Tech Roundup: Meta GIPHY Sale, Uber Journey Ads & More

[A recurring feature on the latest in Science & Technology.]

• The U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) orders Meta to sell GIPHY, which it acquired in May 2020, saying the takeover "could allow Meta to limit other social media platforms' access to GIFs, making those sites less attractive to users and less competitive"; marks the first time a global regulator has unwound a completed deal by a Big Tech company.
• Google unveils Android 13 Go edition, which powers over 250 million monthly active devices, with Material You, Discover feed, and Google Play System updates support; to officially launch in 2023 on devices with more than 2GB RAM.
• Microsoft is said to be building an Xbox Mobile Platform to directly offer games on mobile devices, challenging Apple and Google, as part of its acquisition of Activision Blizzard, which is currently being scrutinised by the U.K. Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) for potential antitrust concerns.
• Ride hailing giant Uber launches a global advertising unit, targeting US$ 1 billion in annual gross ad bookings by 2024, including by displaying Journey Ads within its apps "while waiting for their driver and during their trip", Homepage Billboards, Post-checkout Ads, and on top of cars based on aggregated information gleaned from users.
• Global smartphone market fall 9% YoY in Q3 2022, the third consecutive decline and the worst Q3 since 2014, according to stats from Canalys; Apple's market share grows from 15% to 18% YoY. (Samsung leads with 22% share, followed by Xiaomi (14%), OPPO (10%), and vivo (9%).)
• Pinterest partners with record labels to bring popular music to Idea Pins, enabling users to add popular tracks from top artists to the short form videos.
• Amazon launches the Amazon Insurance Store in the U.K., a comparison service for buying and reviewing third-party providers' home and contents insurance.
• Netflix says it's "seriously exploring a cloud gaming offering," as the streamer adds 2.41 million subscribers in Q3 2022, bringing the total to 223.09 million; reports revenue of US$ 7.93 billion, up 5.9% YoY, and US$ 1.4 billion net income, down from US$ 1.45 billion YoY.
• IBM reports Q3 2022 revenue up 6.5% YoY to US$ 14.11 billion, as software revenue jumps 7.5% YoY to US$ 5.81 billion.