Investing

Buzz Watch: The BlackBerry 9000 - an iPhone Killer?

Authored by Jay Baage on April 30, 2008 - 8:09pm.

Yes, Research in Motion (NSDQ: RIMM) is trying to jazz up it's popular email cell phone, the BlackBerry, (read our previous coverage here) and rumors are that the new 9000 model will be sexy enough to take on Apple's (NASD: AAPL) iPhone. As the funny financial web video show Wallstrip notes in the episode embedded above, if the company succeeds in making the new Blackberry appeal to both business as well as "regular" consumers, it may be a stock to keep an eye on. But then again, it is very hard to try to be everything to everybody...

Analysis: Twitter Gaining Momentum But Still Niche

Authored by Heather Hopkins on April 29, 2008 - 6:28am.

Twitter, the micro-blogging platform, has been in the news quite a bit lately (in particular for VC funding and rescuing a US blogger). This has helped drive US Internet visits up further to the increasingly popular service. Year on year, Internet visits to Twitter.com are up 8 fold. In the past three months, visits have more than doubled and traffic continues to climb, up 60% in the past month.

Will There Be a Microsoft and Yahoo Deal?

Authored by Jay Baage on April 23, 2008 - 5:49am.

In this video, Kara Swisher of All Things D asks some tech people at a party in San Fran about what they think will happen between Microsoft and Yahoo! after the MS bid expires this Saturday. The answers are kinda interesting, but the highlight to me is when Kara confronts one of the tech guys wearing a Jawbone Bluetooth Headset: "What is that, an anti-dating device, a female repellent?"

Analysis: Netflix Guidance Disappoints - Here's Why

Authored by Paul Sweeting on April 22, 2008 - 6:38am.

After a spasm of irrational exuberance pushed shares of Netflix to new highs over the past few weeks investors abruptly reversed course late Monday, hammering the shares in after-hours trading after the company's Q1 earnings report included lower-than-hoped for guidance for the rest of the year. After officially closing up almost 2% on the day, the shares plunged more than 14% in the after-hours market, losing $5.52 a piece. The company shaved 1 cent off the upper end of its projected full-year EPS to $1.29, quickly deflating a bubble of expectation that had lifted the shares by nearly 50% over the past year.

Mark Cuban on CEO Pay - Eliminate All Free Lottery Tickets

Authored by Mark Cuban on April 15, 2008 - 6:17am.
There is a game played by CEOs with the corporate issuance of lottery tickets. Otherwise known as stock. Stock can be issued in any number of ways, shapes or forms. Warrants, options, restricted or unrestricted stock. No matter what you call it, every CEO hired, is asking for equity knowing that their only goal is to hit the jackpot and create a pool of wealth that puts them in the "fuck you" wealth category. Thats enough money to buy or rent just about anything you can think of and put you in position to never have to work again. You just live off the cash in the bank.

RupertSoft AOLHoo (Updated)

Authored by Paul Sweeting on April 10, 2008 - 8:42am.

Pity the poor regulator who, someday soon, will be faced with evaluating some proposed combination of all or parts of Microsoft, Yahoo, AOL and/or News Corp. (is there anyone else left?). What yardstick would you even apply? Someday, they're all going to be in the same combination of the content creation/distribution business, online advertising, applications development and platforms and social networking anyway. It's really only a question of how they get there and when, not whether or even should they. Trying to come to grips with that through the keyhole of any one deal or company is probably not a formula for a coherent regulatory framework for the future of the digital media industry.

Wallstrip's Microhoo Recap

Authored by Jay Baage on April 8, 2008 - 6:50am.

Julie Alexandria of the web TV show Wallstrip has put together a quick recap of events leading up to Microsoft's setting a three week ultimatum for Yahoo to decide if the King of Redmond is their Mr. Right… or Mr. Right Now... It's pretty funny.

Guy Kawasaki: The Art of Sucking Up

Authored by Guy Kawasaki on March 28, 2008 - 6:25am.

There is an art to sucking up. Done too blatantly it will backfire. Done too weakly, you won't get what you want. The perfect suck up contains the following elements:

  • Credibility. No matter how good your suck up, if you don't meet the requirements for placement, a job, an interview, whatever, it won't matter, so you need to show why you deserve what you're asking for.

Is It A Smart Move To Split Motorola In Two?

Authored by Jay Baage on March 26, 2008 - 11:45am.

Has Google Topper Eric Schmidt Lost His Mind?

Authored by Paul Sweeting on March 18, 2008 - 6:17am.

Or is the Google CEO crazy like a fox? He certainly has been talking some crazy smack lately about Microsoft's proposed acquisition of Yahoo, as in this recent exchange in Portfolio in which me suggests that a Microsoft/Yahoo combo might "break the Internet":

Microsoft Acquires Ad Solutions Company Rapt

Authored by Jay Baage on March 14, 2008 - 6:32am.

Redmond, Wash. - Microsoft (NASD: MSFT) today announced plans to acquire Rapt Inc., a provider of advertising yield management solutions for digital media publishers for undisclosed sum. The deal helps Microsoft build up its arsenal in the escalating arms race with Google (NASD: GOOG), which currently is building up its own "digital dashboard" for advertisers, which Rapt now will do for Microsoft.

Video Game Sales Growth Still Strong, +34% in February

Authored by Jay Baage on March 14, 2008 - 6:11am.

New York - Despite concerns about the recession and a cyclical slowdown, the video game industry continues to grow in 2008. Monthly video game sales statistics from the NPD Group show that video game industry sales were up 34 percent to $1.3 billion, year over year, according to VentureBeat.

iBloks Lands $2.1M for Rich Media Ad Creation

Authored by Jay Baage on March 13, 2008 - 11:48am.

San Francisco - iBloks, a company which creates rich media ads, is in the process of raising a third funding round of up to $2.1 million from Maveron Equity Partners and MEP Associates, according to the website VentureBeat.

AOL to Acquire Social Network Bebo for $850 Million

Authored by Jay Baage on March 13, 2008 - 6:25am.

New York - AOL (NYSE: TWX) announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Bebo, a social media network, for $850 million in cash. Bebo is particularly strong outside the United States, especially in Britain, and has a global membership of more than 40 million.

Digg.com Acquisition Rumors – Who Could Benefit Most?

Authored by Heather Dougherty on March 10, 2008 - 5:33am.

Rumors are circulating once again that Digg.com is up for sale, this time naming Google and Microsoft as likely bidders for the company. And while these may just be rumors, it makes sense why both would be interested – Microsoft already has an advertising deal in place with Digg and Google is already an inadvertent partner (and could also certainly sell advertising on the website).

Analysis: Are Technology Companies Taking Over the Advertising Industry?

Authored by Scott Karp on February 27, 2008 - 8:20am.

Microsoft announced this week that they are going after the holy grail of advertising: integrated ROI measurement and tracking. The big problem with online ROI measurement that Microsoft is targeting is the inability to assign quantifiable value to brand advertising, e.g. banner ads, and which results in disproportionate value being assigned to search advertising — the “last click” which typically leads to a measurable actions like a purchase.

Analysis: Yahoo! Search Draws Younger Audience; Google Users Big Spenders Online

Authored by Heather Hopkins on February 15, 2008 - 6:46am.

Yahoo! Search attracts a younger audience than Google. I promised a post with figures to back up my claim (sorry I am a day late - forgot it was Valentine's Day!). The following charts show the percentage of visits from each age group to Yahoo! Search and Google.com.

Mark Cuban: Yahoo Should Say Yes to Microsoft

Authored by Mark Cuban on February 4, 2008 - 7:06am.
One thing about Jerry Yang that I always have admired is that he cares. He cares about his employees. He cares about his products. He cares about his shareholders. Most of all he cares about building a world class company that can be great at what it does.

Analysis: Microsoft & Yahoo Network Strengths

Authored by Heather Dougherty on February 4, 2008 - 6:50am.

Microsoft’s offer to purchase Yahoo! raises many questions regarding the potential impact upon the industry overall. One area where the combined entity would have a particular strength is the availability of online display ad inventory throughout their network of properties. For the week ending Jan. 26th, 2008, the market share of all Internet visits for Yahoo! properties was 13.2% and 2.3% for MSN (for chart, please see Bill's blog post).

Microsoft/Yahoo! – Bigger Is Not Always Better

Authored by Jay Baage on February 1, 2008 - 7:58am.

Here's a quick analysis of one of the biggest stories in digital media and entertainment so far this year - Microsoft’s (NASD: MSFT) $44.6 billion offer for Yahoo! (NASD: YHOO). Strategically, it makes a lot of sense, but, in the world of M&A, there is a big difference between theory and practice. If the acquisition gets the nod of approval from anti-trust authorities as well as the shareholders, don’t expect Microsoft/Yahoo to become a lean mean online advertising machine overnight. Both companies are faced with their own fair share of challenges and it will take time for these companies, combined or not, to get their act together and catch up with Google (NASD: GOOG).