far the talks had progressed between the two companies.

Last year in October WhatsApp had said in a blog post that it was transmitting 1 billion messages daily.

"Just how much is 1 billion messages? That is 41,666,667 messages an hour, 694,444 messages a minute, and 11,574 messages a second," it said.

It added that it was a "small step closer towards our goal: providing a great mobile messaging system for a global market, regardless of your handset."

For Facebook it’s a strategic acquisition since the social networking site is being accessed across platforms and having a platform-agnostic application would be a definite help specially as the company is getting aggressive on monetising its mobile subscriber base.

CNET, which followed up the story, said that WhatsApp's messenger application had come in for criticism "recently from security and mobile researchers who alleged security risks based on its authentication process."

The authentication process was pronounced to be a security nightmare by bloggers, who said that the application leaked data when the information collected for authentication purposes was sent to servers

Facebook Rollout of Mobile Photo Sync Background Uploads

Facebook Inc(NASDAQ:FB) is trying to re-establish itself as a storage locker. They can save images you don’t publish and the Photo Sync background uploads feature has already been rolled out to users on 30th November after it has been tested on Android for quite some time. If it can tackle upload friction, they will get loads of photos and will also pull in lots of juicy photo metadata to aid its ads business.

Users can activate the feature via a “Sync” button below the photos in their primary Facebook for iOS or Android app. Once turned on, it will automatically upload all images you take to a private folder. The Photos section can be selected from the navigation menu on the app and then the Synced section can be accessed or it can be done from the Synced From Phone section at the top of your photos on desktop to select which photos to share with friends. Currently, 2GB of photos can be stored free of cost.

When people use a 3G or 4G network, photos synced will be smaller in size, about 100K each and bigger versions will be available on Wi-Fi. There is an option in the Sync settings to deactivate cellular uploads so that you don’t use up your data plan or turn it off completely. When the battery of your device is low, there will be no sync-ing from Facebook.

The real issue when it comes to sharing mobile photos was the upload process where many seconds would be wasted in looking at the progress bar. People will be more open to share a number of photos now that the problem has been dealt with. Facebook will also access your geo-location data from your photos. This data will help them to show more relevant ads to you in your news feed.

But on the back-end, Facebook gets to chow down on a ton of extra data. Just because you don’t share them doesn’t mean Facebook doesn’t suck in the geo-location data from your photos that can help it refine your news feed and show you more relevant ads for nearby businesses.

Just imagine – Facebook detects a Coca-Cola beverage in your hand, and Pepsi tried to make sure you buy their product instead via ads in your feed.

November, a good month for Facebook and its CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

On the first day of trading in November Facebook‘s stock shot up from $21.08 a share to $28 a share at the end of the day Friday, which is its highest price since July. Zuckerberg, who owns about 504 million shares of Facebook stock, has therefore gained about $3.48 billion. Zuckerberg’s shares were worth $19.1 billion when Facebook first went public at $38 a share in May.

November has been one of the best months yet for the stock. This can be attributed to a strong earnings report in late October, which showed that Facebook has been making progress in monetizing mobile. Also, the second and largest lockup period for stocks held by employees finally expired in the middle of November, which was something investors had been concerned about for months and which appears to have held down the stock price.

As of Friday, Zuckerberg’s net worth was $14.1 billion and will probably grow more as Facebook continues to meet with success.

Text Message’s 20th Anniversary Sees Users Turning to Facebook

By Amy Thomson

Text messages turn 20 today and their use may rise 40 percent by 2016, even as mobile-phone owners increasingly rely on Facebook Inc. (FB) and WhatsApp to communicate.

The first SMS, or short message service, text was sent over Vodafone Group Plc (VOD)’s network on Dec. 3, 1992 with the message “Merry Christmas.” By 2016, users may send 9.4 trillion texts, generating $127 billion in revenue, up from 6.7 trillion forecast for this year, according to researcher Informa Plc.

SMS became a key source of income for carriers worldwide, initially costing users a few cents per text and eventually becoming wrapped into unlimited voice and data plans. As more customers have switched to smartphones, with better access to the Internet and more applications, people are increasingly using chat features on Facebook and other websites.

“The concern for mobile operators is that the malaise that SMS faces in countries such as the Netherlands, Spain, China, South Korea and the Philippines, where SMS traffic and revenues are in decline, will inevitably spread, as the penetration of smartphones and mobile broadband grows,” Informa said in a note.

Growth will come via emerging markets in Africa, Asia and Latin America where fewer users have smartphones and they rely on SMS for communication as well as services such as mobile banking, Informa said.

21.5 inch iMac available today

Apple Inc, much to the celebration of fanboys and holiday shoppers everywhere, has officially begun selling the 21.5-inch iMac today, both online and in its trademark stores and select retail partners. The company originally announced the sale date
on its website on Tuesday
, while mentioning that the "27-inch iMac will be available for order through the Apple Online Store and will begin shipping in December."

Interestingly, the Cupertino-based tech giant's online store did originally mention that the 27-inch iMac, which costs an average of $500 more than its smaller counterpart, would be available to ship in "2-3 weeks." As this time has already slipped one week later, to "3-4 weeks."

A quick check of the Apple Store confirms that this is the case, which may leave some holiday shoppers out in the cold, so to speak, for Christmas morning.

Facebook Inc To Hit $10 Billion In Revenue By launching "want" button

Facebook Inc will launch a “want” button in 2013 to further their commercial ambitions according to a new report from Piper Jaffray. The move could bring the company $10 billion in revenues by 2015. The report places a twelve month price target of $38 on the company’s stock.

With Facebook Inc shares currently trading at just over $26, that price target means just under 50% return in twelve months, nice work if you can get it. Facebook shares debuted  in May, and were priced at $38.

That, of course, assumes the company will reach the price target assigned by Gene Munster, the Piper Jaffray analyst who authored the report. According to Munster, Facebook Inc will manage to boost its revenue by taking a chunk of online commerce.

The want button, which will allow users to directly pick out products that they are likely to buy. The move, according to the report, would boost advertiser spending on the social network, improving the quality of the advertising and the amount of advertisers seeking to use the platform.

The report cites a figure from Google Inc in order to estimate Facebook’s likely revenue from an increase in commercial prominence. In 2011, Google Inc said it impacted $80 billion worth of purchases with its online platform.

According to the report that number should be doubled to take into account the company’s worldwide impact. Google Inc revenue was $38 billion in 2011. That corresponds to a25% from the company’s assumed commercial impact of $160 billion.

Facebook Inc, according to the analysis, could take a 25% share in that market by 2015. $10 billion in commerce related revenue by 2015 would correspond to the dreams of many Facebook Inc investors.

The company has a substantial opportunity for growth in the commercial sector in the opinion of the Piper Jaffray, and the contribution of that sector will begin as early as next year.

Supplementing and complementing the want button and other commerce driven initiatives is the new partnership the firm has forged with Datalogix, an online information gathering service. The partnership will allow Facebook to track the effectiveness of advertising methods in generating offline trade.

The ability to present possible advertisers with data on offline purchases made by customers will help Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) seal those partnerships, particularly in dealing with purchases consumers are unwilling to complete online.

In the smartphone sector, many customers prefer to enter stores in order to get their hands on the product they are considering buying. Facebook now has a way to more effectively track these purchases and relate them to the social network’s influence.

According to the company, Samsung spent $10 million advertising its latest premium smart phone, the Galaxy S III. That investment generated $129 million in related sales. If the firm manages to collect data more efficiently than Google Inc, its major competitor, it will begin to steal advertising revenues away from the company.

Facebook Inc has an interesting but tough year ahead. The company needs to substantially boost revenue in order to meet the expectations of the market. If it does not, it could face a quick and harsh backlash from investors and advertisers alike.

Facebook can bring out 'Dark traits' in you

Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) can bring out the dark traits in you, according to new studies from Lund and Gothenburg University in Sweden. Professor of Cognitive psychology at Lund University and co-founder to the study, Sverker Sikström, says competition for social status on Facebook (FB) has caused these dark traits.

Professor Sverker Sikström said that when people try to attract friends, they write theirselves better and then they suffer that Machiavellianism, these traits and narcissism. The researchers found that some users on the social network are developing interpersonally aversive personality traits, named as ‘The Dark Triad’ which is a group of three personality traits including narcissism, Machiavellianism and psychopathy.

It is time to think about what we write on Facebook and perhaps be more moderate and humble in our expressions, professor said.

Krista K

Upcoming pop singer and Miss Philippines International 2010 talks to MSN Malaysia about her love for music and dance

Krista Kleiner is 23 year old upcoming pop singer with newly released debut single "Feels So Good." Krista kicked started her career in TV hosting, ventured into acting, singing, dancing and ended up taking home the Miss Philippines International 2010 title she competed for that year.

How did Miss Philippines International 2010 turn into upcoming pop singer-songwriter? After getting through auditions, Krista embarked on a worldwide tour with Julio Iglesias as his guest star; it was during this time that she realised that she wanted to pursue singing and performing full time.

"The tour was amazing...I got to see how he did it, got a lot of advice from him and he really encouraged me to go for it...he's so smart, he was able to really give me advice that made me decide this was something I wanted to pursue."

English (which included some poetry) may have been Krista's best subject in school but prior to her upcoming album, "Krista K," she has had no writing experience. Krista, however, has been very hands on with her music, "I didn't want a label or someone else to decide the type of music that I did, or dictate, so I went the independent route; I picked all the music myself, I wrote all the music, I didn't want to just buy the music from someone, I wanted it to be very personal which is why I pushed myself to write although I've never wrote before

Acer Unveils Windows 8 Devices

Acer Malaysia unveiled a range of Windows 8 devices yesterday, led by the highly anticipated Acer Aspire S7, together with the ICONIA W Series tablets and Aspire U Series All-in-One (AIO).

The 11.6-inch Acer ICONIA Tab W700 cradle combo is the only Intel Core tablet in the market, putting incredible power, true full HD instant productivity at users’ fingertips. The 10-point touch control, ultra-responsive and powerful tablet is flexible thanks to the multi-position dock that allows it to be positioned perfectly for landscape or portrait mode for easy browsing, sharing, control and keyboard productivitiy.

The 27-inch new Acer Aspire 7600U All-in-One (AIO) is of minimalist design running on Windows 8 and is powered by the 3^rd generation Intel Core processor. The 1920x1080 screen supports up to 10-point simultaneous touch which enables multiple users at one-go. It can be viewed at an angle from 0-90 degrees and swivels at four sides when it is flat on the table.

Apple Inc initiate 2.5 Billion Dividend Today

By Aman Jain

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) shareholders will be receiving the second installment of the mega-rich company’s dividend program today, reports Apple Insider. The iPhone maker, which has 935 million outstanding share, will distribute a dividend of $2.65 per share to its shareholders, making the total payout around $2.5 billion.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) last paid a regular cash dividend in 1995, and today will be the second time in the last 17 years that the company will pay excesses to its shareholders. The iPhone maker has billions of cash in reserves and liquid assets; they carry no debt. One of the most lucrative companies in the world, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), in its most recent
earnings report, in October, showed that $121.4 billion in cash.

The Cupertino based firm announced its dividend program in March, which includes a regular quarterly dividend of $2.65 per share and a $10 billion share repurchase program, beginning on September 30, 2012. The dividend and repurchase programs are scheduled to take place over the next three years.

The company will be paying new quarterly dividends about a month and a half after the end of each subsequent quarter. A similar dividend will be paid to holders of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s restricted shares, although Cook refused to collect dividend payments for the 1.125 million shares of restricted stock he has been granted, which would otherwise be worth over $75 million.

Hinting on the dividend program, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) CEO Tim Cook told in February, “we used some of our cash to make great investments in our business through increased research and development, acquisitions, new retail store openings, strategic prepayments and capital expenditures in our supply chain, and building out our infrastructure. You’ll see more of all of these in the future”.

“Even with these investments,” he added, “we can maintain a war chest for strategic opportunities and have plenty of cash to run our business. So we are going to initiate a dividend and share repurchase program”.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s stock reached an all time high of $705.07 per share when iPhone5 became commercially available, but has been declining since then. The iPhone makers $2.5 billion in quarterly dividend payments makes it one of the highest dividend payers in the U.S.