Internet

Twitter CEO’s excuses look like fake news

9 Feb 2017

Donald Trump's preferred social-media platform posted a feeble 1 pct increase in Q4 sales. Boss Jack Dorsey, also CEO of Square, said ad revenue would lag user growth, but Twitter only added 4 pct more monthly users. If the two-timing boss is giving his all, it's not enough.

Snap IPO draft is weirdly switched for GoPro’s

2 Feb 2017

The photo app aiming to raise $3 bln says it's "a camera company" while struggling GoPro claimed it was in media. Snap's cash burn is not to be confused with the wearable camera firm's pre-IPO profit, though. And at least GoPro gave investors second-class voting rights, not none.

Amazon’s cloud gains are its silver lining

2 Feb 2017

The $400 bln online retailer's net income nearly quadrupled in 2016, from a low base. Its web-services division powered onward. But Amazon may spend more than analysts thought in the first quarter, which dinged the volatile stock. CEO Jeff Bezos still prefers growth to profit.

Facebook’s torrid growth turns up heat on Snap

1 Feb 2017

The social network beat expectations on both the top and bottom lines despite concerns business is slowing. The stellar results underscore the grip Facebook has over its nearly 2 bln users. Proving it can overcome such dominance will be rival Snap's big challenge ahead of its IPO.

Microsoft and Google keep fog around cloud growth

26 Jan 2017

Quarterly results show both firms' on-demand computing units are growing fast. The tech giants are pouring resources into their divisions, as profit is correlated with scale. Microsoft and Alphabet are stingy, however, on essential financial details. These units merit more sunshine.

Viewsroom: Trump’s borderline tax ideas

26 Jan 2017

Two competing tariff ideas from President Trump and congressional Republicans bring merits but mostly unforeseen risks. Meanwhile, any cut in the corporate tax rate will benefit hapless Yahoo and its Asian holdings. Plus, why it pays to bet against Davos Man's thinking.

Verizon and AT&T will get best connection from DC

24 Jan 2017

President Trump named a net-neutrality critic to run the FCC, the communications industry watchdog. That means internet providers may soon be able to charge the likes of Netflix to stream content faster. It'd be a timely fillip to earnings as their core phone business declines.

Alibaba’s Olympian view jars with local bad habits

24 Jan 2017

Boss Jack Ma put on a good show in Davos and New York, and strong quarterly earnings show the Chinese e-commerce group is a global force. Still, an ongoing accounting probe, counterfeit spats, and unpredictable deal-making add a parochial vibe Ma would do well to shake.

How much could Yahoo gain from tax cuts?

23 Jan 2017

Breakingviews calculates Altaba, the Asian investment rump, could surge in value.

Yahoo may get good Alibaba news without searching

23 Jan 2017

Even as its Verizon deal hangs in the balance, U.S. corporate tax rates could be cut. That would eliminate the main reason CEO Marissa Mayer dithered over a $37 bln stake in the Chinese e-commerce site. Breakingviews calculates a potential 20 pct uplift in Yahoo's stock value.

Five things Davos Man will get wrong this year

23 Jan 2017

Each January the politicians, financiers and company bosses who gather in the mountains offer a snapshot of elite thinking. However, this "Davos consensus" is often wide of the mark. From Donald Trump to Xi Jinping, here are five widely-held views that will probably be mistaken.

Viewsroom: Davos goes topsy-turvy

19 Jan 2017

Team Trump is AWOL at the World Economic Forum's annual alpine shindig while Theresa May's Brexit plan has people on edge. That left it to China's Xi Jinping to defend globalization. Elsewhere, U.S. bank earnings disappoint. And Snapchat considers making investor rights disappear.

Review: Mapping out China’s fast-changing internet

13 Jan 2017

The world's largest mobile economy is powered by an internet with Chinese characteristics, says Winston Ma. His book is an insightful guide to the forces behind the country's thriving tech sector. But it turns a blind eye to challenges faced by outsiders like Facebook and Airbnb.

Holding: Dealmakers can expect big MAC attack

11 Jan 2017

Unnerving tweets and fickle policy ideas from Donald Trump add to angst already undermining mergers like Abbott's $5.8 bln bid for Alere. Buyers invoke material adverse change clauses for escape purposes, but they're almost never enforced in court. That may be about to change.

Ma’s job offer to Trump is no Chinese peace pipe

11 Jan 2017

Alibaba founder Jack Ma met with the U.S. president-elect and pledged to create 1 mln jobs. Trump, well-pleased with this tribute, says he and the Chinese e-commerce tycoon will do "great things" together. There is less to both statements than meets the eye.

Wacky Yahoo rebrand obscures Verizon deal risk

10 Jan 2017

The firm is pressing on with the sale of its internet assets. Then boss Marissa Mayer will step back and what's left - mainly a stake in Alibaba - will be renamed Altaba. More importantly, though, the $4.8 bln deal is still far from certain. Mayer's task is to ensure it happens.

China’s search dinosaur struggles to find new life

4 Jan 2017

The search engine arm of Sohu, known for its online portal in the early 2000s, wants to list. That could free up resources for its parent to push into areas like video streaming, competing with giants like Baidu and Tencent. But Sohu's costly reinvention looks like a long shot.

Tencent heads for high score in gaming M&A

29 Dec 2016

China's biggest tech company will look abroad for growth in 2017. It will probably follow its $9 bln purchase of mobile hit-maker Supercell with similar-sized deals. But these will barely move the needle. A bolder move would be to bid for U.S. heavyweight Activision Blizzard.

Facebook and Google will swallow the ad world

27 Dec 2016

The two Silicon Valley titans are expected to account for nearly half the $270 bln budget for digital advertising in 2018. Even China's behemoth, Alibaba, is a distant third. Such dominance makes it harder and harder for starry-eyed startups to build sustainable businesses.

Grocery sector is ripe for big checkouts

22 Dec 2016

Pressure on traditional food retailers is relentless, and many-pronged. Customers are spending less of their budget on food and suppliers like Unilever are toying with selling direct to shoppers. Then there’s Amazon. The solution isn’t better retailers – it’s fewer of them.