Social Media

Kim Kardashian will be kicked off Instagram

22 Dec 2023

The influencer is worth $1.7 bln, which could climb with her shapewear brand’s IPO. That’s value that doesn’t flow to the owners of platforms sustaining content creators’ fame, like Elon Musk or Mark Zuckerberg. The best way for them to pull some back: suspend her privileges.

Meta’s China quest thaws thin layer of dense cube

10 Nov 2023

The $828 bln social media company plans to sell virtual reality headsets in the country, 14 years after its Facebook service was banned there. Hardware is a less thorny way to grab revenue. It also puts pressure on the US government to soften its stance on some Chinese tech.

X’s rock-bottom leaves Elon Musk little to lose

6 Nov 2023

The Tesla CEO’s investment in the social network once known as Twitter swiftly lost a chunky amount of its $44 bln value. At this point, bold new ideas, such as an AI chatbot powered by user data, or crazier ones, make sense, even if they fail. Musk does well as an underdog.

Meta tenuously clings to financial reality

26 Oct 2023

Facebook’s owner grew quarterly revenue 23% and vowed to keep expenses in check. AI investments and a planned hiring spree may yet run into an economic slump, however, and reverse an ad rebound. Only then will boss Mark Zuckerberg’s power of self-restraint become clear.

Elon Musk could use X to settle old PayPal spat

18 Oct 2023

The site formerly known as Twitter is testing a $1 fee for users. Its billionaire owner says it’s to fight spam, but customer credit card information also could help turn it into a super-app. Adding payments would challenge a company that unceremoniously dismissed him long ago.

Capital Calls: BlackRock, Dollar General

13 Oct 2023

Concise views on global finance: Boss Larry Fink squares off with Uncle Sam; Dollar General bets on its ex-boss’s old magic.

Elon Musk’s X is a black hole of value

3 Oct 2023

Boss Linda Yaccarino is set to present her plans for the social network to bankers holding $13 bln of debt used to buy it. But X may be worth as little as $8 bln. Lead lender Morgan Stanley may have to pick up the pieces just as X threatens to consume whatever value is left.

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.

AI is making Meta virtually cool again

28 Sep 2023

Mark Zuckerberg talked up his $780 bln social media company’s artificial intelligence products at a developer conference. If they added as much value as Instagram, Meta could be worth $140 bln more. But Zuckerberg has to show he can monetize something he’s building from scratch.

Indonesia spoils TikTok’s Southeast Asia party

28 Sep 2023

The region’s largest economy is banning social media outlets from hosting direct sales on their platforms. That’ll hit ByteDance’s short-form video app hard: it has 125 mln Indonesian users and the country is its main e-commerce market. So much for mixing business with pleasure.

Klaviyo is better bellwether than Arm or Instacart

13 Sep 2023

Unlike its hyped peers, the marketing firm is paving the way for garden-variety tech IPOs, targeting an $8 bln valuation. It’s profitable, growing and even has its own invented metric, making it a better gauge of investor sentiment. One wrinkle is its reliance on backer Shopify.

Apple investors grow fat on iPhone’s thinning buzz

12 Sep 2023

The tech giant’s latest handset, to be unveiled Tuesday, may offer incremental improvements. Sharper pictures and faster charging won’t spur many upgrades. The $2.8 trln group’s main innovation is persuading investors to pay a higher multiple for slower-growing revenue.

John Malone wields hammer over media coffin

6 Sep 2023

A dispute has cut Charter’s cable viewers off from Disney content. Charter backer Malone is betting traditional TV is fading, risking $17 bln of rich fees for Disney. Forcing a showdown makes sense. It’s hard to see why distributors should subsidize the pivot to streaming.

Capital Calls: Microsoft in the EU, Dollar General

31 Aug 2023

Concise views on global finance: The software giant will sell its Teams communications app separately from other software in the European Union; the discount retailer’s poor results reflect a more resilient US economy.

TikTok challenger backpedals into public arena

21 Aug 2023

After nixing a $5 bln reverse merger last year, Triller plans to sell shares in a direct listing. Music videos and live-streamed brawls hosted by stars such as Snoop Dogg have attracted brands. A pivot to social media tools and questionable growth, however, make it a lightweight.

China slowdown creates cheap thrills for Tencent

17 Aug 2023

The $400 bln tech titan’s quarterly sales growth was a tad disappointing. But the country’s gloomy economic backdrop is prompting consumers to shift spending to low-cost entertainment. That should boost Tencent's lucrative video-games and advertising businesses.

PayPal would slot well in a different wallet

15 Aug 2023

As the $70 bln fintech company’s next CEO, Intuit veteran Alex Chriss brings small-business bona fides, but also dealmaking nous. It could be an opportunity for Citi, Meta or Stripe to advance their respective strategies. Fiserv, however, would make the most sensible partner.

For Meta, what’s old is finally new again

26 Jul 2023

Facebook’s owner is rebounding from the ad slump, evidenced by an 11% quarterly revenue jump. It’s a good sign for boss Mark Zuckerberg as he tries to boost the business with AI. Virtual reality will be a money pit, but at least some investment is paying faster dividends.

Snap’s boss destroys $43 bln in a snap

26 Jul 2023

Despite a bad quarter, revenue has grown faster than rival Meta's since the messaging-app’s 2017 IPO. If boss Evan Spiegel had met minimum return expectations, shares would be worth 4 times more. Now is the time to rethink Snap’s future. Too bad shareholders have no control.

Meta’s Threads isn’t worth 11 Twitters

7 Jul 2023

The social media company’s market capitalization has ballooned $500 bln since Elon Musk bought its smaller competitor for $44 billion. Measures boss Mark Zuckerberg has taken are helping. But even if he puts Twitter out of business, Meta has already received the benefit.