Yahoo is holding an event on Monday to “share something special” and a $1.1 billion (£715 million) buyout of Tumblr seems to be the most likely announcement.  Reports suggest that Yahoo was planning on investing in the site, but has upgraded it to an outright acquisition. Yahoo has expressed a desire to attract younger people – more user-generated content of the likes pioneered by Tumblr will go someway to achieving that. If the deal goes ahead, it’ll be the biggest Mayer has overseen since taking over …read more »

Facebook has blocked an app called Social Roulette that mimics the potentially lethal game of chance Russian Roulette by offering users a one-in-six chance of deleting their Facebook account. The app launched at the weekend as an online version of Russian Roulette, by allowing players the chance to spin a virtual revolver, with one of the revolver’s chambers featuring a version of the Facebook logo. The app had a one-in-six chance of deleting a user’s account and a five-in-six chance of just posting ‘I …read more »

The Windows Phone has overtaken BlackBerry in the smart phone sales war. But as Windows Phone sales double, the latest figures reveal that Android still dominates. BlackBerry’s share of the smart phone market dropped by a third to 2.9 per cent, allowing Windows Phone to slide into third place after doubling sales from this time last year. The new lineup of BlackBerry 10 phones, beginning with the BlackBerry Z10 and Q10, has clearly yet to capture the public imagination – but perhaps that’ll change with the budget-friendly BlackBerry …read more »

If Amazon does decide to enter the smartphone race – as has long been speculated – it could be with a great deal of aplomb if the latest rumours of a 3D smartphone are to be believed. Reports have surfaced that Amazon has a range of new gadgets in the works, including two smartphones and an audio-streaming device. One of them is reportedly a high-end device with a 3D display. The 3D effect doesn’t require specialised glasses and can apparently be seen from all …read more »

Android tablets like the Google Nexus 7 and Amazon Kindle Fire are eating into the iPad’s dominance of the market, as total tablet sales double. Overall, 308.7 million smart phones, tablets, and laptops were sold in the first three months of the year. Tablet sales are the fastest-growing part of the mobile device market, with sales of slates climbing 106.1 percent over the past year. 41.9 million tablets have flown off shelves this year. The iPad and iPad mini make up 46.4 per cent of tablets sold – …read more »