IBM has taken the next step in its ongoing transformation with the $34 billion acquisition of Linux, JBoss, and OpenShift provider Red Hat. With a long history of working together, there is no doubt about the synergy. But can this really boost IBM's status as a true cloud provider (and the go-to team for hybrid cloud migrations)? Plus our Fast Five: Earnings from Apple and Spotify; Browser extensions that steal user data; Apple's new iPad, Mini, and MacBook offerings; Cyber thieves love Microsoft Office; and Apple Maps tops Google Maps (sort of). Our Tech Bites Winner this week: Facebook's attempt to vet political advertisers falls short. Completely short. And our Crystal Ball this week takes a look into the realistic chances of the US government forcing social giants like Facebook, Google, Twitter, and YouTube to fix the #fakenews issue. This episode features: Daniel Newman (@danielnewmanUV), Fred McClimans (@fredmcclimans), and Olivier Blanchard (@oablanchard). If you haven't already, please subscribe to our show on iTunes or SoundCloud. For inquiries or more information on the show you may email the team at [email protected] or follow @FuturumXYZ on Twitter and feel free to direct inquires through that channel as well. To learn more about Future research please visit www.futurumresearch.com. As a reminder, the Futurum Tech Podcast is intended as an informational newsletter only. No investment advice is offered. While equities are frequently discussed, no investment advice is offered or implied.