Facebook buys WhatsApp for $19 billion

In a play to dominate messaging on phones and the Web, Facebook has acquired WhatsApp for $19 billion.

That's a stunning sum for the five-year old company. But WhatsApp has been able to hold its weight against messaging heavyweights like Twitter (TWTR), Google (GOOG,Fortune 500) and Microsoft's (MSFT, Fortune 500) Skype. WhatsApp has upwards of 450 million users, and it is adding an additional million users every day.

Referring to WhatsApp's soaring growth, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said on a conference call, "No one in the history of the world has done anything like that."

WhatsApp is the most popular messaging app for smartphones, according to OnDevice Research.

Buying WhatsApp will only bolster Facebook's already strong position in the crowded messaging world. Messenger, Facebook's a standalone messaging app for mobile devices, is second only to WhatsApp in its share of the smartphone market.

Related: 5 key moments that changed Facebook

Similar to traditional text messaging, WhatsApp allows people to connect via their cellphone numbers. But instead of racking up texting fees, WhatsApp sends the actual messages over mobile broadband. That makes WhatsApp particularly cost effective for communicating with people overseas.

That kind of mobile messaging services have become wildly popular, with twice as many messages sent over the mobile Internet than via traditional texts, according to Deloitte. But most of the messaging industry's revenue is still driven by text messaging.

On the conference call, Facebook said it is not looking to drive revenue from WhatsApp in the near term, instead focusing on growth. Zuckerberg said he doesn't anticipate trying to aggressively grow WhatsApp's revenue until the service reaches "billions" of users.

WhatsApp currently charges a dollar a year after giving customers their first year of use for free. WhatsApp CEO Jan Koum said on the conference call that WhatsApp's business model is already successful.

That indicates Facebook bought WhatsApp to add value to its existing messaging services, as well as for the long-term potential of the company.

Facebook bought Instagram for $1 billion in 2012 for similar reasons: As young social network users gravitated towards photo-sharing, Facebook wanted to scoop up what could have eventually become a big rival.

Like Instagram, WhatsApp will function as an autonomous unit within Facebook, with all the existing employees coming in as part of the deal.

Facebook (FB, Fortune 500) said it will pay WhatsApp $4 billion in cash and $12 billion in stock. WhatsApp's founders and staff will be eligible for for another $3 billion in stock grants to be paid out if they remain employed by Facebook for four years. Koum will also join Facebook's board of directors

Twitter To Be Bought By Facebook And Google For $10 Billion?

Google Inc and Facebook Inc, plus others, have held low level takeover talks with Twitter that give the Internet sensation a value as high as $10 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported.

In December, Twitter raised $200 million in financing in a deal that valued it at $3.7 billion. The company, which allows users to broadcast 140-character messages to groups of followers, had 175 million users as of September.

The Wall Street Journal reported on its website that executives at Twitter have held "low level" talks with executives at Facebook and Google in recent months about a possible takeover of Twitter.

Citing people familiar with the matter, the WSJ said other companies have also held similar talks.

"But what's remarkable is the money that people familiar with the matter say frames the discussions with at least some potential suitors; an estimated valuation in the neighborhood of $8 billion to $10 billion," the report said.

The paper said the talks have so far gone nowhere and that Google, Facebook and Twitter all declined to comment.

Despite the valuation, the report said Twitter's executives and board were working on building a large, independent company.

"People familiar with the situation said the company believes it can grow into a $100 billion company," the WSJ said.

Twitter, created in 2006, is among a crop of popular Internet social networking services that includes Facebook, Zynga and LinkedIn.

A growing secondary market has developed in shares of the privately held Web sensations and investors are monitoring the companies closely in the hope they might float shares.

It was only in the middle of 2010 that Twitter offered marketers a way to advertise on the service.

Industry research firm eMarketer said last month that Twitter, which doesn't disclose financial information, generated an estimated $45 million from advertising in 2010 and is expected to generate some $150 million this year.

Google, the world's number 1 Internet search engine, generated roughly $29 billion in revenue in 2010 and Facebook, recently valued at $50 billion, produced about $1.9 billion, eMarketer said.

 Which of this company will it favour more and why.

Dont ever tag my daughters' pic sexy and hot - Omotola Jalade

One of Nollywood’s best, Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde has taken out time to rebuke and warn bloggers who tagged her 14-year-old daughter Meraiah as ‘sexy and hot’ after the minor posted pictures online as she marked her 14th birthday recently.
Omotola, who rang the warning on her Facebook page, did not hesitate to suggest that any such comments in future over her kids would come with some penalty.
See her post below:
Thank you to everyone who wished Meraiah a happy birthday. However, going to a 14-year-old’s ‘private’ online accts to post her pictures for public viewing is totally inappropriate. Her father and I are horrified as parents and guardian that a minor’s picture can be paraded online as ‘hot,’ ‘sexy…’
We know the bloggers probably meant no harm but in a world full of pedophiles and sickos, every adult with morales should know where to draw the line. This was started by a lady called Kemi Filani, she has since apologized and taken down content but her reckless blog post lives on.
I WILL NOT hesitate henceforth to use everything within my power to bring ANYONE to justice who does this with any of my under aged kids after ‘this’ first time episode!
Any child under 18 should be protected by us all and if their parents/guardian haven’t given you the okay to publish information especially ‘private’ of their child, doing so, is against the law.
I hope you all understand thanks. Omotola.

Fuel Scarcity!

The artificial fuel scarcity that has hit Nigeria has left several Nigerians breathless, and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has attributed the partial fuel scarcity in some states of the country to a disruption in the product’s distribution chain.

Dr Omar Ibrahim, Acting General Manager Public Affairs Division, NNPC has however assured Nigerians that normalcy would return in petroleum distribution by Thursday.

Reason for the Scarcity: Major Pipeline Vandalization

Dr Ibrahim said that two points of the corporation’s major pipelines were vandalized – one at Akute in Lagos, and another in Ogere, Ogun state, both in the South-west region of Nigeria.

He noted that the current situation was one of distribution, not shortage of supply, and explained that the corporation has been working since Tuesday to restore functionality to the two points.

“It was a problem of distribution and not shortage of supply, and it was due to the vandalization of the two main lines of Mosimi and Atlas Cove.

“Our team has started working since Tuesday (Feb. 18) and as at 2.30 pm today (Wednesday), we have started re-streaming Mosimi line and by 4.18 p.m., we were able to pump to Atlas Cove.

“With the two lines in operation, normalcy will return immediately because we are also monitoring the pipeline,” he stated.


However, This Day Live newspaper reports that Lagos’ fuel situation may have been worsened by an oil spill across the Lagos metropolis in the Ijegun area of the state. The spill is reported to have flooded over 300 houses in the area, which forced the PPMC to lock the fuel valve to forestall further spill. The valve lock has resulted in a fuel shortfall, which has translated to a scarcity wave in Lagos, which has led people to panic buying.

An anonymous government official, reporting to This Day, said: “When the community alerted NNPC of the spill. They were forced to shut down production in order to carry out repairs. They stopped pumping products.

“The products that are in the market were those already in the pipeline. Once the valves were shut off, repairs began in order to restore the pipeline back to order.

“When the marketers discovered what has happened, they started hoarding products because they are not sure when or where they would get products to buy.

“That hoarding of products is what is manifesting today as fuel scarcity. But that would soon end because once NNPC starts pumping again, we can assure you that products would be back to the market.”

The New Fuel Price

Even though the FG has regulated fuel price at N97 per litre, PM news reports that the price of fuel in many parts of Lagos and Ogun state has been hiked to N100 per litre. P.M. news reports, however, that NNPC and Total stations were still dispensing petrol at the normal price.

“Do not Panic-Buy Fuel, Nigerians” - PPMC

The Pipeline and Products Marketing Company (PPMC), an NNPC subsidiary has said that there is enough fuel in stock, and Nigerians do not need to hoard fuel or engage in panic buying.

Nasir Imodagbe, spokesperson for the PPMC, said “we have robust supply of fuel, same with NNPC to serve the country for days; I don’t know where the issue of scarcity is coming from. We are appealing to Nigerians not to engage in panic buying, because there are enough products to keep the country moving. We advise the marketers not to hoard fuel as anyone caught would be sanctioned,” he said.

And the Black Market comes to the rescue

Commercial bus drivers have found solace in the black market, which gives with one hand and collects with the other. Commercial bus drivers say they are now forced to buy fuel at exorbitant prices and the spillover effect is that passengers now have to pay higher prices to arrive their destination. The resultant fuel hike and long queues at petrol stations has resulted in higher frustration levels in the state.

Sanusi Lamido sacked by FG

President Jonathan has announced the suspension of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi.

This was made known in a statement signed Thursday by Reuben Abati Special Adviser to the President (Media & Publicity.

The statement further Directed that the most Senior Deputy Governor of the CBN, “Dr Sarah Alade who will serve as Acting Governor until the conclusion of on-going investigations into breaches of enabling laws, due process and mandate of the CBN”.

The statement reads thus

Having taken special notice of reports of the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria and other investigating bodies, which indicate clearly that Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi’s tenure has been characterized by various acts of financial recklessness and misconduct which are inconsistent with the administration’s vision of a Central Bank propelled by the core values of focused economic management, prudence, transparency and financial discipline;

Being also deeply concerned about far-reaching irregularities under Mallam Sanusi’s watch which have distracted the Central Bank away from the pursuit and achievement of its statutory mandate; and

Being determined to urgently re-position the Central Bank of Nigeria for greater efficiency, respect for due process and accountability, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has ordered the immediate suspension of Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi from the Office of Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria.

President Jonathan has further ordered that Mallam Sanusi should hand over to the most senior Deputy Governor of the CBN, Dr Sarah Alade who will serve as Acting Governor until the conclusion of on-going investigations into breaches of enabling laws, due process and mandate of the CBN.

The President expects that as Acting Governor of the Central Bank, Dr. Alade will focus on the core mandate of the Bank and conduct its affairs with greater professionalism, prudence and propriety to restore domestic and international confidence in the country’s apex bank.

The Federal Government of Nigeria reassures all stakeholders in Nigeria’s financial and monetary system that this decision has been taken in absolute good faith, in the overall interest of the Nigerian economy and in accordance with our laws and due process.