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Archive for April, 2009

As founders step down, MySpace face big challenges

Posted in Board Of Intellectual Capital, FaceBook, Social Networks, Web 2.0, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on April 23, 2009| 1 Comment »

Widely covered, this story may actually indicate something big – Social Networking sites are in for some changes. The big buy out may be the goal for many, but is likely to provide stagnation or decline.  While Facebook has grp1-ap606_myspac_ns_20090423002610own rapidly the last few years, MySpace have stagnated.

Here are some good tidbits from Wall Street Journals coverage.

“People familiar with the situation said News Corp., was completing a deal to name former Facebook Chief Operating Officer Owen Van Natta as chief executive to succeed Mr. DeWolfe. He would report to Jon Miller, the former AOL chief executive who was recruited to join News Corp. this month in a newly created position of chief digital officer. Charged with all News Corp.’s stand-alone digital properties, he was particularly given the mission of shoring up MySpace.”

“More broadly, MySpace, like other social-networking sites, still must overcome doubts about the medium’s viability. Advertisers, for one, remain leery. “Advertising doesn’t fit so neatly into a conversation that people are having among themselves,” says Tom Bedecarre, chief executive of independent digital-ad firm AKQA. “The interruptive model of advertising hasn’t been successful.””

“Three top MySpace executives, including Amit Kapur, former chief operating officer, left the company in March to work on a start-up. MySpace has yet to name successors for those positions. Mr. Miller began discussing the job with potential candidates including Mr. Van Natta, but hadn’t finalized anything when the news of the talks leaked, according to people familiar with the situation. Mr. Van Natta helped expand Facebook but stepped into a less prominent role as chief revenue officer as the site grew, ultimately leaving the company in February 2008. At MySpace, he could serve as a bridge between Silicon Valley and MySpace, which has struggled to match Facebook’s technology prowess. Hearing of the talks, Mr. DeWolfe offered to resign, these people said.”

Its most often not a pretty site when things hit the fan. As far as MySpace goes, one may only wonder if the corporate culture of News Corp. will be able to uphold the indie status that draw traffic in the first place.

Read the full WSJ Online article here.

Comprehensive coverage can be found at these sites: Stephen Laughlin, Tech Blorge , SoCal Tech ,

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Yahoo is struggeling on its own – Microsoft merger may inevitable

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 22, 2009| Leave a Comment »

With a worse than bad report coming out of its first quarter, Yahoo is struggeling to find ways to stand on its own.  In the wake of Oracle/ Sun merge, next large Silicon Valley merge may come very soon. Microsoft who was once considered a no-no in the Valley may look like a saviour!

Here are some coverage tidbits from PCWorld.

“Yahoo had revenue of US$1.58 billion, down 13 percent from the first quarter of 2008 but higher than the $1.20 billion consensus expectation from analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.”

“Meanwhile, net income fell 78 percent to $118 million, or $0.08 per share, compared to $537 million, or $0.37 per share, in the first quarter of 2008, the company said Tuesday. On a pro forma basis, which excludes certain one-time items, Yahoo had net income of $206 million, or $0.15 per share, down 16 percent and 17 percent, respectively, compared to the first quarter of 2008 but exceeding by seven cents per share analysts’ expectation.”

With these bleak numbers, cutbacks will only solve parts of the fundamental problems.

“This time around, Yahoo will let go 5 percent of its staff worldwide. Yahoo ended 2008 with 13,600 employees, so this would mean that about 680 people will be laid off. Yahoo handed out pink slips to about 2,600 employees in two rounds of layoffs last year.”

One may wonder if this is the preparation for a merge with MSFT.

Other coverage on this story can be found at;  Yogi,  MassMedia Now ,  Erik Bowman , 24/7 Wall Street

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VC deal down in the 1st quarter of 2009

Posted in Board Of Intellectual Capital, boic, Economy, Investments, Moneytree, MoneyTree report, National Venture Capital Association, PricewaterhouseCoopers, PWC, Venture Capital, tagged , , , , , , , , on April 21, 2009| 1 Comment »

To no ones surprise, the VC community pulled in its spending spree and held back in the wake of the financial crisis. The recent report release by NVCA (National Venture Capital Association) this last weekend. A funny detail in the mix is that they release the data on saturday afternoon, after all media stopped their coverage for the weekend!

“Venture capitalists invested just $3.0 billion in 549 deals in the first quarter of 2009, according to the MoneyTree™ Report from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA), based on data provided by Thomson Reuters. Quarterly investment activity was down 47 percent in dollars and 37 percent in deals from the fourth quarter of 2008 when $5.7 billion was invested in 866 deals. The quarter, which saw double digit declines in every major industry sector, marks the lowest venture investment level since 1997”

Overall, its not good news. In specific areas, the analysis continues;

“The Software sector received the highest level of funding with $614 million going into 138 rounds, a drop of 42 percent in dollars and 34 percent in deals compared to the fourth quarter of 2008.”

“The Life Sciences sector (Biotechnology and Medical Devices combined) experienced a 40 percent decline in terms of dollars and a 31 percent drop in deals with $989 million going into 133 rounds. Investment in Biotechnology fell 46 percent to $577 million in the quarter, while Medical Device investments fell 27 percent to $412 million. Investments in Life Sciences companies represented 33 percent of all investment dollars and 24 percent of all deals in the first quarter, which is in line with historical norms.”

For the whole pressrelease, click here. For additional coverage on this story see; ABF Journal, The Batts report.

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Oracle to buy Sun Microsystems

Posted in Board Of Intellectual Capital, Investments, Java, Market research, Strategy, Sun Microsystems, tagged , , , , , , , , , on April 20, 2009| 1 Comment »

After the deal with IBM feel through, Oracle did not wait long before aquiring Sun Microsystems. This article from San Jose Mercury News gives a throurough analysis. Here are some selected shorts from the story:

“Oracle will pay $9.50 per share for Sun’s stock, the two companies announced this morning. That is slightly higher than the price that IBM reportedly offered after lowering its bid in the days before those talks collapsed. The sale of Sun to Oracle means a powerful combination of two software giants, but also could represent a new direction for Oracle. It could potentially create a new force for competition in corporate datacenters, where companies like IBM, Hewlett-Packard and Cisco have been competing to offer a wide range of hardware and software products.”

“In a joint conference call, Oracle president Safra Catz said the deal will add at least $1.5 billion in annual income to Oracle from the start. She stressed that the combined companies will be able to operate profitable and noted that Oracle has a track record of successfully integrating other large acquisitions in recent years, including BEA Systems, Seibel and PeopleSoft.”

Click here for more coverage on this issue: Peter Thomas, The IT Nerd, Bloggingstocks.

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Never Judge a Book by its Cover

Posted in Uncategorized on April 17, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Never Judge a Book by its Cover

Radio and TV commentators have been talking all day about a contestant on “Britains Got Talent”.  So, I am sitting in my office and listening to Susan Boyle, the person they were all talking about  ( go to http://www.youtube.com ).

An average 47 year old woman came on stage and had a dream to be a singer. When she walked out the crowd and the judges were against her;  she did not have the looks, demeanor and or stage presence to be a singer.  She began to sing, I Dreamed a Dream from Les Miserable and it was FANTASTIC.  She had the voice of an Angel.

Amanda Holden, one of the three judges said when it came her turn to voice her opinion – “I am so thrilled, because I know everyone was against you.  I honestly think that we were all being very cynical and that was the biggest wake up call ever. It was a complete privilege to listen to you, it was inspirational”.

In today’s challenging times its easy to be cynical.  Never judge a book by its cover and like Susan Boyle – Dream a Dream.  As we all go forth in the world, Live your life for the Integrity of your Name, the Love of your Family and Hope for the Future.

Winston Churchill once said to the British People – ” Never, Ever, Ever, Ever, Ever, Ever Give UP”.

Susan Boyle, in a challenging world, you are an inspiration and the sunshine of hope and we will never again judge a book by its cover.

Be healthy, be safe and enjoy family

Steve

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