Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Mobile
  3. News

Facebook recruits PayPal president David Marcus to lead mobile messaging efforts

Trevor Mogg
By
facebook recruits paypal president david marcus to lead mobile messaging efforts messenger
Image used with permission by copyright holder

After two years as president of PayPal, David Marcus is moving to Facebook to take up the role of vice president of messaging products.

In a post on LinkedIn published Monday, Marcus said he was “excited” about the move, adding that he was “looking forward to getting my hands dirty again attempting to build something new and meaningful at scale.”

Recommended Videos

He said that at first he’d had doubts about “another big company gig,” but had been impressed by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s “compelling vision about mobile messaging.”

Above: David Marcus [Image via Facebook]
Above: David Marcus [Image via Facebook] Image used with permission by copyright holder

He added, “Mark’s enthusiasm, and the unparalleled reach and consumer engagement of the Facebook platform ultimately won me over.”

The social networking giant said on its site that starting from July Marcus will lead efforts to develop “great new messaging experiences that better serve the Facebook community and reach even more people.” Given Marcus’s background, it’s also possible he could help introduce e-commerce features into Facebook’s mobile apps.

The company is keen to expand its mobile presence in a bid to boost revenue, with messaging apps a key part of its strategy. Its Q4 2013 financial results revealed that for the first time in its history, mobile ad revenue exceeded that of desktop, with 53 percent of the company’s income generated via its mobile apps in the three-month period.

Buoyed by the rising mobile revenue and keen to push out more mobile apps with more ads, the company in April announced it would be removing the ability to send messages from within its main application, forcing users to download its standalone Messenger app, which is currently used by more than 200 million people every month.

In a further indication of Facebook’s increasing focus on messaging, the company recently spent a whopping $19 billion on the acquisition of popular mobile messaging service WhatsApp, and is in the middle of trying to sort out the launch of its Snapchat-like app, Slingshot.

Marcus is likely to focus primarily on developing Messenger and new mobile messaging services, with the WhatsApp acquisition having been conditional on it being able to retain its independence and brand.

John Donahoe, CEO of eBay – PayPal’s parent company – will oversee the running of the online payment outfit until a successor is found.

Topics
Trevor Mogg
Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
Android 15 might add a new way to charge your gadgets
The Android 15 logo on a smartphone.

Wireless charging has been a fringe feature for over a decade, despite Apple's push into the ecosystem with the iPhone X and its later adoption of MagSafe. It has been limited to flagship phones, save for a few exceptions, mostly due to the painfully slow charging speeds. But with Android 15, Google now seems to offer phone makers additional reasons to adopt wireless charging even without dedicated hardware.

Instead of relying on a dedicated charging coil, Android 15 could enable wireless charging on phones with Near Field Communications (or NFC) tech. Android Authority dug up instances from the source code of Android 15's first user beta, which arrived last week, that suggests the implementation.
Not new, but definitely noteworthy
Samsung Galaxy S23 FE Tushar Mehta / Digital Trends

Read more
How futuristic display tech is trying to save your eyes
Lock screen on Onyx Boox Tab Ultra C

I recently found myself on a reporting assignment in Trivandrum, a beautiful beach town in India’s southernmost state. One sweltering day, as I lay reading some comics on a deckchair, I noticed that a Dutch woman kept taking a peek at my tablet. With hopes of finding a new comics-loving friend from a different world, I asked if she enjoys the work of Mark Millar.

“I am more curious about the screen protector on your tablet. What is it?” she asked in her distinctive accent. I told her that there was no screen protector in place. The display itself looks and feels like paper, with little to no glare. The slate in question was the Onyx Tab Ultra C, which features a Kaleido 3 E Ink display.

Read more
Why you need to be excited about the Google Pixel 8a
A person holding the Google Pixel 8, showing the screen.

This is going to be a busy year for Google Pixel devices. In less than a month, Google is expected to launch its first new Pixel of the year with the Google Pixel 8a. Following that, we're expecting a Google Pixel Fold 2, possibly another Pixel Tablet, the Pixel 9 series, and a Pixel Watch 3 later in the fall.

There's plenty to look forward to with all of those Pixels, but if you ask me, I think the Pixel 8a is the most promising of the bunch. In a year when Google has exciting upgrades planned for its flagship and foldable phones, Google's budget-focused omodel is what's really on my mind.
Google is at its best with cheaper phones
The Google ixel 3a XL (left) and Pixel 3 XL Julian Chokkattu / Digital Trends

Read more