Hasta La Gadget!

The bloom is slightly off the rose for Facebook. After a banner first post-IPO quarter, it’s recording a net loss in its fiscal third quarter of $59 million despite its revenue climbing to $1.26 billion — a big swing that the company is blaming on payroll tax tweaks and income taxes, which becomes clearer when you learn that the company posted a $311 million profit before factoring in standard accounting practices. Facebook hasn’t said exactly what had the biggest impact, although its closing the Instagram deal wouldn’t have helped matters. Still, the company isn’t glum about its prospects: following an earlier mention of the milestone by founder Mark Zuckerberg, the earnings report touts that there are over 1.01 billion active Facebook users who check in at least once a month, over 604 million of which were mobile. Between a reworked iOS app, a freshened Facebook Messenger and new ad-friendly SDKs, the social network is bracing for a potential bonanza ahead.

Continue reading Facebook posts $59 million net loss in fiscal Q3, touts 1.01 billion active users

Filed under: Internet, Facebook

Facebook posts $59 million net loss in fiscal Q3, touts 1.01 billion active users originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Oct 2012 16:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

RIM may have given us hope that its transition to BlackBerry 10 has turned a corner, but that doesn’t mean the dark clouds have entirely broken just yet. The company’s second fiscal quarter saw it generate $2.9 billion in revenue, a slight gain over last quarter, while it posted a net loss of $235 million — again better than expected, but not the best news it could deliver. Waterloo’s main challenge was holding on to its smartphone base. While RIM did expand the total BlackBerry user base to 80 million, its phone shipments dropped from 7.8 million to 7.4 million and were braced by shipments of just 130,000 PlayBooks, or half as many tablets as were delivered in the spring.

The sunshine is mostly found in the total picture. RIM says it’s still on track to deliver the first BlackBerry 10 phones in early 2013; while the smartphone maker is bracing for an operating loss in its ongoing third quarter, the higher revenue and reduced losses suggest to CEO Thorsten Heins that RIM is getting its fiscal house in order before BlackBerry 10 (hopefully) renews interest. Full details of the company’s financial performance are available after the break.

Continue reading RIM posts Q2 earnings: $2.87 billion in revenue, softer $235 million loss

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Mobile

RIM posts Q2 earnings: $2.87 billion in revenue, softer $235 million loss originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 16:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

RIM hasn’t had much good news to offer along with its glum fiscal first quarter, but it has given a reason to mark early 2013 on the calendar if you’re a BlackBerry fan. CEO Thorsten Heins revealed during the results call that the first QWERTY BlackBerry 10 phone will arrive in “close proximity” to its touchscreen-only counterpart. What that entails is still very much under wraps, although there were clues. Heins stressed that the early batch would focus on the “premium” space, while BlackBerry 7 would hold down the entry and mid-range markets until their BlackBerry 10 replacements were ready. The tidbits won’t provide much comfort to someone who has to decide on a phone by the holidays, but they hint that the truly patient could be rewarded for their calm under pressure.

RIM: QWERTY BlackBerry 10 phone launches in ‘close proximity’ to its all-touch cousin originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Jun 2012 17:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments