Facebook Posts Record Profits Of $1.1 Billion, But Will Still Receive Huge Tax Break

Last year, Facebook went public and brought in record profits exceeding $1.1 billion. And yet, not only will the ubiquitous social network not be paying any taxes, it will be getting a huge tax break.

According to Bloomberg Businessweek, Facebook reported earning $1.1 billion in profit throughout 2012, but after some nifty accounting, it will not be paying a cent in either state or federal taxes. Instead, the federal government will provide Facebook with a $429 million tax refund. How does that work exactly?

Thanks to creative use of a tax deductibility on stock options, the government will be paying Facebook just shy of half a million as a refund on taxes paid in 2010 and 2011. Full story IBTimes

Facebook developing app that will track your every move – even when it’s turned off

• App intended to alert users when Facebook ‘friends’ are nearby
• It will also help the social network target localised adverts
• Privacy campaigners warn it is ‘profit trumping privacy’

Facebook is developing a new smartphone app to track the location of users in an effort to target them with localised adverts, according to reports.

The app will help users to find friends who are nearby, alert them when it detects one in close proximity even when the app is not open on the handset, it is claimed.

It will be just one of a whole suite of mobile apps Facebook is building up to help it profit from the increasing proportion of its users who access the social network on the go.

But privacy campaigners warned it was another example of ‘profit trumping privacy’ and called the function ‘intrusive’. Read more Daily Mail

Study: More than half of users have taken a break from Facebook

Raw story – More than half of US Facebook members have taken breaks from the leading social network, with the top reason being they are just too busy, according to a study released Tuesday.

About 61 percent of US users said they had taken time off from Facebook at some point, with 27 percent planning to spend less time on it in the coming year, the Pew Research Center said.

The largest group — 21 percent — said they had taken a break because they were too busy. Other reasons included being “tired of stupid comments,” “crazy” friends, boredom, and having it cause love life problems….More