WeChat rivals WhatsApp with 396m monthly users
Tencent has announced that its mobile messaging app WeChat ended the first quarter of 2014 with 396 million monthly active users, as its expansion beyond China continues.
China
Which 16 brands get a billion customers a year?
Only 16 global FMCG brands were chosen by consumers more than one billion times last year, with local brands growing twice as fast as global ones, according to new research.
Global consumer confidence ‘rises to pre-recession levels’
Consumer confidence around the world ended on a flat note in 2013, but signs of a brighter sentiment were right around the corner, according to new data from Nielsen.
World’s biggest media owners: Google leads as China’s CCTV and Baidu grow
Google is still the world’s largest media company in the world, as two Chinese firms CCTV and Baidu rise up the ranks, according to new data.
ZTE uses eBay again to sell latest £70 Firefox smartphone
ZTE is selling its £69.99 Firefox OS smartphone, the Open C, exclusively through eBay ahead of its general release next month.
Global smartphone wars: Apple regains market share as Windows stumbles
Apple has performed strongly in the first quarter of the year, with sales bouncing back in Europe, Japan and Australia, but Android still dominates globally, according to new data.
Angry Birds maker profits fall by half
Rovio, the Finnish game maker behind Angry Birds, saw revenues rise just 2.5% as profit growth fell by half, according to its latest financial post.
Amazon’s high costs eat into profits
Internet retailer Amazon reported a 32% rise in profits to $108m (£64m) in the first quarter of 2014, but expenses rose 23% on last year.
Apple buys back shares as profits rise 5%
Apple has enjoyed a strong first quarter of the year, with the electronics giant planning to buy stock back from shareholders while increasing its quarterly dividend by 8%.
Nokia to be renamed Microsoft Mobile?
The Nokia brand could be obsolete by the end of this year, as Microsoft’s takeover of the iconic mobile maker nears completion.