Following WhatsApp's lead, Viber is rolling out end-to-end encryption for all messages and calls on its platform, including group chats. The messaging app presently boasts more than 711 million users, according to TechCrunch. "The company -- founded in Israel and acquired by Japan's Rakuten in 2014 -- says the new services will be rolled out globally in the coming weeks."

The free morning newsletter theSkimm is planning to expand into the paid subscriptions with Skimm Ahead. "For $2.99 a month, theSkimm iPhone app will help consumers stay up to date with everything important going on in the world by automatically putting those items on their digital calendars," "The Wall Street Journal" reports.

Facebook has taken down The Shade Room's Facebook page. As for why, the social giant isn't saying. Yet "there are a number of reasons that Facebook might take down a page, Nieman Lab suggests. "One of those reasons is if a publisher posts something that Facebook deems a violation of intellectual property -- posting a piece of content you don't have the copyright to, for instance."

Verizon and Hearst are buying Complex Media, each take half of the digitally-focused lifestyle publisher. The deal is reportedly worth $250-$300 million. "Verizon and Hearst have each been among the most active investors in online media," Mashable notes. "Hearst previously invested $21 million in Complex and also has money in Refinery29 and BuzzFeed."

The pool of firms eying Yahoo's assets keeps getting smaller. The latest to drop out of the running is Time Inc., "which concluded the degree of difficulty in righting Yahoo's fortunes is too great," The Wall Street Journal reports, citing sources. "Others that have opted not to make a bid include Google parent Alphabet Inc., Comcast Corp., AT&T Inc. and Barry Diller's IAC/InterActiveCorp."

It's hard out there for an online publisher. "The New York Times" counts the ways. "The trouble, the publishers say, is twofold, it writes. "The web advertising business, always unpredictable, became more treacherous ... And website traffic plateaued at many large sites, in some cases falling -- a new and troubling experience after a decade of exuberant growth."

To reach a broader audience, LinkedIn has developed a 'Students' app that gives young users a starting point for exploring the first stage of their professional career. "Available starting Monday to users in the U.S., the app highlights companies and job titles that might be suitable, based on what school you attend and the area you're majoring in," "Venture Beat" reports.

Amid rapid regional growth, Twitter just named Kathy Chen as the new head of its Greater China operations, the South China Morning Post reports. “Although Twitter has been blocked on the mainland since 2009, the San Francisco-based company opened an office in Hong Kong in March last year to court Chinese companies who wish to advertise their products and services to its millions of users around the world,” it notes.

Offering a more passive viewing experience, Vine is rolling out a “Watch” button with which users can stream channels or accounts without a single scroll. “When a user presses the watch button on a certain account or channel, videos in that feed will play back-to-back, continuously,” TechCrunch writes. Also, “Users can hold down on a video if they want to see it loop a few times.”

The Financial Times reported on Tuesday that BuzzFeed cut its 2016 revenue goals in half, from $500 million to $250 million. But, BuzzFeed chairman Ken Lerer tells Re/code that that report is bogus. “Lerer says the company’s board hasn’t changed its forecast for this year,” Re/code reports. Yet, sources tell Re/code that BuzzFeed did indeed miss its 2015 projections.