Internet

Palm reading could tell BlackBerry maker’s fate

17 Jun 2011

Research In Motion is melting down as consumers switch to rival devices made by Apple or powered by Google. Yet the top brass remains optimistic. Palm's trajectory provides a more sobering possibility. When its cult gadget lost its technological edge, the firm never recovered.

Amid global cybercrime, accidental hacks risk jail

16 Jun 2011

A U.S. antihacking law is so broad it can make any breach of an employer's computer policy a crime. Cyberattacks on Citigroup and others are costly and understandably feed demand for stiff penalties. But prosecutors should avoid overkill with fatfingered users of PCs and Macs.

Imagine if Groupon’s wacky accounting caught on

13 Jun 2011

The Internet coupon startup seeking a $30 bln value wants investors in its IPO to ignore silly things like marketing expenses, acquisitionrelated costs and stock compensation. If these financial standards were applied to other companies, the world would be a far richer place.

Apple throws music industry another life vest

6 Jun 2011

Its new iTunes Match service lets users listen to music on any device for $25 a year. Significantly, it also works as an amnesty of sorts for customers with illgotten songs in their hard drives. It looks a concession to piracy but it at least offers a way to more revenue.

Pandora’s huge price tag misses old-school model

3 Jun 2011

The online radio group's IPO seizes on the Internet hype with a potential $1.4 bln valuation. But as cool as the service may be, its reliance on radio ads isn't too novel. Investors also should appreciate the lack of operating leverage and avoid getting swept up in the frenzy.

Apple readies latest version of the halo effect

3 Jun 2011

The tech dynamo cleverly uses each introduction of a new device, like the iPad, to trigger virtuous circles where purchasers tend to buy other Apple products. Expanding its cloud offerings, where data and programs are stored remotely, could set off more favorable feedback loops.

Groupon IPO another bet on profit-free sales

2 Jun 2011

The Internet coupon company's revenue trajectory looks like a moon shot started in late 2008, the firm racked up $645 mln in revenue in Q1, 15 times what it brought in a year earlier. But profit looks like a submarine voyage so far. It's another test of dotcom optimism.

Google’s China hacking spat may make others wary

2 Jun 2011

The search giant's claim of Chinese Gmail hacking suggests it may not be able to escape Beijing's tentacles despite quitting the mainland. The story may fizzle if Google can't back up the disputed claims. But it still may make the likes of Facebook reluctant to enter China.

Microsoft’s Ballmer hardly the worst veteran CEO

27 May 2011

It's true the software giant has missed many opportunities under his watch, as hedge fund boss David Einhorn said this week. But it doesn't obviously mean he will go. On a total shareholder return basis, other longterm bosses including GE's Jeff Immelt have fared worse.

Virtual Bitcoins are appealing but probably doomed

27 May 2011

An online currency is no less real than a printed one. The preordained supply and decentralized nature of Bitcoins have intrigued geeks and paranoid inflationistas alike, and their value in dollars has rocketed. But this abstract gold may not survive such a bubble.

Yandex shows Russian venture capital potential

25 May 2011

The search engine's $1.3 billion IPO is a hit, but the big winners are the private investors who financed Yandex's earlier growth. Their success shows there is big money to be made from backing entrepreneurial Russian companies in fastexpanding sectors such as IT.

Uncle Sam scrambles signals on smartphone privacy

24 May 2011

BlackBerries and iPhones record our daily lives. But the law shielding the data is up for grabs. An Oregon court is mulling whether cops need warrants to search a phone and it's an issue that has split U.S. judges. People and businesses can only wait for the law to catch up.

Internet bubble brings back dubious metrics

23 May 2011

LinkedIn's 109 percent pop on its opening day shows investors are hungry for techstyle growth. That's good news for firms hoping to go public, ranging from Russian search engine Yandex to Groupon. But pegging firms by their revenue potential is risky. Profits matter in the end.

Baidu spat shows censorship is a capitalist issue

19 May 2011

A lawsuit against the Chinese search engine by U.S.based activists sounds farfetched. But it shows freespeech tensions are spilling over into the corporate world. This is bad news for those like Facebook who fancy China's online growth, but not the political brickbats.

Even LinkedIn’s bankers underestimate the hype

19 May 2011

Based on the near doubling in the stock on its debut, they left almost as much money on the table as they raised for the online U.S. business network group. But if the hype doesn't wear off soon, the scarcity value of listed Western social networks surely will.

Five quirks of China’s Internet hotshots

17 May 2011

Investors are keen to look for the next Google or Facebook in China. But China's half a billion Internet users have some unique tastes. Models proven in the West may not translate, and risks like censorship pose extra valuation challenges.

LinkedIn IPO recalls credit as much as dotcom boom

17 May 2011

With the supersizing of its value to as much as $4.3 bln, investors in the professional network are taking big risks without clear rewards. That happened in the Internet bubble, too. But they're also giving up other rights this time the equity version of the covlite silliness.

Yahoo caught short by Alibaba’s mystery rejig

12 May 2011

The founder of the Chinese internet group shuffled its payment processing system into a new vehicle he controls, without first agreeing terms with shareholders Yahoo and Softbank. It smacks of poor relations between the three. The conflict of interests may sour things further.

Russian blogger persecution should worry investors

11 May 2011

A criminal case against anticorruption blogger Alexei Navalny is just the latest blow to freedom in Russia, and flatly contradicts President Medvedev's investorfriendly rhetoric. His reform pledges will lack credibility until he tackles abuses of power by the security services.

Skype schmuck insurance pays off richly for eBay

10 May 2011

The online auctioneer can now claim to have made money on the Internet telephony group. Though eBay wrote down its original 2005 $3.1 bln purchase, and then sold it for less to Silver Lake and friends, keeping a stake allowed it to save face and show a return well over 30 pct.