The Facebook logo as seen on a tablet screen. Getty Images Facebook is changing how it counts “likes” across its Pages for celebrities and businesses. The social networking giant said Thursday it will no longer include likes from people who have deactivated their accounts or who have died. Facebook likes are an important measure of …

Instagram is beefing up its advertising technology. Jason Cipriani/CNET Instagram is expanding the types of ads it shows in its latest attempt to woo advertisers. The photo-focused social network said Wednesday it is introducing a “carousel” that allows advertisers to post a sequence of photos and a link to a website. The goal, Instagram said, is to make it easier …

The number of people accessing Facebook over a mobile device keeps climbing. Facebook’s mobile users are checking in, uploading photos and liking posts at record rates. And that, in turn, is attracting advertisers who pushed up Facebook’s revenue and profit. The world’s largest social network said nearly 84 percent of the 890 million people who used its service daily did …

Facebook is hoping its data will convince advertisers to shift more spending in its direction. Facebook is expanding its latest effort to attract advertisers: A better way to track how an ad on the site influences a customer’s purchase in the real world. A year ago, the company unveiled a tool that helped advertisers determine whether someone who bought a …

Twitter is integrating video clips, starting Tuesday. Twitter Twitter is expanding the features of its apps and website yet again, this time adding group messages and 30-second videos. In November, Twitter said it would create a way for people to privately send messages to groups — instead of just to individuals — as well as expand its video offerings. Starting …

Microsoft’s answer to the ever-changing world of mobile devices? More of the same. The Redmond, Wash., software giant offered up some tantalizing details about Windows 10 on Wednesday, the highly anticipated upgrade to its operating system designed for both computers and tablets. Unlike past versions, which have straddled a line between annoying and stale, Windows 10 will power new features …

Mark Zuckerberg discussed terrorism, Internet connectivity and entrepreneurship while traveling to Colombia. Screen capture by Claudia Cruz/CNET Facebook’s CEO touted the company’s sharing and messaging tools as an important component of free speech as he also talked up his Internet.org initiative at a public forum in Wednesday in Columbia. Following the terrorist attacks in France last week, Mark Zuckerberg spoke …

App Annie is going to help its customers better understand the way apps are used. Sarah Tew/CNET App Annie is making it easy for developers and even rival software makers to see how often the public is using an app, potentially upending the way companies discuss their products. The company, based in both Beijing and San Francisco, said Tuesday the …

WhatsApp, one of the the world’s most popular messaging services, is still rising in popularity. The company, whose app is used by people around the world to send texts without paying carrier fees, said 700 million people now use its app each month, up from 600 million in August. Users are sending 30 billion messages per day, WhatsApp CEO Jan …

Verizon is reportedly considering getting together with AOL. Here: a Verizon ad in New York City in 2013. Spencer Platt/Getty Images Verizon’s new slogan could become “We’ve got AOL.” Verizon Communications is exploring the possibility of a tie-up with AOL, Bloomberg News reported Monday. The move would strengthen Verizon’s video offerings and give it a platform to manage online advertising …