Internet

Google saves face with half-way retreat

23 Mar 2010

In shutting its China portal, the search engine chose morals over profits. But it will keep a toehold, rerouting searches to Hong Kong and keeping on staff. Retaining an option on China looks sensible if Google can withstand bad press, brain drain, and loss of market share.

EBay spinoff of PayPal looks inevitable

17 Mar 2010

The Internet group s auctions business is a steady cash cow. But its online payments arm accounts for at least 40 percent of the company s market value. Separating the two would focus investor attention on this gem and increase PayPal s growth.

Skype looks like Silicon Valley’s best IPO hope

15 Mar 2010

With Facebook not on the IPO launch pad, the former eBay orphan could steal the scene with a quick flip. After clarifying copyright issues and rewriting its code to attack the business market, the Internet telephony group may be worth twice the $2.75 bln it sold for last year.

Apple’s iTunes milestone proves who’s piper

25 Feb 2010

The tech giant just sold its 10 billionth song online as the pace of downloading from its digital media service quickens. That means consumers are getting themselves increasingly locked in to Apple products. And the company s grip on the entertainment world is tightening.

Wall Street could teach Google a thing or two

16 Feb 2010

Tapping user information promises lots of ad dollars. But going too far, as Google's Buzz did, can trigger privacy concerns and send customers fleeing. Establishing banklike conflict committees to kibosh plans that appear lucrative, but put the company at risk, might work.

MySpace follows AOL into obscurity

11 Feb 2010

Rupert Murdoch's social networking site has already been eclipsed by Facebook. Once the coveted users of such sites decamp for rivals, it's tough to reverse the slide. The departure of MySpace's CEO after less than a year underscores just how intractable these problems can be.

Google spreads itself, but not too thinly

10 Feb 2010

It's tempting to see the search giant's announcementaday behavior (building a broadband network, creating Buzz, Super Bowl ad) as a sign of Microsoftlike mission creep. But Google's initiatives are more focused than the software group's sad path to obese mediocrity.

Amazon’s cash flow flood could dry up

29 Jan 2010

The Internet retailer generated a stunning $2.6 billion in cash from operations in the fourth quarter, and it is plowing $2 billion into a stock buyback. But much of this bounty comes from delaying payment to suppliers that may not be sustainable.

Apple’s iPad beauty spells trouble for operators

27 Jan 2010

Unsurprisingly, the tech supremo's new tablet is a gorgeous device that does everything but make your breakfast. Over time, more apps will be added and its price will drop, making it even more desirable. And that's a problem for already strained carriers like AT&T.

Apple turns in sparkling results as warm-up act

25 Jan 2010

The U.S. tech group has shown an impressive ability to generate profit from designing iconic devices. This quarter was no different. Free cash flow rose nearly 50 pct. Now for the next difficult trick: unveiling a tablet in two days that meets the hopes of users and investors.

Cash, not China, is Google’s biggest conundrum

21 Jan 2010

More precisely, where should the search giant point its green gusher? The online ad recovery and increasing efficiency pushed Q4 free cash flow up 44 pct to $2.5 bln. Adding to its $24 bln hoard doesn t make sense. Giving it to shareholders does.

Google cyber-complaint is tip of iceberg

13 Jan 2010

Coordinated attacks on IT systems are common, yet companies and governments have kept largely silent. The growth of cloud computing means the stakes are growing higher. That may explain why Google spoke up and why the U.S. State Department has also publicly taken China to task.

Yahoo CEO report card – promising, but incomplete

8 Jan 2010

Carol Bartz shows promise. In her first year, she worked well with difficult classmates (despite occasional outbursts of profanity). Her Bminus selfassessment illustrates her discipline and work ethic. Carol s creative efforts, however, need improvement.

Google dips hands into messy local search

18 Dec 2009

The search giant may splash out a halfbillion on Yelp, a review site of local business. Google's mobile search ambitions makes this a natural pairing. Yet Yelp s untidy human element may fit awkwardly with Google s clean algorithmic bent.

AOL’s got independence – and issues

10 Dec 2009

The AOLTime Warner merger was the crowning deal of the new millennium. Its spinoff today is an appropriate bookend to a lost decade in the stock market. There may be value left in the company, but it won't be easy for CEO Tim Armstrong to deliver.

News Corp launches search-revenue trial balloon

23 Nov 2009

Rupert Murdoch wants search engines to pay for News Corp content. Microsoft's Bing, which recently also agreed to pay Twitter, might oblige. But Murdoch needs other publishers on board. With Google's traffic still alluring, that won't be easy.

Electronic Arts faces another bleak Christmas

11 Nov 2009

The US video game giant s lack of hits has led to a string of disappointing seasons. Worse, technological shift could cannibalise revenues. There's always next year for new games, but figuring out distribution may take longer.

Ancestry.com could have trouble reaching posterity

23 Oct 2009

The genealogy website wants to raise $100m in an IPO valuing its current subscribers at about $555 a head and its shares well above recent internal estimates. While retiring baby boomers searching for their ancestors may flock to the site, the valuation seems too high.

Amazon stock knock becomes badge of honour

23 Oct 2009

The internet retailer reported sparkling earnings. Sceptics always derided Amazon as a retailer in fancy tech clothing. With its stock now trading at an alltime high, and former tech darlings at fractions of theirs, the critique looks like a compliment.

Google should think twice about investment binge

15 Oct 2009

The search giant thinks the recession bottomed in the third quarter. So it s now ready to invest heavily . Google s economic forecast is optimistic and its tryanything investment style is even more so. Investors should hold the company to its more recent discipline.