Facebook traded above $40 after an initial 10 percent spike in its first day as a public company.

Earlier this week, the social network priced its stock at $38 a share, at the high end of the anticipated range.

Today’s market debut ushered in the largest Internet IPO in Wall Street history.

It remains to be seen, however, if FB can maintain any long-term investor enthusiasm at a time when the markets are falling back into heavy selling on no shortage of risk aversion among the masses.

As of this writing, both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 are on track for a 6th straight trading session decline.

“Microsoft wants to patent an app migration service that would have a few different layers of functionality,” says Vlad Bobleanta of the Unwired View. “First off, it could analyze what apps you have installed on, say an Android device (Microsoft even uses this example in its patent application). Then it would search for identical or similar apps in the Windows Phone Marketplace, present you with suggestions, and let you buy and install every app you want to with one click.”

“In case an official app isn’t available in the WP Marketplace,” he adds, “this would presumably suggest well-performing third-party alternatives.”

For Microsoft, the move may be surprising to some smartphone owners but it may also be essential for the company. According to ABI Research, 36 billion mobile applications will be downloaded this year, with Windows Phone devices claiming just 2 percent of that massive number.

After years of rumors about an inevitable IPO, Friday, May 18, 2012 delivers the moment of truth for the largest social network on the planet.

“If the Facebook IPO is to succeed,” says CNBC’s Jeff Cox, “it will have to overcome a less-than-stellar history of similar technology offerings that started quickly out of the gate but faltered shortly thereafter.”

Earlier this week, Facebook confirmed plans to price shares at $38. As of Friday, Facebook’s market cap looms near $81 billion.

Following the IPO, the company’s total valuation may approach $107 billion.

“Everybody is thinking about the year 2000: Are these real companies, or is this the tech bubble all over again?” asks Nadav Baum, executive vice president at BPU Investment Management. “Everybody’s on Facebook. But how are they going to make money?“

The process of answering that question begins this morning when FB begins trading on NASDAQ.

The passes will debut May 20th.

According to T-Mobile, the passes will make it easier for customers to enjoy access to high-speed Internet on the go.

With T-Mobile’s new, more affordable No Annual Contract data passes, customers can experience T-Mobile’s blazing-fast 4G network speeds across a variety of mobile broadband devices including tablets, mobile hotspots and laptop sticks – with no strings attached.

T-Mobile is hoping to attract new fans with the key phrase that the mobile masses respond best to: no contract required.

The passes to be made available are as follow:

• 300MB 1-week pass for $15
• 1.5GB 1-month pass for $25
• 3.5GB 1-month pass for $35
• 5GB 1-month pass for $50

“Although most of our mobile broadband customers choose postpaid rate plans for the best device prices and data rates, we know that many of our customers want the flexibility to be able to experience mobile broadband without committing to an annual contract up front,” said Jeremy Korst, vice president of marketing at T-Mobile.

If that sounds far fetched, you may want to think again. According to published reports this week, Steve Jobs – as recently as early 2011, in the months before his passing – envisioned a so-called “iCar” to be manufactured by the Cupertino, California-based tech giant.

“Look at the car industry, it’s a tragedy in America. Who’s designing the cars?” says J. Crew CEO and Apple board member Mickey Drexler in a revealing new interview highlighted by Business Insider. “Steve’s dream before he died was to design an iCar and I think it would’ve been probably 50% of the market. He never did design it.”

Although it isn’t known if such a product is still on the drawing board at Apple, Drexler didn’t rule out the prospect of an iCar in the future.

Even though Jobs never did make a car, some analysts predict that Apple may still have a future in the auto industry by working with car companies to integrate some of its products into vehicles.

More than likely, however, Apple’s next new product category will be a connected iOS-powered HDTV.

Late Thursday, word surfaced that the mobile technologies firm would be shuffling some talent.

For starters, Qualcomm announced the appointment of Clifford Ficke as vice president and president of Qualcomm Japan.

Ficke will oversee Qualcomm’s operations in Japan and will report to Jing Wang, executive vice president and president of Global Business Operations.

Jun Yamada, who made significant contributions to Qualcomm’s business growth in Japan since 2005, will transition from his current role as senior vice president and president of Qualcomm Japan to senior advisor, providing continued guidance as Qualcomm focuses on driving new Qualcomm technologies in Japan.

“Jun’s guidance and leadership has been instrumental to the development and expansion of Qualcomm’s operation in Japan,” said Wang. “As one of the most advanced mobile markets worldwide, Japan continues to fuel innovation and present significant business opportunities for Qualcomm. Cliff’s extensive experience and proven track record in the semiconductor industry will be invaluable in driving Qualcomm’s business in Japan as the industry continues to introduce advanced mobile technologies.”

According to the mobile operator, the lightweight device gives users the quality high-speed connectivity they expect.

The device is available online directly from the carrier now but it will also be in stores by May 21.

When on the 4G LTE network, the Samsung Mobile Hotspot allows users to simultaneously connect up to five Wi-Fi devices to the Internet at speeds up to ten times faster than 3G.

For a limited time, the hotspot will be available for $49.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate in select markets

covered by the 4G LTE network and in those scheduled to be covered by the end of 2012.

“Customers can depend on the 4G LTE Samsung Mobile Hotspot for fast and reliable Internet connectivity wherever they are,” said Edward Perez, vice president of sales and marketing operations for U.S. Cellular.

“This pocket-sized device can help simplify and organize your life and provides multiple devices with one speedy Internet connection.”

To learn more, check out uscellular.com.

But the fact remains that General Motors is pulling $10 million from its Facebook ad budget.

“We regularly review our overall media spend and make adjustments as needed,” says GM marketing chief Joel Ewanick. “This happens as a regular course of business and it’s not unusual for us to move our spending around various media outlets – especially with the growth of multiple social and digital media outlets. In terms of Facebook specifically, while we currently do not plan to continue with advertising, we remain committed to an aggressive content strategy through all of our products and brands, as it continues to be a very effective tool for engaging with our customers.”

In other words, Facebook must not have delivered an adequate return on GM’s advertising investment. And this suggestion could be weighing heavily on investors’ minds today.

“Everybody is thinking about the year 2000: Are these real companies, or is this the tech bubble all over again?” observes Nadav Baum, executive vice president at BPU Investment Management. “”Everybody’s on Facebook. But how are they going to make money?”

So far, Facebook hasn’t done much to pacify this nagging concern. And the fallout from this reality could soon become apparent in the financial markets.

Are you going to be a buyer of FB tomorrow?

As it turns out, Zynga is incredibly grateful for the advancements in and consumer adoption of mobile technologies that allowed their creations to take the digital space by storm.

According to a report today from The Hollywood Reporter, Zynga CFO Dave Wehner says the “majority of bookings and revenue growth is coming from the mobile gaming space, especially the iOS and Android platforms, compared with web gaming.”

And with smartphones increasingly fitted with digital wallets, the social games publisher behind Facebook games like FarmVille and CityVille sees an opportunity to increase its payer penetration among gamers.

“There’s a ton of connected wallets out there, people who are available as potential players and payers,” Wehner said this week. “We’re one, if not the top game player, on smartphones. And yet we have a modest share. So we have a huge opportunity to grow the share in mobile.”

Sprint customers in the US can now pay for all Google Play purchases directly through their phone bill.

That was the big announcement from Google this week, underscoring how Sprint Nextel can now charge all Google Play digital content purchases to their wireless bill.

Now when users go to purchase an app, they have the choice of billing the purchase to their credit card, mobile wallet, or Sprint account.

“The move,” reports Engadget, “leaves Verizon as the only major US carrier without a carrier billing option, so you’ll have to sit tight if you own the original US Galaxy Nexus and hate the thought of a separate download bill.”

Do you plan to begin charging app purchases to your Sprint bill or does the old model work better for you?