Monday's technology stories

Lyft leaps over Uber in Apple App Store
The #DeleteUber movement, and Lyft's commitment to donate $1 million to the ACLU, has boosted Lyft's iOS app in the Apple App store thanks to calls on social media for customers to switch to its service..
iOS : On Monday Lyft's app is No. 6 in the U.S. App Store's rankings of all free apps. That's the highest it's been in the past year, according to app analytics provider App Annie.
- Uber's app, meanwhile has dropped to No. 13, down from being two spots higher on Friday, when Trump signed his immigration executive order.
Android: On Android, Uber is still much higher in the rankings than Lyft, suggesting that much of the anti-Uber activism likely concentrated within iPhone users.
Why it matters: Uber is no stranger to controversies, but this is an example of a case in which there's a visible impact on its business.

Uber didn't deserve #DeleteUber
Uber has done a lot of questionable things over the years, but its actions this past weekend vis-a-vis Trump's immigration ban weren't among them. An actual timeline from Saturday, which may differ from what you saw on social media:
- 4:20pm ET: Uber CEO Travis Kalanick sent email to employees. It stopped short of explicitly opposing the ban, but did say: (1) The company would identify and compensate affected drivers. (2) Kalanick will raise the issue of how the "ban will impact many innocent people" this Friday during the first meeting of Trump's so-called CEO Council. This email was posted a short time later to Kalanick's public Facebook page.
- 4:55pm ET: NY Taxi Workers union called for a work stoppage at JFK airport from 6pm-7pm. Uber does not suspend its own service, but also does not send out any promotions.
- 7:36pm ET: Uber NYC sends out a tweet, saying that surge pricing to and from JFK has been turned off.
The claim that Uber was trying to "break the strike" by sending out its surge pricing tweet is belied by the timing (i.e., sent after the strike was to have ended).

Report: Snapchat picks NYSE
Snap has decided to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange, according to CNBC.
The report from CNBC's Bob Pisani is single-sourced, and notes that NYSE CEO Tom Farley has been repeatedly spotted wearing the company's Spectacles since word of the pending IPO first leaked.
Snap is expected to publicly file its IPO papers as early as this week, with plans to raise between $4 billion and $5 billion. The actual listing is likely at the beginning of March.
NYSE declined comment on the report, via email.

Twitter turns on Uber over Trump’s immigration ban
Uber finds itself dealing with #DeleteUber, an online Twitter backlash to its decision to suspend surge pricing around JFK International Airport in New York on Saturday night. People are sharing pictures of themselves deleting the app from their phones.
Why? The New York Taxi Workers Alliance declared a one-hour work stoppage at the airport to show their support for protests, so Uber's decision and a tweet encouraging people to "be patient" while waiting for rides were seen by some as an attempt to break the strike.
The bigger picture:
- Trump critics — including some of Uber's own employees — are already upset with the company's chief executive for serving on a Trump advisory council. Some cited his involvement as a reason they were deleting the app.
- Uber rival Lyft said on Sunday morning it would give a million dollars over four years to the ACLU, which sued to halt the refugee ban.
Uber's counterpoint: The company denies trying to break the strike and noted to BuzzFeed News that its tweet was sent out after the appointed hour for the work stoppage. CEO Travis Kalanick said Saturday that the ban "will impact many innocent people" and pledged to bring up that concern when he and other business leaders meet with the president this week.
Update: Uber said on Sunday afternoon that it would create a $3 million fund to assist drivers with immigration law and translation services and reiterated its intention compensate drivers who lost money because of the executive order. Kalanick also said the company would push policymakers to "reinstate the right of U.S. residents to travel — whatever their country of origin."

Amazon, Netflix drop major cash at Sundance
- Netflix screened eight films, breaking its own Sundance record: Hasting's mega-service also purchased a $5 million deal for documentary "Icarus," one the most expensive nonfiction film to date
- Amazon dropped $12 million for "The Big Sick," as well as distribution rights to three other films, beating out their Oscar-nominated investment in Manchester by the Sea last year for $10 million.
Why it matters: Digital companies investing big dollars in content to distribute marks a major shift for the movie business. Per CNET, streaming companies screened more projects at the festival this year than ever before, and Sundance creatives responded accordingly. This year more than ever, a swell of films with niche creative flooded the scene in Utah, frustrating commercial studios, who rely on broad, thematic pieces to captured large, national audiences.
Who's winning? As of now, Amazon, but that could change given Netflix's big investment this year. Last week, Amazon beat Netflix to become the first streaming company to own a film nominated for an Oscar best picture. Their win followed financial gains over Netflix at the box office in 2016. Amazon released Manchester by the Sea to theaters traditionally, making $36 million at the box office. Hastings released Beasts of No Nation in theatres and on his streaming app simultaneously, bringing in a dismal $91,000 at the box office.


