Google Reportedly Wants To Buy WhatsApp For $1 Billion

Google is the latest name to be linked to an acquisition of mobile messaging phenomenon WhatsApp, with many sources online quoting US$ 1 Billion as the figure WhatsApp has fixed its value.

Google apparently approached WhatsApp last month regarding a possible buyout, following on from other well-publicised acquisition attempts by the likes of Facebook and Apple and possibly Google themselves at an earlier juncture.

WhatsApp turned down all previous offers, citing their need to remain independent and a desire to keep costs down in order to not isolate users who are used to a cheap (on some platforms and countries completely free) entry price point for using the most popular over-the-top messaging platform around.

Presumably WhatsApp is also holding out for an acquisition sum as close as possible to that magic $ 1 billion figure, which seems a bit excessive considering unconfirmed reports puts WhatsApp’s annual revenue ar around US$ 100 million.

Could WhatsApp be joining the Android family?

WhatsApp holding out for the right offer might be the right move for the IM service, as OTT messaging apps steadily eat into mobile and telco earnings by offering a free alternative to paid SMSes, which used to be a financial boon for network operators. As the most popular OTT platform, WhatsApp is uniquely placed to take advantage of this, as analyst firm Ovum believes that by 2016, operators will lose US$ 54 billion in SMS revenue to these messaging apps- driven primarily by increasing mobile Internet and Broadband penetration worldwide.

Given the cross-pollination of WhatsApp’s service across mobile platforms (even BlackBerry’s new Z10 running on its latest OS will have WhatsApp), the acquisition is even more attractive to Google. Acquiring the IM will allow Google to have a messaging foothold in more than just the Android sphere, as users who have a Samsung Galaxy Note II can just as easily text an iPhone 5 as a HTC Windows Phone 8X- as long as there is a data connection, cross-platform messages could be sent inclusive of video, audio, and images if so desired.

WhatsApp is also consistently the top paid or free app on almost any OS- pair that with availability in over 100 countries and an enviable 100 million daily user average, and WhatsApp might well be the most valuable independent asset out there. Since October 2011, WhatsApp user base has seen exponential growth, with the IMer announcing that its servers send out roughly 10 billion messages everyday. This past New Year’s Eve, WhatsApp reportedly sent out a record 18 billion messages in a single day, more than any telco carrier.

All of these assets enunciate the point of how valuable WhatsApp is, so US$ 1 Billion does not look like such a stiff over-valuation after all.

Source: mobile88.com

Android up 13%, iOS down 7%, BlackBerry down 81% … and Windows Phone up a massive 52% Read more at http://venturebeat.com/2013/04/01/android-up-13-ios-down-7-blackberry-down-81-and-windows-phone-up-a-massive-52/#EyKfGsE4hXJDrzys.99

The mobile operating system market share numbers are in for Kantar Worldpanel’s last quarter, and the numbers are shocking.

Not the Android and iOS numbers: Steady but unspectacular growth for Android and gradual but not catastrophic drops for Apple are pretty much in line with expectations.

But the BlackBerry and Windows Phone numbers are dramatic changes from the same quarter a year ago. Windows Phone looks to be finally taking off, with 52 percent growth December, January, and February of this year compared to the same three months in 2012. And BlackBerry is falling of a sales cliff, with an 81 percent plunge in sales.

Source: Kantar WorldPanel

Smartphone sales by operating system – U.S.

The big kahuna, of course, is Android.

Google’s Android now owns more than half of U.S. smartphone sales, with 51.2 percent market share. That’s up from 45.4 percent in the quarter a year ago. Meanwhile, iOS is holding fairly steady at number two, with 43.5 percent, down slightly from last year’s 47 percent.

What’s interesting about the Windows numbers, even though they are on a much smaller installed base, is that Windows Phone is currently the fastest-growing mobile phone platform. At 4.1 percent of mobile operating system market share, Microsoft still has a very long ways to go, and growth rates could start to slow as it piles up share. But the numbers have to be encouraging for Redmond as it is finally gaining traction in a market that it once appeared to have completely lost.

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Samsung Galaxy S4 Specifications Leaked As March 14 Release Date

With the March 14 release date of the Samsung Galaxy S4 approaching, the tech world is gearing up to welcome the most anticipated Android smartphone of 2013 in New York next week.

Photo: SamMobileThe Antutu benchmark result has revealed that the Galaxy S4 will be powered by an Exynos Octa 5410 CPU, clocking at 1.8GHz.

Thanks to numerous rumors and leaks over the last few months, Samsung fans all around the world now have quite a clear idea about the features and specifications that are likely to be included in the Galaxy S3’s successor. But one particular aspect of Galaxy S4 that still leaves tech enthusiasts baffled is the device’s processor.

Citing a JPMorgan analyst, a report from Taiwanese publication Taipei Times said last week that Samsung Galaxy S4 would feature multiple solutions for the application processors and baseband chips.

According to the report, the South Korean tech giant would likely incorporate Qualcomm Inc’s Snapdragon 600 quad-core processor, manufactured by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) using its 28-nanometer (nm) process technology, for the U.S. variant of the Galaxy S4. On the other hand, when it comes to the European variant of the handset, Samsung would adopt the in-house eight-core Exynos 5 Octa processor.

But this piece of information has got refuted by a new Antutu benchmark result of the Galaxy S4 that claims to reveal all the specifications of the upcoming Samsung flagship smartphone.

“Somebody with a Galaxy S IV has just performed an Antutu benchmark and revealed all the specifications of the device,” a Sunday report over at SamMobile has said.

The Antutu benchmark result has revealed that the Galaxy S4 will be powered by an Exynos Octa 5410 CPU, clocking at 1.8GHz. The device will also come with PowerVR SGX 544MP ARM GPU and 2 GB of RAM.

Other key specs of the device, revealed by the benchmark result, included a 4.99-inch Full HD (1920×1080) display with capacitive touch screen and multi-touch feature; a 13 megapixel camera with LED flash and capability of taking 1080p videos; a 2 megapixel front-facing camera; Bluetooth 4.0 and Android 4.2 Jelly Bean out of the box.

However, as SamMobile has pointed out, the most interesting thing about the leak is that it shows the Galaxy S4 supporting GSM/WCDMA/LTE networks with an Exynos processor on-board. That said, the handset will likely be available in a single variant, with the model number GT-I9500.

“Previously, Samsung used to release two variants of their high-end devices, for example the GT-I9300 and GT-I9305,” says the report. “One variant used to have GSM connectivity and the other one had LTE connectivity but this is not the case with the Galaxy S IV. The Galaxy S IV will be a world phone.”

With various speculations regarding the Samsung Galaxy S4 seem to vary each other, it would be interesting to see which rumors will turn to be true and which will eventually remain as mere rumors once Samsung takes the wraps off its big offering.

The Galaxy S4 is likely to be released in two colors – Black and White – while each color version will have three different variants based on storage capacity; for example, 16, 32 and 64 GB. The device is likely to have a dimension of 140.1 x 71.8 x 7.7mm, weighing 138 gram.

Source: www.ibtimes.com

Samsung's Galaxy S IV Marked For Announcement On March 14th

With HTC's much-talked about event happening tonight, there are multiple sources are pinpointing March 14th as the announcement date for Samsung's next flagship Galaxy S smartphone. Originally hinted on by Eldar Murtazin of mobile-review and then later corroborated by sources unspecified on The Verge, the Galaxy S4 is said to be "definitely" announced at a Samsung event on March 14th. The event is mostly expected to take place in the U.S., although it is rather unclear at this point in time which city will be hosting such an announcement.

There isn’t much to go on for the next Galaxy smartphone, as far as details and design are concerned. As reported by sources of The Verge, the new device could most likely adhere to the design language of what we will eventually see Galaxy Note 8.0 at MWC later this month. As such, despite all the leaks we've come across so far of that device, they are pretty much far off from what the final design would represent.

With all said and done, we will only know the definite announcement date when and only when Samsung decides to mention it. Either way it’s definitely interesting to see what the company has in store for us, given that they’ve decided that the MWC alone doesn’t suffice.

Source: The Verge

Samsung Announces World's First Octa 8-Core Mobile Processor

Processor will power smartphones and tablets.

ZoomSamsung has announced the world's first eight-core processor for smartphones and tablets, the Exynos5 Octa.

Announced during its CES keynote, Samsung CEO Stephen Woo unveiled the forthcoming 8-core micro processor, which houses two sets of four-core processors.

The South Korean technology giant said it's been created to run intense apps, while also conserving energy when users run basic tasks. Upon his demo, Woo said one of the key functions of the chip is to allow users to carry out several activities at once while also ensuring that the battery isn't drained too quickly.

He had showcased a search for dining options on a Samsung tablet during the demo, where the device loaded several sites including Urbanspoon and Google Maps, which was done without any disruption in the browser. Woo promised no dropped frames or stutters in HD movie playback will occur.

Woo stressed that the chip delivers a new level of performance on a mobile device and, at the same time, offers up to 70 percent savings on batteries thanks to the new silicon. The Exynos5 Octa also utilizes ARM's Big.Little technology, which combines the ARM Cortex-A7 chip with a more powerful Cortex A-15 multicore chip.

"We believe the right component DNA drives the discovery of what's possible," said Woo. "Components are building blocks—the foundations on which devices are built. We at Samsung's component solutions are creating new, game-changing components across all aspects of devices."

"The new Exynos 5 Octa introduces a whole new concept in processing architecture…designed for high-end smartphones and tablets. When you want multiple applications to perform at their best, you want the best application processor currently available—the Exynos 5 Octa."

Samsung, which also saw former U.S. President Bill Clinton make an appearance during its keynote, is rumored to be integrating the Exynos5 Octa eight-core chip into the Galaxy S4.

Apple Drops Samsung Chips From Devices

   The relationship breakdown between Apple and Samsung is reportedly even spreading to the sourcing of components that Apple uses in its devices.

Apple and Samsung have of course been fighting each other for months over patent-infringement claims. But during the courtroom tussle, Apple continued to build its iPhones and iPads using Samsung ARM-based chips.
Apple Samsung Divorce
However that is apparently changing, and occurs on the heels of some long-time rumours that the move was in the works, according to a report from Forbes.

"There's a story coming out of Taiwan that Apple has already started to make the switch, commissioning TSMC to make the next round of the A6 chip and then on into production of the A7," Forbes reported 2 January. "Apple has already requested Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company [TSMC] to produce its next-generation A6X processors, reports the Taiwanese financial newspaper Commercial Times."

The ongoing legal fight between Apple and Samsung has been knuckle-busting for both. In August 2012, Apple won a $1.05 billion (£646m) verdict against Samsung from a California court over allegations that Samsung infringed on Apple patents in the designs of mobile devices.

With the legal battles in the background in recent months, Apple has reportedly been looking to reduce its dependency on Samsung for chips, turning to TSMC for production of its 20-nanometre chips.

Apple uses Samsung chips only in its iPhones and iPads, not in its desktop and laptop products.
Chip Specialists
In the meantime, chips haven't been the only place where Apple has been moving to make some pointed statements to Samsung.

In October 2012, Apple hired chip engineer Jim Mergard away from Samsung, where he worked after some 16 years with chip rival Advanced Micro Devices. The move illustrates the demand for chip engineers - not only in PCs and servers, but also in mobile devices like smartphones and tablets - and sheds more light on the growing competition between x86-based chip makers like Intel and AMD and ARM Holdings and ARM's list of partners, such as Samsung, Nvidia, Qualcomm and Texas Instruments.

While Intel and AMD chips dominate the PC and server markets, ARM-designed chips are found in the bulk of smartphones and tablets. And as both Intel and AMD push to gain inroads into the mobile market, ARM and some of its partners are looking to move their low-power chips into PCs and servers, widening the competitive field.

Mergard was a key PC chip engineer during his time at AMD and helped lead the development of the company's Brazos accelerated processing unit (APU) aimed at entry-level PCs and notebooks. He came to Samsung as part of a wave of AMD engineers and officials leaving the company.

He also came at a time when Samsung reportedly began gearing up to challenge Intel and AMD in the server chip business. Samsung over the past couple of years has been aggressive in pursuing chip engineers from rival companies.
Courtroom Tussles
Also in October, Samsung won a legal round with Apple when a three-judge federal appeals court panel overturned a preliminary injunction awarded to Apple in August that blocked Samsung's sales of its Galaxy Nexus smartphones in the United States. The injunction was awarded while both sides are tussling over patent-infringement claims involving the smartphones.

The decision means that Samsung will be able to continue to sell Galaxy Nexus phones while the legal fight continues. In their decision to toss the injunction, the judges wrote that the judge in the original case in August, US District Court Judge Lucy Koh, abused her discretion in issuing the injunction against Apple in the first place.

To have correctly earned such an injunction, the appeals court wrote, Apple would have had to have proven that consumers purchased Galaxy Nexus handsets because they specifically included the features that Apple claimed are infringing on its patents.

"In this light, the causal link between the alleged infringement and consumer demand for the Galaxy Nexus is too tenuous to support a finding of irreparable harm," the appeals court wrote.