Weekly Highlights: Apple-Tesla Merger, iPhone Sales Double In Russia, Facebook Buys WhatsApp And More

Facebook's (NASDAQ: FB) latest acquisition is by far the biggest story of the week.

And it could end up being the biggest acquisition of the entire year.

On Thursday, it seemed like CNBC couldn't go 10 minutes without talking about the fact that Facebook paid at least $16 billion for a texting app.

WhatsApp is already very successful with more than one million registered users added every day. The Facebook acquisition has provided the app with invaluable publicity which could help WhatsApp grow even faster.

What would an Apple-Tesla union mean for investors?

Chris Camillo, a self-directed investor and author of Laughing at Wall Street, knows that it is unlikely that these two firms would ever merge.

But if they did, the results would be unforgettable.

"I think it would be phenomenal," Camillo told Benzinga. "I think that would be a huge story for Apple."

Tesla may be unable to satisfy demand in China this year.

Company CEO Elon Musk told investors about the challenge in serving this growing market.

"It seems unlikely that we'll be able to satisfy demand in China this year," Musk said during an earnings call.

In other words, Chinese customers should order a Model S before it's too late.

Russia may not be Apple's biggest market, but its sales growth is worth noting.

In 2013, the Mac maker reportedly doubled its sales of new iPhones to 1.57 million units in Russia.

This provided Apple with an additional $1 billion in revenue.

The rumors continued for a new set-top box.

Apple's popular device, known as Apple TV, is expected to receive a full update very soon.

If true, consumers should not make a purchasing decision until Apple makes a formal announcement about the future of its product.

Spotify could be on the verge of an IPO.

The company has posted a fairly obvious job ad for someone that could help the company become SEC compliant.

This could mean that the company will go public in the not-too-distant future.

Investors abandoned Groupon again this week after the company reported its fourth quarter results.

The daily deals giant has shown signs of improvement over the last few quarters, but between the weak guidance and the fear over where Groupon is headed next, investors had no desire to stick around.

On Thursday, February 20, shares of Groupon fell more than 11 percent.

Netflix reportedly paid $100 million for the first two seasons of House of Cards.

The streaming video giant spent that money with the dream of becoming the next HBO.

Did it work? No one knows for sure, but the firm is showing promise.

A large number of subscribers watched at least one episode House of Cards on Valentine's Day.

The preceding stories were just the beginning. Check out these other hot tech stories right here on Benzinga.

• Did Instagram Get Screwed By Facebook's $1 Billion Payout?
• Hulu Vs. Snapchat - Which Startup Is Worth More?
• 5 Unusual Things You Should Know About Microsoft's New CEO, Satya Nadella
• Is Satya Nadella The Right CEO For Microsoft?