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☆ Facebook Parent Meta Plans 10,000 Job Cuts in New Round of Layoffs
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Sam Schechner | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Meta Platforms Inc. said it would cut roughly 10,000 jobs over the coming months, the Facebook parent’s second wave of mass layoffs in what it says is an effort to be more efficient in a difficult economy. Meta Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said in an email to staff on Tuesday that the company would in the coming months conduct multiple rounds of job cuts, as well as cancel some projects and reduce hiring rates as part of what he has dubbed the “year of efficiency.”

☆ Facebook Parent Meta to Begin New Round of Job Cuts
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Sam Schechner | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Meta says the layoffs are aimed at making Facebook more efficient. Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc. said it would cut roughly 10,000 jobs over the coming months, the company’s second major round of layoffs, in an effort to make it more efficient in a difficult economy. Meta Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said in an email to staff on Tuesday that the company would in the coming months conduct multiple rounds of job cuts, as well as cancel some projects and reduce hiring rates as part of what he has dubbed the “year of efficiency.”

☆ Are they for real? South Korean girl band offers glimpse into metaverse
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Hyunsu Yim | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/3] Footages of virtual girl group MAVE is played at the control room of MBC in Seoul, South Korea, February 28, 2023. Apart from backing MAVE:, Kakao launched a 1.25 trillion won ($960 million) tender offer last week to buy South Korean K-pop pioneer SM Entertainment (041510.KQ). SM is home to popular K-pop groups such as Girls' Generation, H.O.T., EXO, Red Velvet, Super Junior, SHINee, NCT Dream and Aespa. MAVE: is an "ongoing" project to explore new business opportunities and find ways to work around technological challenges, said Chu Ji-yeon, who heads Metaverse Entertainment. But South Korean technology has made much progress since then in creating virtual characters.

"Meta's discovery gluttony confirms its request of eBay is not worthy of the burden Meta seeks to impose," eBay's lawyers told the California court. EBay's Quinn Emanuel attorneys derided Meta as a "litigant that has completely disregarded the bounds of reason and proportionality" in seeking information from third parties. A representative from eBay and its attorneys at Quinn Emanuel did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Lawyers for eBay contend the company doesn't compete with Meta on social networking but does face off over the Facebook Marketplace e-commerce service. The case is Federal Trade Commission v. Meta Platforms Inc, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No.

☆ Meta to wind down NFTs on platforms amid crypto bust
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 13 (Reuters) - Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) is cutting off support for digital collectibles or non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on its platforms less than a year after rolling it out, as the crypto market continues to spiral. "We're winding down digital collectibles (NFTs) for now to focus on other ways to support creators, people, and businesses," the social media firm's fintech head, Stephane Kasriel, tweeted on Monday. But bitcoin and other tokens took a beating in late 2022 after major exchange FTX crashed into sudden bankruptcy. "We'll continue investing in fintech tools that people and businesses will need for the future. We're streamlining payments w/ Meta Pay, making checkout and payouts easier, and investing in messaging payments across Meta," Kasriel said.

☆ Meta Looks to Divest Kustomer Amid Efficiency Drive
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-11 | by ( Jeff Horwitz | Juliet Chung | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Meta said it is exploring strategic alternatives for Kustomer, a business-software company it bought last year. Meta Platforms Inc. is planning to divest Kustomer, a business-software company it bought last year in one of its largest acquisitions, as the tech company looks to refocus on its core business, according to the company and people familiar with the planned deal. “In light of Meta’s efficiency efforts, we’ve made the decision to focus on our fastest growing business messaging offerings, including the monetization opportunity for WhatsApp,” said Ryan Moore, a spokesman for the company. “We are currently exploring strategic alternatives for Kustomer and will continue to support Kustomer’s product and customer base throughout this process.”

☆ Meta to end news access for Canadians if Online News Act becomes law
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 11 (Reuters) - Facebook-parent Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) said on Saturday that it would end availability of news content for Canadians on its platforms if the country's Online News Act passes in its current form. The "Online News Act," or House of Commons bill C-18, introduced in April last year laid out rules to force platforms like Meta and Alphabet Inc.'s Google (GOOGL.O) to negotiate commercial deals and pay news publishers for their content. Meta's move comes after Google last month started testing limited news censorship as a potential response to the bill. The Department of Canadian Heritage did not immediately respond to a Reuters' request for comment on Meta's move to end news access in the country. Reporting by Kanjyik Ghosh and Lavanya Ahire in Bengaluru; editing by Diane CraftOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Meta explores strategic alternatives for Kustomer business-software firm
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 10 (Reuters) - Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) said on Friday it is exploring strategic alternatives for customer service company Kustomer that it acquired in a process ending last year. "We are currently exploring strategic alternatives for Kustomer and will continue to support Kustomer's product and customer base throughout this process," the Facebook owner said in an emailed statement to Reuters, without providing additional details on the alternatives. Kustomer sells CRM software for businesses to communicate with consumers by phone, email, text messages, WhatsApp, Instagram and other channels. Meta has made the decision to focus on its fastest growing business messaging offerings, including the monetization opportunity for WhatsApp in light of the company's "efficiency efforts," the company said. Reporting by Yana Gaur, Rishabh Jaiswal and Anirudh Saligrama in Bengaluru; Editing by Diane Craft and William MallardOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Meta late last year cut 11,000 jobs and sought further attrition through the performance review process. Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc. is planning additional layoffs to be announced in multiple rounds over the coming months that in total would be roughly the same magnitude as the 13% cut to its workforce last year, according to people familiar with the matter. The new cuts, the first wave of which is expected to be announced next week, are likely to hit non-engineering roles especially hard, the people said. The company is also expected to shut down some projects and teams in conjunction with these cuts.

☆ You can finally change the size of Netflix's subtitles on your TV
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Grace Mayer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Subscribers can tailor subtitle text size and select between four text styles. Subscribers will be able to adjust subtitle text size to small, medium, or large, and choose among four text colors and styles, including: drop shadow (the default white text), dark (white text on a black background), contrast (yellow text on a black background), and light (black text on a white background). These customizable options are also similar to those offered by other streaming platforms including Disney Plus, Hulu, HBO Max, and Amazon's Prime Video. But this update could also remedy complaints about poor audio quality on streaming platforms. According to the same survey, 50% of Americans watch content with subtitles, and 62% used subtitles more on streaming platforms than on regular TV.

☆ Meta explores decentralized social network app for text updates
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 10 (Reuters) - Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) is exploring a standalone decentralized social network for sharing text updates, a company spokesperson said on Friday, in what could be a direct competitor to billionaire Elon Musk's Twitter Inc."We're exploring a standalone decentralized social network for sharing text updates. We believe there's an opportunity for a separate space where creators and public figures can share timely updates about their interests," a Meta spokesperson told Reuters in an emailed statement. The report said Meta's new content app would support ActivityPub, the decentralized social networking protocol that powers Twitter-rival Mastodon and other federated apps. Meta's new app would be Instagram-branded and will allow users to register or login through their Instagram credentials, according to the Moneycontrol report. Reporting by Shubham Kalia and Shubhendu Deshmukh in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich and Sherry Jacob-PhillipsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Meta exploring plans for Twitter rival
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

March 10 (Reuters) - Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) is exploring plans to launch a new social media app in its bid to displace Twitter as the world's "digital town square". "We're exploring a standalone decentralized social network for sharing text updates. A Twitter-like app would allow Meta to take advantage of the current chaos at the Elon Musk-led company, where cost-cutting has been rampant. Twitter has been struggling to hold on to its advertising base since Musk's takeover of the platform late last year. "They're just trying everything... at least with a mini blogging site like Twitter, there's some expectation that it could start to make money out of much quicker timeline than the metaverse investment."

☆ U.S. mulling a probe of deceptive advertising on social media
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, March 9 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is expected to vote next week on whether to send demands for information about deceptive advertising to eight social media and video streaming companies, the agency said on Thursday. The agency did not say which social media companies would receive the demands but said that the information would be used to determine what steps they have taken to detect and remove deceptive advertising from their platforms. Some of the biggest social media companies are Facebook and its subsidiaries Instagram and WhatsApp. Top video streaming platforms include Alphabet's YouTube and TikTok. The commissioners will also vote on issuing demands for information to five business credit reporting agencies, which were not named, regarding how they collect data and market their products.

[1/2] People queue outside a newly reopened career center for in-person appointments in Louisville, Kentucky, U.S., April 15, 2021. REUTERS/Amira KaraoudMarch 9 (Reuters) - Layoffs by U.S. companies over January and February touched the highest since 2009, with the tech sector accounting for more than a third of the over 180,000 job cuts announced, a report showed on Thursday. In February alone, layoffs in the United States stood at 77,770, more than five times higher than the 15,245 job cuts announced a year earlier, according to the report from employment firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc.Reuters Graphics"Right now, the overwhelming bulk of cuts are occurring in Technology. Retail and Financial are also cutting right now, as consumer spending matches economic conditions," said Andrew Challenger, senior vice president of the firm. U.S. firms announced plans to hire 28,830 workers in February, down 87% from 215,127 a year earlier, the report added.

☆ Big Companies Seeing Tax Benefits From Law Change Some of Them Fought
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Richard Rubin | Jennifer Williams-Alvarez | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +6 min

Those companies now qualify for a bigger tax break for exports because of the way the research-deduction change alters their tax calculations. Photo: Dado Ruvic/REUTERSModerna saw that tax break jump to a 7.4 percentage-point benefit on its tax rate from 4.8 points in 2021, even as its cash tax payments rose. The change requiring companies to spread out research deductions was part of the 2017 tax law, and it was designed to partly offset the revenue loss from cutting corporate tax rates. PREVIEWAt the same time, the smaller research deduction means many companies can get a bigger advantage from the export tax break. The size of the FDII tax break is based in part on how much income a company has.

Meanwhile, Fed fund rates were seen peaking at 5.6% in September compared to 5.47% earlier. Investors are awaiting data later this week that is expected to show nonfarm payrolls increased by 200,000 in February, compared with the much stronger-than-expected 517,000 jobs reported in January. All the 11 major S&P sectors fell, with cyclical sectors such as financials (.SPSY) and materials (.SPLRCM) leading declines. Meanwhile, the yield on two-year Treasury notes , which best reflects short-term rate expectations, rebounded to its highest since 2007 at 4.96%. The S&P 500 recorded 10 new 52-week highs and six new lows, while the Nasdaq posted 40 new highs and 112 new lows.

Traders drastically increased their bets of a 50-basis-point rate hike in March after Powell's comments, with money market futures pricing a more than 40% chance of such a move, from 23% before the remarks. Meanwhile, Fed fund rates were seen peaking at 5.56% in September compared to 5.47% earlier. Investors are awaiting data later this week that is expected to show nonfarm payrolls increased by 200,000 in February, compared with the much stronger-than-expected 517,000 jobs reported in January. Among individual stocks, Rivian Automotive (RIVN.O) tumbled 10.5% after the electric automaker unveiled plans to sell bonds worth $1.3 billion. The S&P index recorded 10 new 52-week highs and four new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 30 new highs and 77 new lows.

ET (1500 GMT), with investors awaiting his comments on the Fed's steps aimed at bringing inflation towards its 2% target. Rising bond yields tend to weigh on equity valuations, particularly those of growth and technology stocks, as higher rates reduce the value of future cash flows. ET, Dow e-minis were up 25 points, or 0.07%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 6.25 points, or 0.15%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 32.5 points, or 0.26%. Dick's Sporting Goods (DKS.N) rose 6.1% after the retailer forecast annual earnings above Wall Street estimates and more than doubled its quarterly dividend. Reporting by Sruthi Shankar and Bansari Mayur Kamdar in Bengaluru Editing by Vinay DwivediOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

ET (1500 GMT), with investors awaiting his comments on the Fed's steps aimed at bringing inflation towards its 2% target. Rising bond yields tend to weigh on equity valuations, particularly those of growth and technology stocks, as higher rates reduce the value of future cash flows. Traders see Fed fund rates peaking at 5.46% by September, from the current 4.67%. ET, Dow e-minis were up 12 points, or 0.04%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 5.5 points, or 0.14%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 29.25 points, or 0.24%. Reporting by Sruthi Shankar and Bansari Mayur Kamdar in Bengaluru Editing by Vinay DwivediOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Meta plans to cut thousands of jobs as soon as this week - Bloomberg News
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Reuters Staff | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

FILE PHOTO: The logo of Meta Platforms' business group is seen in Brussels, Belgium December 6, 2022. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo(Reuters) -Meta Platforms Inc will cut thousands of jobs as soon as this week in a fresh round of layoffs, Bloomberg News reported on Monday, only a few months after the Facebook-parent reduced more than 11,000 people from its workforce. Meta declined to comment on the Bloomberg report when contacted by Reuters. Last month, the Washington Post newspaper had reported that Meta was planning to cut jobs in a reorganization and downsizing effort. Other tech companies, including Google-parent Alphabet Inc and Microsoft Corp, have also cut thousands of jobs.

The court also allowed testimony from an expert who said Meta owes Neural Magic as much as $766 million in royalties. Representatives for Meta and Neural Magic did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the decision. Meta asked the court to throw out the case last year, arguing Neural Magic had failed to identify any protectable trade secrets and that Zlateski had not acquired the information improperly. But the court on Monday allowed Neural Magic's case to continue for all but one of the 41 secrets it accused Meta of misappropriating. The case is Neural Magic Inc v. Meta Platforms Inc, U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, No.

☆ TikTok to allow creators to sell collections of long-format videos
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 7 (Reuters) - Chinese short-video sharing app TikTok said on Tuesday it will allow some creators to produce collections of longer videos and charge their audience a premium for access, opening up a new channel of monetization for its users. Its new offering "Series" will allow eligible creators to put collections of up to 80 videos, each about 20 minutes long behind a paywall. It is not clear whether TikTok will take a cut from the creators. TikTok, owned by China's ByteDance, hit 1 billion monthly active users in September 2021 and has not reported its user base since. In comparison, Facebook had nearly 3 billion monthly active users as of December 2022.

☆ Meta planning thousands of more cuts after widespread layoffs, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Jonathan Vanian | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Mark Zuckerberg, chief executive officer of Meta Platforms Inc., left, arrives at federal court in San Jose, California, US, on Tuesday, Dec. 20, 2022. Meta plans another round of layoffs that could affect thousands of workers, according to a Bloomberg News report published Monday evening. The job cuts could start this week and represent an additional round of layoffs, adding to the 13% of Meta workers who were laid off as part of a major cost-cutting plan announced in November. Zuckerberg has said that he would "take accountability" for the company's previously announced cost-cutting plans, saying that he views layoffs "as a last resort." "We're restructuring teams to increase our efficiency," Zuckerberg said last fall when Meta announced layoffs.

☆ EU tells Elon Musk to hire more staff to moderate Twitter - FT
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 7 (Reuters) - The European Union told Elon Musk to hire more human moderators and fact-checkers to review posts on Twitter, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing four people familiar with talks between Musk, Twitter executives and regulators in Brussels. The demand complicates Musk's efforts to reorganize the loss-making business he acquired for $44 billion in October. Twitter has been leaning heavily on automation to moderate content, doing away with certain manual reviews. It does not employ fact checkers, unlike larger rival Meta Platforms Inc (META.O), which owns Facebook and Instagram, the report said. European Union industry chief Thierry Breton on a video call in January warned Musk of "huge work ahead" for Twitter to apply transparent use policies, significantly reinforce content moderation and protect freedom of speech.

☆ Meta will keep releasing AI tools despite leak claims
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( Stephen Nellis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

March 6 (Reuters) - Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) on Monday said it will continue to release its artificial intelligence tools to approved researchers despite claims on online message boards that its latest large language model had leaked to unauthorized users. Facebook owner Meta maintains a major AI research arm and last month released LLaMA, short for Large Language Model Meta AI. Unlike some rivals such as OpenAI, which keeps tight wraps on its technology and charges software developers to access it, Meta's AI research arm shares most of its work openly. But AI tools also contain the potential for abuse, such as creating and spreading false information. "It’s Meta's goal to share state-of-the-art AI models with members of the research community to help us evaluate and improve those models," Meta said.

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