Japanese online specialist Rakuten, which runs a major e-commerce site in Japan as well as operating the Kobo eBook reader and Play.com brands, has acquired mobile messaging and VoIP company Viber.

The deal is worth $900 million (£538 million).

Figures from the Strategy Analytics Wearable Device Ecosystems service show that 1.9 million smartwatches were shipped last year, with 61.1% of them (1.2 million) running a version of the Android operating system.

Much of this Android growth was driven by sales of Samsung’s Galaxy Gear watch.

In the past few months, the topics of security and privacy have gripped the mobile industry. The humble SMS text message has been subjected to particular attention, both on its own and in association with smartphone apps.

John Murtagh, CTO at text message specialist Anam Technologies, explains more about the risks involved with SMS, the challenges for mobile network operators and the solutions that can protect consumers.

LG Electronics has announced the LG G Pro 2 smartphone today.

It’s a successor to the LG G Pro, which was revealed in February last year. South Korea is currently the only market confirmed for the LG G Pro 2, although wider availability is expected to be announced during or after Mobile World Congress.

Juniper Research has forecast that $62 billion will be wagered on casino-type gambling and poker games via mobile handsets and tablets in 2018, more than six times the $10 billion wagered worldwide last year.

Much of this increase will be driven by the legalisation of online gambling services in parts of the USA, with more US-based services expected to launch during the next five years.