Facebook is officially under investigation by the FTC following the Cambridge Analytica data privacy scandal. The company has had issues with the agency in the past; among other things, the current investigation will look into whether or not Facebook violated a 2011 consent decree that it signed, promising stronger privacy practices. Is Facebook toast? Its stock was down 6 percent early yesterday, pushing the company’s share price below $150 for the first time since July. Meanwhile, here’s a thoughtful counterpoint to #DeleteFacebook as a protest strategy. [Kurt Wagner / Recode]
Recode Daily: The U.S. investigates Facebook; Arizona stops Uber’s self-driving cars
Plus, Spotify issues go-go guidance ahead of next Tuesday’s IPO, and Turntable Orchestra celebrates the world’s first LP record.
Cow Clicker / Ian Boost / The Atlantic
The story of a silly Facebook game called Cow Clicker shows how all those innocent-looking apps and games and quizzes have been harvesting your data all this time. [Ian Bogost / The Atlantic]
Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey suspended Uber’s self-driving car tests following last week’s fatal accident, calling it an “unquestionable failure.” In 2016, Ducey went out of his way to welcome Uber’s self-driving tests after the company clashed with California regulators. [Wall Street Journal]
Ahead of its imminent IPO — next Tuesday — Spotify issued its first-ever guidance, telling Wall Street that it expects to have a very good 2018, with a big increase in revenue and paid subscribers, improved margins and shrinking operating losses. [Peter Kafka / Recode]
VC firm Lerer Hippeau will take over most of competing firm Binary Capital’s portfolio companies, which have been stranded since Binary lost its partners in a sexual harassment scandal. In assuming management of a $125 million debut fund, Lerer Hippeau faces the daunting task of rushing help to two dozen new companies that it does not know, while also managing its existing group of 165 companies. It will also likely have to rebrand the Binary name, which is only four years old and is now defined by scandal. [Jason Del Rey / Recode]
Online advertisers are expected to globally outspend TV advertisers by $40 billion this year— that’s 40 percent of total ad spend. Meanwhile, Amazon seems to be taking an interest in TV news — the company recently has commissioned a survey that queries customers about the way they watch TV news. Here’s the survey; why do you think Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos wants to know about that? [Rani Molla and Peter Kafka / Recode]
Uber’s mission was to bring reliable transportation to everyone, everywhere. But now it has been selling its businesses in Russia, China and, most recently, its $700 million investment in Southeast Asia. Uber’s next battlegrounds: India, the Middle East and Latin America. The company’s three international exits have taught Uber that it’s not enough to throw cash at a market and hope that the strategy that helped it grow in the U.S. will work elsewhere — it needs to become more attuned to the local nuances of the market. [Johana Bhuiyan / Recode]
Recode Presents ...
Recode is teaming up with MSNBC again for a new episode of the “Revolution” series on tech and the future of work. Recode’s Kara Swisher and MSNBC’s Chris Hayes will interview Apple CEO Tim Cook tomorrow in Chicago for the special, called “Revolution: Apple Changing the World.” If you’re going to be in Chicago on Wednesday, you can register here to be in the audience for the live taping at Lane Tech College Prep High School. Otherwise, you can watch with the rest of us next Friday when “Revolution: Apple Changing the World” premieres on MSNBC on April 6 at 8 pm PT / 5 pm ET. Follow #RevolutionCHI to join the conversation.
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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.
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