Top News
* Snap Inc. filed for an initial public offering, providing analysts and investors a window into the business driving one of the most eagerly anticipated technology IPOs. The company, which said it is "reinventing the camera" with its ephemeral messaging service Snapchat, set its maximum aggregated offering price at $3 billion.
* Meanwhile, Snap said it has struck a $2 billion deal to use Google Inc.'s cloud-computing services over the next five years, according to the company's IPO filing. Snap said it has built software and computer systems to use computing, storage capabilities, bandwidth, and other services provided by Google, and replacing Google with an alternate cloud services provider would negatively impact its business.
* Channels and networks owned by Univision Communications Inc. were restored Feb. 2 to systems owned by Charter Communications Inc. after a New York judge issued a temporary restraining order, spanning a week, in the companies' carriage dispute. Univision pulled the signals for Univision (US)- and UniMás (US)-owned stations and their affiliates, as well as cable networks Galavision (US) and Univision Deportes (US), from Charter systems at midnight on Jan. 31 in carriage dispute that dates back to summer 2016.
Technology
* Apple Inc. will start assembling iPhones in India by the end of April, Bloomberg News reports, citing Priyank Kharge, Karnataka's information technology minister. The tech giant is reportedly working with Taiwan's Wistron Corp. to start assembling the smartphones in Bangalore.
* Microsoft Corp. proposed a "case-by-case exception" process for the executive order on immigration by the Trump administration, according to an official blog post. In a letter to U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Microsoft President and Chief Legal Officer Brad Smith said the government could ease the program for people with a valid nonimmigrant work visa, an F-1 student visa, and for the immediate family member of nonimmigrant visa holders.
TV Networks
* Spanish language broadcaster Estrella TV (US) entered into a multiyear carriage agreement with DISH Network Corp., according to a news release. Estrella TV's national distribution is now estimated to be in more than 40 million U.S. homes.
* Cable One Inc. and Northwest Broadcasting inked a new retransmission deal, putting an end to a month-long blackout. The deal restored Northwest Broadcasting stations to Cable One subscribers in Idaho Falls, Pocatello and Lewiston, Idaho; and in Clarksdale, Winona, Yazoo, Grenada and Cleveland, Miss., the company said.
* The National Association of Black Journalists sent a letter to Comcast Corp.'s NBC (US) for the alleged "whitewashing" of the network by replacing African American anchor Tamron Hall with former FOX News Channel (US) anchor Megyn Kelly, the New York Post reports. While acknowledging that NBC "has been a leader for diversity in broadcasting," the group expressed displeasure at Hall's departure and has requested a meeting with NBC leadership.
Internet & OTT
* Netflix Inc. will debut the first season of Mexican original series "Ingobernable" on March 24. The 15-episode series is about a presidential family set in present-day Mexico, the company said.
* Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. is backing Paytm E-commerce Pvt by leading a $200 million round of investment in the Indian online retailer, Bloomberg News reports, citing a source familiar with the matter. The investment by Alibaba and private equity firm SAIF Partners valued the company at $1.1 billion, the source said.
* Netflix renewed original series "Skylanders Academy" for the third season. Activision Blizzard Studios will start producing the third season in February, Activision Blizzard Inc. said.
* New York Times Co.'s publication The New York Times is launching on Snapchat Discover platform. According to a news release, The Times will create a daily Edition for Snapchatters in the U.S. and Canada based on its Morning Briefing.
* Sony Corp.'s PlayStation Vue service added more local feeds of CBS Corp.'s CBS (US) network, Multichannel News reports. The 27 stations added include WHIO TV in Dayton, Ohio; WNEM TV 5 in Flint/Saginaw/Bay City, Mich.; WBBJ CBS 7 in Jackson, Tenn.; and WKYT in Lexington, Ky.
The day ahead
Early morning futures indicators pointed to a higher opening for the U.S. market.
In Asia, the Hang Seng slipped 0.24% to 23,129.21, while the Nikkei 225 increased 0.02% to 18,918.20.
In Europe, around midday, the FTSE 100 was up 0.56% to 7,181.04, and the Euronext 100 was up 0.76% to 933.38.
On the macro front
The employment situation report, the factory orders report, the PMI services index and the ISM non-manufacturing index are due out today.
Featured news
Amazon ramps up content for Prime Video India; Australia's Ozflix goes live: In this biweekly Asia video spotlight feature, S&P Global Market Intelligence provides a roundup of news related to over-the-top, video-on-demand and other online video initiatives in different Asian markets.
The Daily Dose Asia-Pacific: Samsung considers new battery supplier; Grab pledges US$700M to Indonesia: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. is in talks with Japan's Murata Manufacturing about a battery supply deal for its upcoming Galaxy S8 smartphone, while ride-hailing app Grab plans to invest US$700 million in Indonesia over four years.
Data Dispatch: Prospects for 'Rings' looking a little scary: One of the hallmarks of a horror film is that the killer always comes back for one more scare. So moviegoers, perhaps, will not be surprised the creepy little girl with long dark hair and serious mommy issues from "The Ring" has returned.
Industry braces for 'high-tech visa' battle: With immigration reform among President Donald Trump's top priorities, updates to the H-1B visa program used by many U.S. technology companies to hire foreign-born skilled workers could be coming soon.
Hires and Fires: US Media & Comm management moves through Feb. 1: Amazon, Facebook, CBS News: S&P Global Market Intelligence presents a weekly rundown of executive changes in the media and communications industries.
The Program Guide: Global edition: Discovery orders Asian shows; Gordon Ramsay back to ITV: The Program Guide's global edition highlights recent programming announcements from various networks and online video platforms around the world.
Featured research
Global Multichannel: Global markets update - Colombia, Nicaragua, Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia: SNL Kagan has published updated Global Multichannel & Broadband analysis for five markets.
Economics of TV & Film: DreamWorks Animation's 'Trolls' projected as top February video release: The latest animated feature from DreamWorks Animation LLC., "Trolls," is set to take over retail shelves when it is released Feb. 7 on DVD and Blu-ray.
Broadcast Investor: Retrans analysis shows what's at stake behind Univision/Charter standoff: The video signal disruption between Univision and Charter affects an estimated 6.8 million subscribers in 19 markets, and our study indicates that could be worth an estimated $6.2 million in monthly ad revenue to Univision on top of millions in retrans revenues.
Economics of TV & Film: SNL Kagan Box Office Report – Week 5: The 2017 box office year continues to outpace last year as week five box office gross was up 1.7% to $190.0 million versus $186.9 million in 2016.
Recent earnings
Amazon's cloud continues to grow: Amazon.com Inc.'s cloud computing platform, Amazon Web Services, has reached a $14 billion annual run rate, CFO Brian Olsavsky said in an earnings conference call.
Amazon stock drops after Q4'16 revenue miss: The online retail giant's fourth-quarter 2016 net sales came to $43.74 billion, up 22% from $35.75 billion in the prior-year quarter. Excluding foreign exchange impact, net sales would have grown 24% year over year.
Sirius XM focused on driving usage from car to home, mobile, CEO says: Sirius XM Holdings Inc. executives noted several upcoming product updates intended to expand the company's reach, including the roll out of Sirius' 360L platform, which combines satellite radio with 4G connectivity and is planned to launch in early 2018.
Vodafone defends India strategy amid pending merger: Vodafone UK CEO Vittorio Colao defended the group's strategy for its Indian operations, insisting Vodafone is "well-positioned" to reap the market's long-term benefits.
The Daily Dose is updated as of 7 a.m. ET. Some external links may require a subscription.