The big news on Monday was Facebook's $1 billion acquisition of Instagram – just days after the popular photo-sharing app made its debut on the Android platform. Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom, however, insisted that "Instagram is not going away."
Twitter soon exploded with people marveling at the astronomical sale price, joking about hipster filters, and comparing previous photo site acquisitions. For more on what people were saying, see Will Facebook Ruin or Boost Instagram?
The big question on everyone's minds is — why? For Facebook, the acquisition is all about staying current.
Elsewhere, another billion-dollar tech sale was in the works. Rumors surrounding AOL's desire to sell off its patent portfolio floated around tech circles for weeks. On Monday, those rumors turned into a very real $1.056 billion deal with Microsoft.
Meanwhile, new rumors about the next iPhone made the rounds. Prototypes of the next-gen phone reportedly have a variation of the A5X processor that powers the new iPad. When it hits the market, the device will also likely have a sleek, new look featuring a larger screen and a single unibody frame, an analyst said after touring tech suppliers in China and Taiwan.
Also making headlines on Monday:
- Lenovo Targets iPad With 9.7-Inch IdeaTab Android Tablet: The forthcoming tablet will have a 9.7-inch display, with a resolution of 1024-by-768 – just like Apple's older iPads.
- Will iPad Become the Generic Term for Tablet?: Has the iPad become so synonymous with the idea of a tablet that all tablets can simply be referred to as "iPads"?
- Lumia 900 Tops Online Sales, Network Connectivity Issues Reported: Among the best sellers of smartphones with service plans, the Lumia 900 landed at number seven, behind several Samsung Galaxy and Motorola Droid devices.
- Report: Jack Tramiel, Founder of Commodore, Dead at 83: Forbes reported that Tramiel passed away on Easter.
- Vergence Targets Google's Project Glass With Social Sunglasses: Vergence Labs will ship its own potential competitor to Google Glass just in time for the holidays, at a price of $299.
- Netflix Xbox Update Adds Navigation, Facebook Options: The revamped app adds a skip forward/back function that will allow users to more easily move through movies and TV shows.
- Report: OMGPOP Hired Back Laid-Off Workers Before Zynga Acquisition: Before selling his company for $210 million last month, OMGPOP CEO Dan Porter took care of one important business matter — he hired back everyone he had previously laid off, ensuring they would get a cut of the deal.
- Study: OLPC Fails Students as a Tool for Education: The One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) program of low-cost laptops for developing countries has not led to any measurable impact in academic achievement, according to a recent report.
For more from Angela, follow her on Twitter @amoscaritolo.
