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Facebook's Odd Photo Bans Highlight Censorship Dilemmas

Sat, 26 May 2012 17:21:00 -0400

COMMENTARY | Breast cancer survivor Joanne Jackson is haggling with Facebook to be allowed to keep her post-mastectomy photos on the site, the Yorkshire Evening Post reports. Facebook considers Jackson's bare chest to be pornography because the site doesn't allow images of breasts.

Spanish Soccer Scores a Goal on Social Media

Sat, 26 May 2012 14:56:12 -0400

When Mashable took a look at the English Premier League's social media side last week, the main takeaway was that the 2012 season marked the big social push of the world's most high-profile soccer league.

Minute by minute, Nasdaq chaos engulfed Facebook IPO

Sat, 26 May 2012 14:32:06 -0400

(Reuters) - Dead silence. For nearly 20 minutes on the morning of Facebook Inc's trading debut last Friday, the line Nasdaq had opened up to keep traders informed about the social media company's $16 billion IPO had been mute. Well after the stock was supposed to have opened at 11 a.m. New York time, no one from Nasdaq was talking - and there was still no sign of trading. Finally, at 11:28 a.m., an unidentified person announced that the shares would open in about 2 minutes. Nasdaq also said orders and cancellations were still being processed, according to several sources listening to the call. ...

Meet the Banker Being Blamed for Facebook's IPO Flop

Sat, 26 May 2012 13:52:46 -0400

Facebook's messy IPO and the fallout over the following week have left many looking for someone to blame, and apparently inside Morgan Stanley it's falling on one of their star investment bankers, Michael Grimes.

President Obama Masters the Art of the 'Tweet'

Sat, 26 May 2012 13:27:00 -0400

The presidential candidates are taking to social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter to get their campaign messages out to a wider audience. President Barack Obama has declared himself the "Twoosh Master" after completing a tweet using all 140 characters, according to Politico.

Embittered Facebook investors ponder next move

Sat, 26 May 2012 12:07:29 -0400

To say that Facebook's debut as a public company was bungled is something like saying Facebook is a website you might have heard of.

How To Organize A Social Media Day Meetup

Sat, 26 May 2012 11:00:57 -0400

Mashable‘s third annual Social Media Day is on Saturday, June 30, 2012!

Facebook IPO was a Success for the Company

Sat, 26 May 2012 10:04:00 -0400

COMMENTARY | For all the excitement and anticipation surrounding the Facebook IPO, you would think the involved parties would have handled the event with meticulous care. But Reuters reports there is already over $100 million in lawsuits over the handling, or mishandling, of the biggest IPO in years. Further, USA Today reports a number of probes and investigations have resulted from the tumbling stock price of Facebook.

'True Blood,' 'Twilight' Sink Teeth Into Social Media [INFOGRAPHIC]

Sat, 26 May 2012 08:24:07 -0400

TV critics predict True Blood, the hit HBO series about vampires and other superhuman characters, will dominate conversations online this summer. And while the show's plot is responsible for driving much of the dialogue across social networks, True Blood's social media tactics to engage viewers propels the buzz to another level.

Facebook Rolling Out 'Trending Videos' [REPORT]

Sat, 26 May 2012 07:56:51 -0400

Facebook users have encountered "trending articles" popping up in their news feeds for the past few weeks. This new feature highlights articles that are popular with your friends, ensuring you don't miss a hot story because it gets pushed down to the bottom of your feed.

Wis. officials unknowingly break law with Facebook

Sat, 26 May 2012 00:40:46 -0400

High-ranking members of both political parties were unaware that posting photos of completed ballots on Facebook or Twitter is illegal in Wisconsin, and they promised to quickly take down the posts Friday after election officials reminded voters of the law.

Facebook IPO is flashback to dot-com class action

Fri, 25 May 2012 23:58:47 -0400

This is not the first time investors in a hot tech company's initial public offering have alleged that underwriters favored their regular clients at the expense of the little guys. In the tech bubble of the late 1990s, IPO investors became suspicious of the steep run-up in prices that seemed inevitably to follow a stock's debut. Eventually, some 309 IPO shareholder class actions were rolled into a giant multidistrict lawsuit called In re: Initial Public Offering Securities Litigation. ...

Why that flat Facebook IPO isn't so bad after all

Fri, 25 May 2012 20:05:07 -0400

The botched offering of Facebook stock has raised several troubling questions, but at least we don't have to worry about the one that plagues many IPOs: How are a few select investors able to buy in early at lower prices and then pocket huge profits when the trading frenzy begins?

SEC eyes Nasdaq compliance in Facebook debacle

Fri, 25 May 2012 19:33:08 -0400

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Securities regulators are looking into whether Nasdaq violated any technical exchange rules when it botched Facebook Inc's market debut last week, according to people familiar with the matter. The review of potential technical violations is part of the Securities and Exchange Commission's broader look at how Nasdaq handled its part of the initial public offering, including its decision to proceed with trading despite glitches, these people said. The SEC is also reviewing Nasdaq's communications with market participants, one of those people added. ...

Facebook hit with another class action suit, this time over IPO debacle

Fri, 25 May 2012 19:30:36 -0400

Pennsylvania-based law firm Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP on Friday filed a class action lawsuit against Facebook regarding the handling of its initial public offering, which was made on March 18th. On the day of its IPO, the company was hit with a privacy-related class action lawsuit seeking $15 billion in damages. This new complaint, which was filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, charges Facebook and multiple officers, directors and underwriters with violating the Securities Act of 1933 by failing to disclose or disregarding material adverse facts that were known to them. “The Complaint asserts that defendants failed to disclose at the time of the IPO that Facebook was then experiencing a severe and pronounced

Martin Van Buren becomes a social media star

Fri, 25 May 2012 18:10:43 -0400

Why is former President Martin Van Buren trending in Google and getting a lot of play on Twitter? It’s because a young boy dropped Van Buren’s name on a popular talk show.

Facebook ripple on IPO market already felt

Fri, 25 May 2012 18:02:28 -0400

(Reuters) - The ripple effects of Facebook Inc's botched IPO appear to already be hitting the market for initial public offerings as two companies this week pushed back their market debuts. PC hardware components maker Corsair Components Inc postponed its $78 million IPO citing market conditions, as did laser hair removal products maker Tria Beauty Inc,which intended to raise $64 million. The delays may be just the first of many, say market observers, as volatile equity markets and fallout from the Facebook debacle create a challenging climate for new offerings. ...

Facebook's Camera App Puts Some Fun Back into the Game

Fri, 25 May 2012 17:43:00 -0400

COMMENTARY | With all the hoopla surround the billions of dollars floating around the Facebook IPO, it is easy to forget about what made the social network so popular in the first place -- it was fun.

Facebook's market maker losses may top $115 million: sources

Fri, 25 May 2012 17:12:31 -0400

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Four of Wall Street's major market makers involved in Facebook's botched initial public offering last Friday expect their losses from technical glitches on Nasdaq's exchange to be around $115 million. A software error on Nasdaq OMX Group Inc's U.S. exchange delayed the social networking company's market debut by 30 minutes last Friday. Many client orders were delayed, leading to significant losses to some investors and traders as the stock price dropped. The exchange operator is facing lawsuits from investors and threats of legal action from brokers. ...

Facebook IPO glitch prompts margin calls, headaches

Fri, 25 May 2012 17:09:15 -0400

BOSTON (Reuters) - Just hours before Facebook Inc made its stock market debut last Friday, Seuk Kim put in a limit order $4 above the initial public offering price. "I thought it was going to have that first day pop," Kim said. "I didn't think anyone would get in at the $38 IPO price." Limit orders give investors a measure of protection because the stock is eligible to be purchased at or below the designated limit price, but never above it. The frenzy around Facebook had investors guessing they had to put in limit orders far above the $38 IPO price in order to get in on the action. ...

Prices of Facebook stock since long-awaited IPO

Fri, 25 May 2012 17:03:15 -0400

Facebook Inc. began trading publicly last Friday following one of the most anticipated stock offerings in history. The initial public offering of stock priced at $38 a day earlier. That was at the top of a projected range that Facebook had already boosted just days earlier.

UBS lost $30 million on Facebook IPO fiasco: source

Fri, 25 May 2012 16:24:46 -0400

NEW YORK (Reuters) - UBS AG had trading losses of around $30 million stemming from Facebook Inc's botched initial public offering on Nasdaq OMX Group Inc's U.S. exchange, a source with knowledge of the situation said on Friday. UBS was one of four main market makers involved in Facebook's IPO on May 18. Its losses come on top of claims by Citigroup's market making unit of $20 million, and Knight Capital Group Inc and Citadel Securities of $30 million to $35 million each in losses. (Reporting By John McCrank)

Feeding frenzy for lawyers in botched Facebook IPO

Fri, 25 May 2012 16:05:29 -0400

(Reuters) - Facebook Inc's bungled initial public offering has gone from one of the most highly anticipated stock offerings to a hot legal opportunity for lawyers on both sides of shareholder litigation. Court battles over the fizzled IPO could run for years, as the social networking company, the banks that took it public and the Nasdaq OMX Group Inc face claims that they short-changed investors. Besides fighting off claims by Facebook shareholders, the defendants will also need lawyers to respond to inquiries from government investigators looking into how the IPO was handled. ...

Facebook market makers' losses at least $100 million

Fri, 25 May 2012 16:05:29 -0400

(Reuters) - Claims by four of Wall Street's main market makers against Nasdaq over Facebook's botched IPO are likely to exceed $100 million, as they and other traders continue to deal with thousands of problems with customer orders. A technical glitch delayed the social networking company's market debut by 30 minutes on Friday and many client orders were delayed, giving some investors and traders significant losses as the stock price dropped. The exchange operator is facing lawsuits from investors and threats of legal action from brokers. ...

Facebook reportedly in talks to acuire Web browser maker Opera

Fri, 25 May 2012 15:55:04 -0400

Following Facebook’s $1 billion acquisition of Instagram, it looks like the company has no intention of slowing down. According to a report from Pocket-lint, the social networking giant may be looking to enter the Web browsing market by purchasing Opera Software. The move would put Facebook in direct competition with Microsoft and Mozilla, and it would certainly apply increased pressure to Google as well. Opera’s mobile browser has seen strong growth in recent years, however the same cannot be said for its desktop version, which lags far behind Chrome, Internet Explorer, Firefox and Safari. A Facebook browser could potentially allow users to stay up to date with their social life using built-in plug-ins and features integrated into the browser’s UI. Read

Facebook flop hurts small investors' trust in stocks

Fri, 25 May 2012 15:51:36 -0400

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Just when brokers thought Mom-and-Pop investors were getting excited about the stock market, along came Facebook. The 17 percent plunge in Facebook's shares since its ballyhooed debut last Friday, coupled with Nasdaq's mishandling of opening day trading, is spooking the very investors who had seemed the most intrigued by the offering, said Wall Street executives. ...

Facebook options debut a wild card for volatility

Fri, 25 May 2012 15:26:53 -0400

(Reuters) - Investors can hope the debut of options on Facebook Inc goes more smoothly than the long-awaited debut of the social networking service's stock on May 18. While the stock's puts and calls are expected to be popular, the big wild card is volatility and ultimately, the options price. Traders will get a fresh start on options on the Internet giant when the contracts are offered on U.S. options exchanges on May 29. ...

The Week's Top 20 in Social Media

Fri, 25 May 2012 15:03:22 -0400

The social media sphere is an increasingly noisy place, especially for brands. But hiding somewhere in the static are strong signals from companies reaching their customers in innovative ways. The Social Business Index from Dachis Group provides a (free) real-time ranking of more than 30,000 global brands based on their social performance. Every week we're taking a tally of who's getting heard, what they're saying, and why it matters.

Facebook's IPO Has Given Henry Blodget the Chance to Say Sorry

Fri, 25 May 2012 14:45:29 -0400

Henry Blodget, the Business Insider mogul, is the perfect man to cover Facebook's IPO drama. In fact, there may never be another story better suited for Blodget to cover. Not only does the twisty, controversial tale of the social network's IPO speak directly to Blodget's area of expertise, but in covering it day in and day out, Blodget may finally find redemption for his past.

Citi unit lost $20 million in Facebook IPO: source

Fri, 25 May 2012 14:21:03 -0400

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc's Automated Trading Desk had trading losses of about $20 million from Facebook Inc's botched initial public offering on Nasdaq OMX Group Inc's U.S. exchange, a source with knowledge of the situation said on Friday. The unit's losses were in addition to claims by market makers Knight Capital Group Inc and Citadel Securities, which each had losses of $30 million to $35 million. UBS AG, the other large market maker involved in the IPO of the social networking company on May 18, has not disclosed any losses. ...

Facebook IPO debacle raises investor dander

Fri, 25 May 2012 13:19:38 -0400

The spate of complaints and investigations over the Facebook stock offering suggests big institutions had an edge over small investors, raising questions about the process.

Story by Pultizer Prize winner serialized on Twitter

Fri, 25 May 2012 12:59:25 -0400

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A story by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jennifer Egan for the New Yorker is being serialized in 10 installments on Twitter, according to the magazine. The New Yorker said the first installment of the story, a spy thriller called "Black Box, went out on Thursday night. "The story is written in terse dispatches of 140 characters or less, which will be tweeted, through The New Yorker Fiction Department's Twitter handle, @NYerFiction, in ten nightly installments between 8 and 9 P.M. E.T," it said in a statement. ...

Robert Pattinson in 'Cosmopolis': Twitter highlights from Cannes

Fri, 25 May 2012 12:38:42 -0400

Film reviewers approved of Cosmopolis upon its Cannes premiere, but fans expressed reservations when a rumor linked its leading man Robert Pattinson to The Hunger Games.

Facebook Pushes 'Close Friends' List, Becomes More Like Google+

Fri, 25 May 2012 11:54:44 -0400

Facebook is testing a new feature called Close Friends, which lets you know every action the people you add to the list take on the social network. Facebook told Mashable it began the push to some users Thursday.

Prepare for the Facebook Browser [RUMOR]

Fri, 25 May 2012 11:40:46 -0400

Are you ready for a Facebook browser that integrates the social networking behemoth into your online life more than ever? That's exactly what could be on the way soon, according to one report.

The Stock Is Down But the Sky Isn't Falling for Facebook

Fri, 25 May 2012 10:28:38 -0400

Dallas Lawrence writes about emerging media trends, online reputation management, and digital issue advocacy. Follow him @dallaslawrence.

F1 may delay IPO after 'that problem with Facebook'

Fri, 25 May 2012 10:09:20 -0400

Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone on Friday indicated that a planned flotation of the sport on the Singapore stock exchange may have to be delayed due to the global economic crisis.

The Small Investors Who Lost Big on Facebook's IPO

Fri, 25 May 2012 09:59:36 -0400

A Big Guy v. Little Guy narrative has emerged from this post-Facebook IPO fallout. We already know about the Big Guy -- Facebook and its underwriters -- but now we're starting to hear what those little guys have to say.

Priest apologizes for unholy language on Facebook

Fri, 25 May 2012 09:24:47 -0400

A British priest has apologized for some unholy language on his Facebook page, his bishop says.

The New Yorker story that's being published one tweet a time

Fri, 25 May 2012 08:41:00 -0400

Pulitzer Prize—winning author Jennifer Egan is using one of the magazine's Twitter feeds to tweet a short story in 140-character bursts. Is this (sigh) the future of publishing?