Daily Crunch: Facebook acquires a cloud gaming startup

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Facebook acquires Madrid-based cloud gaming startup PlayGiga Facebook is building out its gaming business — earlier this year, the
company added its Gaming hub to the main navigation menu
And last month, it agreed to buy Beat Games, developer of popular virtual reality title Beat Saber. PlayGiga, meanwhile has been working
with telcos to create streaming game technology for 5G
It also developed a gaming-as-a-service platform, using Intel Visual Cloud platform, that will enable telcos and communication service
providers to offer streaming games to their customers. 2
TiVo merges with technology licensor Xperi in $3 billion deal Earlier this year, TiVo said it was preparing to split itself into two — a
product and IP business — in order to make itself more attractive to buyers
Today, the company announced those plans have been put on hold as it has instead merged with technology licensor Xperi Corporation, in a $3
billion deal. 3
Spotify prototypes Tastebuds to revive social music discovery Tastebuds (discovered by reverse engineering master Jane Manchun Wong) is
designed to let users explore the music taste profiles of their friends
It will live as a navigation option alongside your Library and Home/Browse sections. 4
Uber ride-hailing business hit with ban in Germany In Germany, Uber ride-hailing business works exclusively with professional and licensed
private-hire vehicle companies — so the court ban essentially outlaws Uber current model in the country. 5
Snackpass snags $21M to let you earn friends free takeout Sending people Snackpass rewards became a new way to flirt or show gratitude at
Yale
And through the Venmo-esque Snackpass social feed, users could keep up with a fresh form of gossip while discovering restaurants. 6
PayPal completes GoPay acquisition, allowing the payments platform to enter China Though China payment market today is led by local players,
including eWallet providers like AliPay and WeChat Pay, there room for PayPal to grow in a market where digital payments per year are
counted in the trillions, not billions, of dollars. 7
Tesla record stock price shows its investment in energy storage is finally paying off A little over a year after sparking a legal firestorm
for musing that he would take Tesla private for $420, Elon Musk is probably glad he didn&t
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