Tag Archives: request

Verizon, FCC Reach ‘Super-Cookie’ Settlement On Targeted Ads

Federal regulators and Verizon Communications ( VZ ) reached a settlement over the broadband and wireless-phone company’s use of “super-cookies” that provide subscriber data for targeted advertising. Cookies track users’ browsing histories as they visit websites — as a means for Internet companies to target ads on subjects of interest to specific users. Verizon has agreed to pay a $1.35 million fine, the Federal Communications Commission said Monday. Verizon will be required to inform subscribers of the program’s existence and needs their permission to share data with third-party partners or internally. Verizon acquired AOL in June for $4.4 billion to gain digital advertising technology. Richard Young, a Verizon spokesman, said in a statement: “Over the past year, we have made several changes to our advertising programs that have provided consumers with even more options. Today’s settlement with the FCC recognizes that. We will continue to give customers the information they need to decide what programs and services are right for them.” The FCC started its probe in late 2014. In early 2015, the agency adopted new “net neutrality” rules, based on Title II of the Communications Act, that govern Internet service providers. “This is a win for consumers that will hopefully make companies think twice before engaging in practices that violate consumer privacy,” said U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., in a statement. Verizon stock was up 1% in afternoon trading in the stock market today . The FCC is readying new privacy rules that would impact ISPs such as Verizon, AT&T ( T ) and Comcast ( CMCSA ). The FCC plans to enforce Section 222 of the Title II rules, which would require telecom carriers to protect the confidentiality of customer information.

Valeant Now Reporting Q4 Earnings On March 15 After Delay; Stock Up

Specialty-drug giant Valeant Pharmaceuticals International ( VRX ) was up sharply Monday after it set a new date to report its Q4 and full-year 2015 earnings. Valeant said it would report the results on March 15, just over two weeks after the originally scheduled date of Feb. 29. Late on Feb. 28, Valeant had delayed the report due to the return of CEO J. Michael Pearson , who had been on leave for two months being treated for severe pneumonia. While his return initially heartened the Street, the fact that Valeant also withdrew its 2016 guidance, along with the leaked revelation that Valeant was the subject of a previously undisclosed SEC investigation, pushed the stock down 18% on Feb. 29. And even with Monday’s rise it still hasn’t recovered much. Several investment banks downgraded or cut the target price on Valeant stock after the Feb. 28 announcement, and Deutsche Bank suspended coverage entirely. Valeant also said it will update its 2016 guidance on its earnings conference call on March 15, as well as report past results, though the numbers will still be preliminary. The company has sought an extension from the SEC on its official 10-K annual report as it awaits the outcome of an ad hoc committee’s review of its finances, launched late last year after a scandal broke surrounding Valeant’s relationship with now-defunct specialty pharmacy Philidor. The committee already said last month that $58 million in Philidor-related revenue was improperly recognized in 2014, and its review continues. Valeant stock had been trading near a three-year low since last week, but in afternoon trading in the stock market today , shares were up 8%, near 66.

Can Facebook Live Video Beat Competition From Twitter, Snapchat?

With Twitter ( TWTR ) striving to boost its Periscope live-video streaming service, Facebook ( FB ) must prepare for plenty of competition in the live video streaming segment, wrote Monness Crespi Hardt analyst James Cakmak in an industry note on Monday. One trailblazer has already tossed in the towel, the investment bank said. While live video first grabbed mainstream attention with the meteoric rise of privately held trailblazer Meerkat during the South By Southwest music festival in Texas last year, “Meerkat is now officially pivoting away from live and into social — or, said another way, giving up on live due to competition,” wrote Cakmak. While not a brand new phenomenon, video streamed live remains a “niche” service, said Cakmak. “We expect to see significantly more attention from companies and investors placed on this category as the utility becomes more apparent to mid- and late-stage adopters,” he said. Another indicator of growing attention to the profit potential of live video includes Facebook’s recent rollout of its Facebook Live video streaming service to devices running on Alphabet ( GOOGL )-owned Google Android and throughout more international markets, Cakmak said. Twitter is also working to better integrate content from its Periscope service into the Twitter news feed, he said. “Given the company’s new identity around (live video), we expect marketing dollars to be put toward this in contrast with Facebook’s largely organic effort,” according to Cakmak. Meanwhile, Meerkat’s strategy change makes it “increasingly clear that between Facebook-owned Snapchat’s utilization and more resources being allocated to Facebook Live and Periscope, we expect attention in this category to only escalate from here,” he said. The recent $175 million funding round of privately held Snapchat, which has 8 billion daily views, will also open up “floodgates” in driving live content and consumption, Cakmak said. Total spending on digital video ads in the U.S. alone is projected to jump by two-thirds to $12.8 billion in 2018 from $7.7 billion this year, according to research group eMarketer. Twitter stock was up a fraction in afternoon trading in the stock market today , near 19. It brushed an all-time low of 13.91 last month. Facebook stock and Alphabet stock were each down more than 1% in afternoon trading. Image provided by Shutterstock .