Techmeme: Mozilla to introduce new API for Firefox to make it easier to port extensions from other browsers, to deprecate certain classes of add-ons 12-18 months from now (Kev Needham/Mozilla Add-ons Blog)

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August 21, 2015, 4:25 PM

Top News

Daniel Ek / Spotify Blog:

Spotify apologizes for confusion over privacy policy, clarifies that no information will be collected without explicit permission — Sorry! — We are in the middle of rolling out new terms and conditions and privacy policy and they've caused a lot of confusion about what kind of information we access and what we do with it.

Reuters:

Leaked Uber presentation: global bookings to reach $10.8B in 2015, revenue would be roughly $2B, IPO within 18-24 months — Uber seen reaching $10.8 billion in bookings in 2015: fundraising presentation — Uber Technologies Inc's [UBER.UL] global bookings are projected to rise nearly threefold …

More: TechCrunch, Re/code, VatorNews, PCWorld, CNBC, SiliconANGLE, Tnooz, TIME and Seeking Alpha

Jerry Hildenbrand / Android Central:

Google no longer requires new Android devices to ship with Google+, Google Newsstand, Google Play Games and Books apps pre-installed — Your new phone will have less Google bloatware, and that's awesome — You might have heard that the new Samsung Galaxy Note 5 comes without Google+ preinstalled.

More: The Digital Reader, TechnoBuffalo, Gizmodo, Marketing Land, PhoneRadar, Ausdroid, MobileSyrup.com, ZDNet, Ubergizmo, Digital Trends, Good E-Reader, SlashGear, Android Beat and TechSpot

Napier Lopez / The Next Web:

Google integrates Twitter into its desktop search results — Google and Twitter are getting a little friendlier; you can now view tweet feeds from various accounts and hashtags right from Google.com on the desktop. — You can search something like “The Next Web Twitter” and Google will pull up a feed of our latest tweets.

More: TechCrunch, Search Engine Land, Marketing Land, PCWorld, Re/code, SlashGear and WebProNews

Tweets: @google and @twitter

Dan Goodin / Ars Technica:

New data uncovers the surprising predictability of Android lock patterns — Like “p@$$w0rd” and “1234567” many Android patterns are easy to guess. — Marte Løge — The abundance of password leaks over the past decade has revealed some of the most commonly used …

More: BGR, Daring Fireball, Android Beat, Neowin, Boing Boing and FlowingData

Kev Needham / Mozilla Add-ons Blog:

Mozilla to introduce new API for Firefox to make it easier to port extensions from other browsers, to deprecate certain classes of add-ons 12-18 months from now — The Future of Developing Firefox Add-ons — Today we are announcing some major upcoming changes to Firefox add-ons.

More: DownThemAll!, Computerworld, ZDNet, TechCrunch, PCWorld, gHacks Technology News, VentureBeat, WebProNews, The Verge, Mozilla Developer Network, The Next Web, SlashGear and OMG! Chrome!. Thanks:@arpitnext

Chance Miller / 9to5Mac:

Apple TV outsold by Amazon's Fire TV in 2014, now the fourth most popular streaming device — According to recent data released by Parks Associates, Apple TV currently is the fourth most popular streaming media device based on 2014 sales, down from third place in 2013.

More: Parks Associates, Fortune, DSLreports, Business Insider, Daring Fireball, Macworld, InvestorPlace, Light Reading, OMG! Chrome!, Network World, iDownloadBlog.com, AppleInsider, Home Media Magazine, App Advice, iPhone in Canada Blog, MacNN, MacRumors and 9to5Google

Nigel Manuel / CNET:

Samsung offers iPhone users a free 30-day trial with new Galaxy phones on any carrier — Samsung to give iPhone users a trial run with new Galaxy smartphones — Just weeks before the Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy S6 Edge+ launches, Samsung is attempting to sway iPhone users.

Carmel DeAmicis / Re/code:

Bill Gurley marks recent tech sell-off with another warning about unprofitable unicorns, says cycle “where growth is valued more than profitability” may end — Bill Gurley to Unicorns: Winter Is Coming. You Ready? — Tech stocks have been taking a beating lately …

More: GeekWire. Tweets: @bgurley, @bgurley, @pkedrosky, @stevesi, @stewart and @benedictevans

Reuters:

Tesla engineer joins Apple's growing team of automated car experts — Consumer electronics company Apple Inc (AAPL.O) has hired a senior engineer from electric car maker Tesla Motors Inc (TSLA.O), according to a LinkedIn posting, as part of Apple's effort to build a team of experts in automated driving.

More: MacRumors, 9to5Mac, iPhone Hacks, Fortune and iPhone in Canada Blog

Jordan Crook / TechCrunch:

SmartThings Support Is Coming To Amazon Echo — It would appear that Amazon has plans to team up with SmartThings to power various home automation features with the Amazon Echo, the voice-powered personal assistant device. — According to a Google web cache of the SmartThings blog …

More: Zatz Not Funny!, GeekWire, BetaNews, Engadget, TechHive, ZDNet, The Next Web and SlashGear

Jordan Crook / TechCrunch:

Swarm releases version 3.0, includes leaderboards with friends, coins, and ‘Here Now’ feature; available on iOS and Android today, coming soon to Windows Phone — Swarm Gets Back Into The Game With Leaderboards — In its quest to add a little fun through your (literal) …

More: The Foursquare Blog, The Next Web, The Verge and 9to5Google

Tweets: @joshconstine, @panzer, @dcseifert, @jeffsangeorge and @ryancduff

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