Internet

Meta’s EU subscription looks suspiciously pricey

3 Oct 2023

The Instagram owner may allow Europeans to pay $14 a month to avoid ads. It’s hard to see many users signing up, and the price is far higher than Meta’s regional revenue per user. Regulators and courts, which effectively pushed for this outcome, may get a phantom solution.

Cable makers are green investing’s dark horses

28 Sep 2023

Net zero requires annual grid investment to more than double to $750 bln by 2030, plus the building of more solar and wind farms. That’s a boon for makers of power lines like Prysmian and Nexans. Green investors searching for growth may increasingly pay them more attention.

Apple may be poisoned by Google antitrust fallout

27 Sep 2023

Founder Steve Jobs once threatened “thermonuclear war” against his rival for copying the iPhone. Now, more than 15% of Apple's operating profit might be coming from fees paid by the search giant. The big risk is that an unfavorable verdict will taint its rich valuation multiple.

Capital Calls: Net neutrality is back, again

26 Sep 2023

Concise views on global finance: US regulators want to reopen a decade-old fight over the internet’s rules of the road. But just like merger cops who have struggled to gain traction, they are trying to use yesterday’s tools to predict tomorrow’s problems.

Amazon’s AI bulk-up merits the risk of a bust-up

25 Sep 2023

An agreement to plow up to $4 bln into artificial-intelligence startup Anthropic could give the tech giant’s cloud arm, crucial to its valuation, a growth boost. Despite the risks of a costly AI arms race or catching regulators’ ire, placing this catch-up bet makes sense.

Permira will have to work to exit classified hole

22 Sep 2023

The buyout firm has teamed up with Blackstone to take Norway’s Adevinta private. Its initial outlay in 2021 is under water after a tech downturn battered the $11 bln company’s valuation. Permira’s hopes of a decent return rest on turbocharging sales and tangibly hiking margins.

Cisco’s $28 bln spelunking yields dicey deal

21 Sep 2023

Buying data and security outfit Splunk could increase recurring revenue at the $215 bln networking giant. Cisco is also paying a low multiple. But the two don’t have much overlap, and Splunk’s cloud-based business needs work. Cisco bears execution risk, which hinges on growth.

Oracle’s cloud boom is unfortunately relative

12 Sep 2023

The $300 bln database giant is jostling to join Amazon and Google in providing networked computing for the artificial intelligence frenzy. But slowing growth means it’s harder to close the gap with market leaders. That makes its recent record-high valuation look precarious.

Daniel Zhang leaves Alibaba under a cloud

11 Sep 2023

The $230 bln e-commerce group’s outgoing boss has also stepped down as chief of its key computer services unit. The sudden decision upends what seemed a smooth transition of power. It may also delay AliCloud’s spinoff, and with it hopes of boosting the parent company’s valuation.

India’s fintech partygoers nurse a needed hangover

11 Sep 2023

The $16 bln industry’s annual shindig was a sombre affair. Founders touted sustainable growth amid dipping valuations, regulators preached risk mitigation and big investors stayed away. Waning euphoria for the country’s digital ecosystem may, though, be an early sign of maturity.

Instacart’s mixed bag has valuation opportunities

28 Aug 2023

The food delivery firm is worth far less than its high point in 2021. The cost to get new customers is rising, too. But a push to sell ads, a sensible business, could help bring its valuation close to $17 bln. As long as Instacart is reasonable, it can get its listing, finally.

Everyone is trying to steal Amazon’s cloud thunder

3 Aug 2023

Growth at the $1.3 trln company’s AWS cash engine leaped a low bar, beating expectations but lagging peers. With rivals increasingly leaning on cloud and AI hype, boss Andy Jassy’s task of keeping enough share to buoy improving but less-profitable operations gets ever tougher.

Inflation dip puts central bankers in a pickle

27 Jul 2023

The Federal Reserve and ECB once again hiked interest rates. Yet US price rises are easing with few signs of economic pain. In this Viewsroom podcast, Breakingviews columnists discuss how this phenomenon, dubbed ‘immaculate disinflation’, complicates what policymakers do next.

Alphabet pins growth hopes to a cloud

25 Jul 2023

The $1.5 trln Google parent’s results beat expectations, led by gangbusters expansion at its cloud business. Though still in third place to Amazon and Microsoft, investing in that unit could be a way to offset risks looming over the company’s core advertising operation.

Amazon-EU web content spat is all about grey areas

20 Jul 2023

The $1.4 trln e-commerce giant is fighting Brussels’ decision to class it as a large online platform and hence face extra scrutiny. Given its size, Amazon’s challenge at first looks like a long shot. Yet the legislation’s vague language creates scope for disputes.

AT&T is another corporate elder aging ungracefully

19 Jul 2023

The telecom’s stock hit 30-year lows over liability fears from decades-old lead-lined cables. As with J&J now or oil giants tomorrow, over-the-hill corporate titans have the time to accumulate opaque environmental and legal liabilities that are often ignored, until they can’t be.

Microsoft-Activision deal not yet game on

12 Jul 2023

The $2.5 trillion tech giant has beaten down the US antitrust regulator. But the similar counterpart in the UK is digging in. Microsoft will have to either renegotiate its $69 billion deal with the gaming company or offer concessions, and then go through approval again.

Capital Calls: KKR’s reluctant bidding war

30 Jun 2023

Concise views on global finance: Despite pushing arguments about antitrust and financing risks, the buyout shop ended up parrying a rival suitor for industrials company Circor by matching it on price.

Alphabet threats show up everywhere but its shares

29 Jun 2023

The Google-owner’s valuation has powered ahead as it touts its prowess in artificial intelligence, in spite of mounting menaces. A report questioning Google's video ad sales compounds ongoing antitrust threats, and even AI might not be an unalloyed good.

LinkedIn ages like fine wine in Microsoft’s cellar

28 Jun 2023

In contrast to souring Meta and Twitter, the drier social media app is flourishing. Although veiled by its parent’s cloud dominance, the 2016-vintage acquisition has tripled in value from its $26 bln price tag. Business-related data also will help it keep maturing in the AI era.