The Briefing by Martin Peers, Jessica Lessin and the team at The Information

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The Briefing

By Martin Peers, Jessica Lessin and the team at The Information

Get smarter about the day’s news in tech, media and finance by following Silicon Valley’s most-read executive newsletter.

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Recent Editions

GM CEO Mary Barra. Photo by Bloomberg.

GM Expressed Interest in Lyft at $6 Billion

By Amir Efrati · Aug 29, 2016 11:47am PDT

One of the unresolved questions surrounding General Motors’ interest in acquiring Lyft is what price the automaker was willing to pay. Now we have part of the answer: Lyft’s leaders informed the company’s board of directors this summer that GM expressed interest in a $6 billion deal, according to two people with knowledge of... One of the unresolved questions surrounding General Motors’ interest in acquiring Lyft is...

Art by Ben Rosen.

Cold Calling Heats Up for Private Tech Stocks

By Alfred Lee · Aug 29, 2016 7:02am PDT

Earlier this month, an attorney at a large law firm got a call from a representative of Midtown Partners, a boutique investment bank in New York and Chicago that sells public equities to private investors. The caller began by asking if the attorney knew what a “unicorn” was. He then asked whether the attorney would be interested in... Earlier this month, an attorney at a large law firm got a call from a representative of Midtown...

The Weekly Digest

The Information You Missed This Week

By The Information Staff · Aug 27, 2016 8:01am PDT

Happy Saturday!What a week. If you thought alt-right was a command on the keyboard, you might have learned something new from the latest political drama. Happy Saturday!What a week. If you thought alt-right was a command on the keyboard, you might...

The Information’s 411 — The Anniversary

By Tom Dotan · Aug 26, 2016 1:00pm PDT

The Information’s 411 — The Anniversary

By Tom Dotan · Aug 26, 2016 1:00pm PDT

Kevin and Jessica talk about the difficulties facing Google Fiber and why it's making cutbacks. Also, Jessica argues why the Uber vs Lyft storyline doesn't make sense anymore. And Tom reflects on year one of the podcast. Kevin and Jessica talk about the difficulties facing Google Fiber and why it's making...

Lyft co-founder John Zimmer. Photo by Bloomberg.

RIP Uber Versus Lyft

By Jessica E. Lessin · Aug 26, 2016 7:02am PDT · 2 comments

I have some advice for Lyft and Uber: Get over each other. Tensions, always simmering between the two, flared this week. In an unusual press blitz, Lyft co-founder John Zimmer and a Lyft spokesman blamed Uber for fueling rumors it was desperately shopping itself. They were responding to a series of reports that companies like Amazon.com, Google... I have some advice for Lyft and Uber: Get over each other. Tensions, always simmering between the...

Source: Envision IP. Graphic by Peter Schulz.

The Race to Patent Augmented Reality

By Reed Albergotti · Aug 25, 2016 10:00am PDT

If patent applications are any guide, Microsoft is investing the most in developing its own augmented reality technology. It has applied for far more AR patents in the past six years than other tech companies known to be working on AR products, such as Samsung, Sony, Google and Magic Leap. The tech industry is seeing a huge uptick in AR patent... If patent applications are any guide, Microsoft is investing the most in developing its own...

Access Chief Craig Barratt. Photo by Bloomberg.

Inside the Battle Over Google Fiber

By Kevin McLaughlin · Aug 25, 2016 7:00am PDT · 7 comments

When Google was planning to launch its Fiber broadband and TV service, Fiber executives had ambitious hopes of signing up around 5 million subscribers in five years, said a person close to Google's parent, Alphabet. But by the end of 2014, more than two years after service began, Google had only signed up around 200,000 broadband... When Google was planning to launch its Fiber broadband and TV service, Fiber executives had...

Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg. Photo by Bloomberg.

Facebook’s New Plan to Expand Ad Network

By Cory Weinberg · Aug 24, 2016 7:01am PDT · 7 comments

Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg. Photo by Bloomberg.

Facebook’s New Plan to Expand Ad Network

By Cory Weinberg · Aug 24, 2016 7:01am PDT · 7 comments

Facebook’s mobile ad network is looking to sell more ads on a broader number of websites, diversifying beyond the game and utility apps that dominate its client base. Some of its new targets for mobile ad sales are large publishers such as USA Today and Hearst, which have started selling ads through Facebook Audience Network after plugging... Facebook’s mobile ad network is looking to sell more ads on a broader number of websites,...

BAMTech CEO Bob Bowman. Photo by Flickr/TechCrunch.

BAMTech Deal a Model, Concern for Media Firms

By Tom Dotan · Aug 23, 2016 7:00am PDT · 6 comments

Big media companies are all rushing to stream more video. And as it becomes central to their business the media firms are increasingly trying to wrest control of the video technology.Take Walt Disney’s acquisition of a 33% stake in BAMTech, the company that powers streaming video owned by Major League Baseball as well as video services for... Big media companies are all rushing to stream more video. And as it becomes central to their...

Andrew Morse, executive vice president of CNN US and head of CNN digital worldwide. Art by Matt Vascellaro.

The Big Interview

How CNN is Fending off Digital Rivals

By Tom Dotan · Aug 22, 2016 11:12am PDT · 1 comment

Public spats between TV networks are a time-honored tradition in cable news. But in recent months CNN executives have been turning their sights to digital competitors—with two sites in particular the focus of their PR potshots: BuzzFeed and Vice.CNN’s president Jeff Zucker has called out the two as being unserious about... Public spats between TV networks are a time-honored tradition in cable news. But in recent months...

Art by Sam Lessin.

Modest Proposals

Why I Like, but Won’t Use, Instagram Stories For Now

By Sam Lessin · Aug 22, 2016 7:01am PDT · 5 comments

Facebook did a nice job rolling out Instagram stories earlier this month. The timing was excellent for sparking engagement (right ahead of the Olympics). The rhetoric was great (not trying to claim Facebook invented the product). The product execution was solid.The launch got me to re-download the app and post my first photo in months. But... Facebook did a nice job rolling out Instagram stories earlier this month. The timing...

The Information You Missed This Week

By The Information Staff · Aug 20, 2016 8:01am PDT

The Weekly Digest

The Information You Missed This Week

By The Information Staff · Aug 20, 2016 8:01am PDT

Happy Saturday. Here’s hoping you had a better week than Ryan Lochte. Or at least can come up with a better excuse if you didn’t. Happy Saturday. Here’s hoping you had a better week than Ryan Lochte. Or at least can come...

The Information’s 411 — Funny Money

By Tom Dotan · Aug 19, 2016 3:42pm PDT

Jessica, Reed and Tom talk about why journalists are not the ones responsible for invasions of privacy, despite what Peter Thiel claims. They also discuss Snapchat's acquisition of Vurb and the role of eye-tracking technology in VR. Plus: the tech angles to the Ryan Lochte saga. Jessica, Reed and Tom talk about why journalists are not the ones responsible for invasions of...

Peter Thiel speaking at the RNC. Photo by Bloomberg.

A Letter to Peter Thiel

By Jessica E. Lessin · Aug 19, 2016 7:02am PDT · 8 comments

Dear Peter, I’m the only journalist I am aware of who has been openly sympathetic toward your campaign against Gawker. I’ve taken quite a bit of heat for it. But I still believe that you, like everyone else, have a right to support lawsuits against media organizations you believe have violated the law. A world where the uber-rich can... Dear Peter, I’m the only journalist I am aware of who has been openly sympathetic toward...

An artist's rendering of SMI's eye-tracking technology in AR glasses. Image courtesy of SMI.

Eye-Tracking Companies Set Sights on VR

By Reed Albergotti · Aug 18, 2016 10:46am PDT · 1 comment

When William Torch, a neurologist in Reno, Nevada, founded Eye-Com in 1998 with $15 million in government grants, he hoped to help people with disabilities control technology without their hands. Eye-Com no longer exists, but almost 20 years later, Mr. Torch’s technology may have found its market: virtual reality. Eye-Com’s... When William Torch, a neurologist in Reno, Nevada, founded Eye-Com in 1998 with $15 million in...

WeWork CEO Adam Neumann. Photo by Bloomberg.

In Shift, WeWork Pushes for Longer Leases

By Alfred Lee and Cory Weinberg · Aug 18, 2016 7:02am PDT · 2 comments

WeWork CEO Adam Neumann. Photo by Bloomberg.

In Shift, WeWork Pushes for Longer Leases

By Alfred Lee and Cory Weinberg · Aug 18, 2016 7:02am PDT · 2 comments

WeWork, which built its business on luring freelancers and startups with no-strings-attached office space, may now be looking to protect itself against drops in demand by going after bigger tenants that commit to longer stays. The company has begun pushing to lock some companies into year-long rental agreements rather than month-to-month.The New... WeWork, which built its business on luring freelancers and startups with no-strings-attached...

Cyanogen CEO Kirt McMaster. Photo by Web Summit via Flickr.

Confidential Data Question Cyanogen’s User Figures

By Amir Efrati · Aug 17, 2016 7:01am PDT · 4 comments

Newly revealed internal data from Cyanogen, a closely-watched startup trying to make an alternative version of Android, undercut the company’s longstanding pronouncement that there are tens of millions of users of a smartphone operating system it distributes.Cyanogen CEO Kirt McMaster said as of mid-2014 that the company tracked more than... Newly revealed internal data from Cyanogen, a closely-watched startup trying to make an...

*Figure as of December 2015. Source: Information Research. Chart by Tom Dotan

Network Streaming Apps Fight for Slice

By Tom Dotan · Aug 16, 2016 10:01am PDT · 5 comments

More than a year after HBO kicked off a race among big media companies to go direct to consumers online, many of the new services are hovering around the million-subscriber mark. That suggests these services are far from a solution for media companies grappling with cord-cutting.At the high end, wrestling service WWE had 1.5 million subscribers... More than a year after HBO kicked off a race among big media companies to go direct to consumers...

Diane Greene of Google. Photo by Associated Press.

Google’s Greene Recruits Outsiders for Cloud Army

By Kevin McLaughlin · Aug 16, 2016 7:01am PDT

It has been nearly nine months since Google hired veteran Silicon Valley executive Diane Greene to run its cloud business. Aside from a few customer wins, the announcement of new cloud data centers, and the introduction of new machine learning tools for developers, this time has passed without much fanfare. But behind the scenes, Ms. Greene has... It has been nearly nine months since Google hired veteran Silicon Valley executive Diane Greene...

Vurb founder Bobby Lo at TechCrunch Disrupt. Photo by TechCrunch.

Snapchat to Buy Vurb for More Than $100 Million

By Jessica E. Lessin and Tom Dotan · Aug 15, 2016 1:55pm PDT · 2 comments

Vurb founder Bobby Lo at TechCrunch Disrupt. Photo by TechCrunch.

Snapchat to Buy Vurb for More Than $100 Million

By Jessica E. Lessin and Tom Dotan · Aug 15, 2016 1:55pm PDT · 2 comments

Snapchat is tiptoeing into search.The company is acquiring recommendation app Vurb for around $110 million plus additional team retention payouts totaling nearly as much, according to a person familiar with the deal. Snapchat is tiptoeing into search.The company is acquiring recommendation app Vurb for around...