This Morning’s Top Stories in Tech and Social Media

This Morning’s Top Stories in Tech and Social Media
Welcome to this morning’s edition of “First To Know,” a series in which we keep you in the know on what’s happening in the digital world. We’re keeping our eyes on four particular stories of interest today.

Internet Users to Exceed 2 Billion This Year

The number of Internet () users will surpass 2 billion before the end of 2010, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) announced.

The current world population is estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau to be 6.876 billion, which would mean that nearly 30% of the population will be online at the end of this year.

Steve Jobs Speaks Candidly on Earnings Call

Days after shares of Apple eclipsed $300 per share to hit an all-time high and a few hours after the company was named AdAge ()’s Marketer of the Decade, Apple released its latest earnings report, and with it, another milestone: $20 billion in quarterly revenue.

Specifically, the company brought in sales of $20.34 billion for its fiscal fourth quarter and a net profit of $4.31 billion, both best-ever quarterly performances.

Following the announcement, CEO Steve Jobs made a surprise appearance on the company’s earnings call to field questions from analysts, and to share his thoughts on Apple’s competitors –particularly Google () and RIM — in the smartphone and tablet market. Full details and analysis of the call are available here.

Google’s Search Page Redesign Emphasizes Location

Google has moved the user location setting to the left-hand panel of the search engine results page, the company announced Monday. This feature automatically detects a user’s current location and tailors search results accordingly.

Google will still deliver the same locally relevant results as it did previously, but now easier for users to see their location setting and adjust it to deliver results in different areas.

Foursquare () to Hit 4 Million Users This Week

Foursquare () is set to hit 4 million members this week, a source close to the company has revealed to Mashable (). The milestone member metric comes roughly 50 days after the location-based mobile game signed on its 3 millionth user.

Further News

• Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer announced Monday via an internal memo that the company’s chief software architect, Ray Ozzie, will be resigning from the company shortly.
• Buddy Media, a company that provides a platform for brand marketing and management on Facebook (), has raised $23 million in a Series C round led by Institutional Venture Partners (IVP).
• Evernote (), which now boasts 4.7 million users worldwide, has raised $20 million in a Series C round to fuel further international expansion, the startup announced this morning.
• Groupon competitor LivingSocial has acquired group adventure site Urban Escapes for an undisclosed sum.
• Both Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 3 consoles now support disc-free streaming of Netflix movies and TV shows.
• Microsoft has revealed the final list of 17 games that will be available on launch day (November 4) with Kinect for Xbox 360, the company’s highly anticipated controller-free gaming system.
• Subscription-based streaming music service Rhapsody () has released a mobile app for BlackBerry smartphones.
• Skittles UK is rolling out an Old Spice Guy-esque campaign with the launch of “Dazzle the Rainbow,” a challenge in which fans are asked to bury a man named David Phoenix in a vat of the sugary candy.