filing
Latest
You can try the IRS alternative to Turbo Tax in 12 states today
The IRS has released a pilot program called Direct File that gives users free, step-by-step instructions for filing their taxes.
Elon Musk offers to buy Twitter for $43 billion
Elon Musk has offered to buy Twitter for $43 billion, telling the SEC in a filing that the deal would be good for free speech.
Bose's unannounced Sport Open Earbuds leak via FCC filings
They appear to be a version of the company's Sport Earbuds, but with a hook.
Sonos will lay off 12 percent of its workforce due to COVID-19
Sonos plans to eliminate 12 percent of its global headcount due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Uber will lay off 3,700 full-time employees
Uber will lay off 3,700 full-time employees, about 14 percent of its workforce.
Netflix releases worldwide subscriber stats by region for the first time
For the first time, Netflix is reporting its international business operating results by region. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Netflix shared its streaming revenue and membership info for the US and Canada; Europe, Middle East and Africa; Asia-Pacific and Latin America. This change in how Netflix reports its earnings data highlights how important markets outside the US have become -- especially as Netflix faces new competition.
Two more unannounced iPads turn up in Apple filings
Apple may have an abundance of new tablets to show this fall. MySmartPrice has found two new filings for unannounced iPad models at the Eurasian Economic Commission, joining the five new iPad models that popped up earlier in the month. The filings don't say much by themselves beyond the model numbers (A2200 and A2232), but they create a clearer picture of Apple's near-term plans for the iPad.
Yahoo admits some staff knew of 2014 hack
As Yahoo attempts to piece together how a hacker accessed 500 million user accounts back in 2014, the company has now admitted that some employees knew of a security breach when it happened. In a filing with the SEC, Yahoo said that while it only disclosed news of the attack in August, a "state-sponsored actor" had accessed its network two years ago but it didn't quite know the extent of the damage at the time.
Tinder CEO's 'sodomy' interview puts Match.com in hot water
Tinder CEO Sean Rad set the internet ablaze yesterday with a number of controversial comments made to the Evening Standard. He said he investigated a Vanity Fair reporter because he didn't like her article, claimed to have turned down a supermodel who was "begging" for sex and drastically misunderstood the word "sodomy." However, his biggest error may have been talking about user statistics, because Tinder's parent company Match.com is about to file an IPO, and it's against SEC rules for executives to make business statements in the weeks prior to a filing.
Blizzard wins court case over patent troll Worlds Inc.
A Boston court ruled in Blizzard's favor last week against a lawsuit brought on by Worlds Inc. (aka Worlds.com) that claimed the studio infringed on four patents that Worlds Inc. made in the mid-1990s. This ruling is the latest development in a case that spans back to 2012, when Worlds Inc. filed the suit. The company claimed that Blizzard violated patents that showed the invention of "a method for enabling a first user to interact with other users in a virtual space," among other items. A U.S. District Judge ruled that these patents are invalid because those inventions already existed prior to the filings. This isn't Worlds' first attempt to sue an MMO studio over these allegations, as it went after (and lost to) NCsoft and Linden Lab several years ago.
Twitter's updated IPO plans reveal TWTR stock on NYSE, 232 million active users
Twitter isn't a public company just yet, but its updated S-1 filing hit today and showed how it's grown in the last three months. While it showed 218 million monthly active users by the end of June, its Q3 stats have grown to 232 million (53 million of them are in the US). While the number of users accessing the service from mobile devices grew slightly from 75 to 76 percent, ad revenue on mobile grew 37 percent since the last report, compared to other revenue which was up 9 percent. It's making more money too, with revenue for the quarter of $168.6 million, up from $139 million in Q2 and $82 million for the same period last year. If you want to invest in the right stock at its IPO, look for TWTR on the NYSE -- until then prospective investors can dig through the financial data here and follow the @TwitterIR account for updates.
Twitter makes $1 billion IPO filing public, confirms over 215 million monthly active users
Less than a month after announcing its plans for an IPO, Twitter has today made its S-1 filing with the SEC public, offering the most detailed look yet at at the inner workings of the company. With the IPO, Twitter is looking to raise $1 billion on 472,613,753 shares of common stock, trading under the stock symbol TWTR. In the filing, the company also confirmed that it now has 218.3 million monthly active users (or MAUs) according to its most recent numbers, and that it pulled in $253.6 million in revenue for the six months ending June 30th, 2013, an increase of 107 percent from a year earlier. According to the company, mobile users unsurprisingly account for a particularly big chunk of its business, with 75 percent of its average MAUs accessing Twitter from a mobile device in the three months ending June 30, 2013, and mobile use accounting for 65 percent of its advertising revenue. It still isn't making a profit, though, with the company seeing a net loss of $69.3 million for the aforementioned six month period. That's compared to $316.9 million in revenue for all of 2012, and a net loss of $79.4 million. Of those 215 million MAUs, 49.2 million are in the United States, while 169.1 million are international, representing an increase of 35% and 47%, respectively, from the same period a year ago. Beyond those numbers, the company has also revealed the number of Timeline views for the first time; they stood at 150.9 billion for the three months ending June 30th, and 287.2 billion for six months prior (up 69% and 79% from a year earlier). On average, that translates to 691 timeline views per MAU for the same three month period, although that number jumps a fair bit looking just at US Twitter users -- they rack up 825 timeline views on average. In a brief letter to shareholders included in the filing, the company says "Twitter represents a service shaped by the people, for the people," and that "the mission we serve as Twitter, Inc. is to give everyone the power to create and share ideas and information instantly without barriers," adding, "our business and revenue will always follow that mission in ways that improve–and do not detract from–a free and global conversation." Those interested in digging into all of the numbers can find the full filing on the SEC's website.
Samsung SPH-L520 reaches the FCC, may be a Galaxy S4 Mini for Sprint
We've only seen hints of the Galaxy S4 Mini launching in the US through AT&T and Verizon, but a new FCC approval suggests that Samsung's mid-size smartphone could reach Sprint as well. The filing reveals an SPH-L520 device with both a Sprint-native LTE frequency and a body that's only slightly larger than the regular GS4 Mini. That sounds like a positive ID, although we won't make too many presumptions -- this could be a carrier-specific phone that happens to sport Mini-like dimensions. If the smaller Galaxy does arrive on Sprint, though, we won't be caught off-guard.
Apple tries for a patent on removable laptop touchscreens with wireless charging
We're all in favor of advancing the state of the art, but there are times when we suspect that research is more about "what if" explorations than anything else. Exhibit A: Apple's new patent application for a wireless display. The concept would let a touchscreen detach from its laptop base through a 60GHz ultrawideband format (such as WiGig) and keep its battery powered up through at least some form of wireless charging located in the laptop's hinge. It sounds viable when others have experimented with wireless displays before, but we'd note that both technical realities and corporate philosophies might stand in its way. Along with the usual challenges of battery life and wireless range, Apple has so far argued that touchscreen laptops are unwieldy and isn't exactly in a rush to supplement booming iPad sales -- even if granted, the patent may just be a matter of covering the bases rather than any kind of roadmap for a two-piece MacBook Pro. Still, we won't completely rule it out when many also thought Apple wouldn't make a phone.
Dell CEO memo talks of a 'significant' boost to PCs and tablets in restructuring
When Michael Dell signaled intentions to take his company private for an overhaul, there were questions as to just what he wanted to do if and when shareholders weren't watching his every move: was he going to shift attention away from PCs toward the enterprise? There's no reason to worry, according to a staff memo that his company has published through the SEC. Dell tells his employees that the firm will "significantly increase investment" in PCs and tablets after going private. While he's cryptic about what that means, he does note that there would be a shift away from valuing gross margins -- in other words, the company may take a hit on profits to make its device sales sing. Other strategies are more what you'd expect from any good business: more research and development, a simpler experience and a stronger push into developing markets like Brazil and China. We can't say we're completely surprised when Microsoft made an investment in Dell's reorg precisely to safeguard PCs, but it's good to know that Dell's interest in PCs still extends well beyond the server room.
Samsung Galaxy S 4 for Verizon swings through the FCC
We weren't kidding about that influx of FCC filings: the Verizon edition of Samsung's Galaxy S 4, the SCH-i545, has passed through the US regulator's approval right on cue. The device on display ticks all the checkboxes we'd expect, including LTE on both Verizon's main 700MHz band and the carrier's recently acquired AWS frequencies. We also notice HSPA-based 3G, which suggests Big Red's GS4 won't be a paperweight when abroad. The filing just leaves AT&T and T-Mobile as the major stragglers in the US; at the current rate, though, they'll have little trouble getting clearance before they have to fulfill any future orders.
Sony Xperia Tablet Z passes through the FCC in WiFi trim
Sure, we've seen Sony dissect the Xperia Tablet Z to show its inner workings, but that doesn't get the slate any closer to its spring launch. An FCC approval will, however. The tablet has swung through the US agency in its regular WiFi form, with photos and a user manual removing any doubts as to its nature. While there are no surprises here -- not unless you really, really wanted to know the exact location of the WiFi antenna -- the move should leave just a few formalities between Americans and Sony's extra-thin design.
BlackBerry patent application shows the dual-screen phone that thankfully never was
Going dual-screen is really the nuclear option for smartphone design -- it's what you use to draw attention when your regular, single-screen phones aren't thriving. We're at once unsurprised and appreciative, then, that BlackBerry has applied for a patent on a dual-screen phone concept that hasn't gone further than a filing. As shown, it would embrace the familiar concept of running separate apps on each screen, with a slight twist: it could recognize touch gestures that span both displays, such as a pinch to switch app positions. Naturally, it could recognize distinct gestures on only one side or put a keyboard on one display for typing on the other. Given BlackBerry's current design directions and very different gesture concepts, the application is more of a what-might-have-been than any kind of roadmap. It's just as well when many twin-screen smartphones haven't exactly panned out.
OLPC XO-4 surfaces at the FCC, right on cue
The One Laptop Per Child team hasn't always been punctual -- see the XO 3.0, née XO-3 -- but it should be right on time with the XO-4. In step with March production plans, the ARM-based portable has passed through the FCC's approval in both conventional and touchscreen flavors. All models share 5GHz-capable 802.11n WiFi as well as Bluetooth; there's no cellular surprise lurking underneath, if you're curious. More than anything, the filing is good news for students in the developing world, who are that much closer to touchscreen laptops at a time when the technology is still fresh for just about everyone.
Microsoft hopes to patent an 'inconspicuous mode' for phones (updated)
We've all seen That Person in the movie theater: the one whose compulsive texting guarantees a distraction for everyone through the bright screen. Microsoft might not change that disruptive behavior, but it could save us from noticing through a new patent application. The team in Redmond is exploring an "inconspicuous mode" that would dial down not just the screen brightness and sound, but also the information on the display -- it could remove a bright background and limit the number of attention-grabbing notifications. The technique could even detect certain conditions, such a very dark bedroom, and invoke the mode without having to ask. Like with most patents, we don't know if Microsoft plans to use the technology in earnest; we've reached out, just in case a similar mode has previously lurked in the background. When the patent filling is crafted with Windows Phone in mind, however, we wouldn't be surprised if some future version of the mobile OS learns to mind its manners. Update: A Microsoft spokesperson did get in touch after our inquiry and confirmed that there hasn't been such a mode so far. We've also been reminded, as we mentioned, that Microsoft "regularly applies for and receives patents" and that "not all" of them will ultimately reach shipping products.
