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

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Photo by Bloomberg.

Asked and Answered

Our Views on On-Demand Food, Internet.org and More

By The Information Staff · Apr 17, 2015 7:01am PDT

Subscribers to The Information are curious about all manner of technology-related subjects, judging by questions we get from you. As we did in January, we’re publishing our responses to several we thought would be of broad interest to subscribers. These cover everything from the future of on-demand food delivery services to the evolution of... Subscribers to The Information are curious about all manner of technology-related subjects,...

Google CEO Larry Page. Photo by Bloomberg.

The EU’s Case Against Google Makes No Sense

By Amir Efrati · Apr 16, 2015 11:41am PDT · 10 comments

The European Commission’s antitrust case against Google is rubbish.I say that even though I was among the first to document the way Google has increasingly pushed Google Search traffic to the company’s own “vertical” search services like comparison shopping and local-business results at the expense of non-Google websites,... The European Commission’s antitrust case against Google is rubbish.I say that even though I...

Chart by Peter Schulz

The Truth About Google’s Stock Price

By Martin Peers · Apr 16, 2015 7:01am PDT

For more than a decade, from 2001 until about 2013, Microsoft’s stock bounced around the same price, as investors realized the software giant’s big growth days were over. There are a growing number of signs that Google has entered what could be a similarly lengthy flatline period. What this reflects is that, declining search forecasts included,... For more than a decade, from 2001 until about 2013, Microsoft’s stock bounced around the same...

ResearchGate Aims to Create the ‘Cloud’ of Scientific Knowledge

By Steve Nellis · Apr 15, 2015 10:01am PDT

Q&A

ResearchGate Aims to Create the ‘Cloud’ of Scientific Knowledge

By Steve Nellis · Apr 15, 2015 10:01am PDT

Ijad Madisch built ResearchGate to counter a great unspoken problem in scientific research: the incredible amount of time scientists waste on approaches that have already failed. This so-called “research redundancy” is caused by scientific journals’ practice of emphasizing hypothesis-proving studies in what they publish, rather than those where... Ijad Madisch built ResearchGate to counter a great unspoken problem in scientific research: the...

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer. Photo by Bloomberg.

Mobile Messaging Wars: Phase Two

By Amir Efrati · Apr 15, 2015 7:01am PDT · 3 comments

The first mobile-messaging wars are largely over. SMS text-replacement services like WhatsApp and others have solidified their dominance. But as messaging evolves into a service beyond one-on-one communications, more battles are beginning. And the stakes are as big as controlling commerce or search. Google is developing a new “phone dialer” app... The first mobile-messaging wars are largely over. SMS text-replacement services like WhatsApp and...

Amazon's Dash button. Photo courtesy Amazon.

Amazon’s Counter to Apple Watch: a Button for Soap

By Steve Nellis · Apr 14, 2015 11:15am PDT · 2 comments

It may not look like it, but the most formidable competitor to the Apple Watch may not be any other piece of wearable technology. It may be the device Amazon unveiled on March 31: The Dash button. In case you’re not familiar, the Dash is a small wireless device that has one button and an adhesive underside. You press the button and it orders a... It may not look like it, but the most formidable competitor to the Apple Watch may not be any...

Data via Prof. Jay Ritter, University of Florida

A New Low in Profitable Tech IPOs

By Tom Dotan and Peter Schulz · Apr 14, 2015 7:01am PDT · 4 comments

Here’s a sobering statistic for anyone worried about where we are in the tech cycle: Last year, a higher proportion of money-losing tech companies went public than at any time since 2000. The proportion of tech IPOs turning a profit has declined in the past four years, according to data collected by University of Florida Professor Jay Ritter, a... Here’s a sobering statistic for anyone worried about where we are in the tech cycle: Last year, a...

Art by Sam Lessin.

A Call for New Type of Mapping Platform

By Sam Lessin · Apr 13, 2015 10:00am PDT · 3 comments

Art by Sam Lessin.

Modest Proposals

A Call for New Type of Mapping Platform

By Sam Lessin · Apr 13, 2015 10:00am PDT · 3 comments

Here’s a Pop Quiz. Maui is 2,336 miles away from San Francisco and Montgomery, Vermont is 2,067 miles away. Which is closer? A map might suggest that they are both about the same distance away. But if you want to go to either, it turns out that Montgomery is almost twice as far away—ten to twelve hours of total travel time versus 6 to 7,... Here’s a Pop Quiz. Maui is 2,336 miles away from San Francisco and Montgomery, Vermont is 2,067...

Art by Matt Vascellaro.

The Information’s Free Agents, From Coast to Coast

By The Information Staff · Apr 13, 2015 7:00am PDT

With the tech sector hot as ever, the talent market is tightening up, and few people are staying on the sidelines for long. The Information’s Free Agents highlights executives between full-time roles, though the sixth installment includes one major exception: a top executive at an older firm who is currently interviewing for jobs elsewhere,... With the tech sector hot as ever, the talent market is tightening up, and few people are staying...

Data via Datafox. Chart by Peter Schulz.

IPO Mythbusting

By Jessica E. Lessin · Apr 10, 2015 11:58am PDT · 2 comments

Lately, I’ve had the sense that as we all sit back and assume that companies like Uber, Airbnb and Dropbox are going to wait forever to go public, we’re going to be surprised. I think we are going to see some big names go out this year—Square?—and more go out next year—Uber? Dropbox? I don’t have new facts to report about what the companies are... Lately, I’ve had the sense that as we all sit back and assume that companies like Uber, Airbnb...

Andy Jassy, chief of Amazon Web Services. Photo by Steve Nellis.

Meet the Amazon Web Services Mafia

By Steve Nellis · Apr 10, 2015 7:01am PDT

It could be called the great AWS diaspora. Later this month Amazon.com is expected to confirm that AWS is the world’s leader in public cloud services when it breaks out the unit’s financials for the first time. Yet many of the people who conceived, built and sold the service won’t be around to enjoy the moment, having long ago left the firm. AWS... It could be called the great AWS diaspora. Later this month Amazon.com is expected to confirm...

Photo by Bloomberg.

The Race To Create Video for Virtual Reality

By Tom Dotan · Apr 9, 2015 10:00am PDT · 2 comments

Photo by Bloomberg.

The Race To Create Video for Virtual Reality

By Tom Dotan · Apr 9, 2015 10:00am PDT · 2 comments

The ever-approaching day when virtual reality is no longer vaporware has kicked off a race among media and tech firms to start churning out content for the world’s newest consumer devices. Yes, we’re still years away from any sort of wide-scale VR adoption. (Of the major tech firms, only Samsung’s Gear VR headset has been released to the public,... The ever-approaching day when virtual reality is no longer vaporware has kicked off a race among...

GoPro CEO Nick Woodman. Photo by Bloomberg.

Don’t Count GoPro Out

By Martin Peers · Apr 9, 2015 7:00am PDT · 5 comments

Consumer electronics is, by and large, a very tough business. Whether it’s TV sets or smartphones, margins tend to be low and there’s always the danger of a cheap knockoff hitting the market. Indeed, that seems to be the fear investors have about GoPro, the once-hyped action camera maker. After going public last June at $24 per share, the stock... Consumer electronics is, by and large, a very tough business. Whether it’s TV sets or...

Mural from Stance-sponsored concert in Austin. Photo by Bloomberg.

Taking a Stance Against Online Advertising

By Reed Albergotti · Apr 8, 2015 10:01am PDT

At a time when most marketers are debating how much money to spend on Google search, Facebook or YouTube, sock company Stance is betting its future elsewhere. The San Clemente, Calif. company has spent only $250,000 on advertising since its 2009 launch. Yet it has sold a total of 15 million pair of socks in that period, relying on free social... At a time when most marketers are debating how much money to spend on Google search, Facebook or...

Art by Matt Vascellaro.

Q&A

Is This the Fate of Native Ads?

By Tom Dotan · Apr 8, 2015 7:01am PDT

Native advertising, savior of the online publishing industry, could already be doomed. And if that’s the case, the disease that kills it may have been accidentally hatched in the very labs that were trying to fix its biggest weakness. Let’s back up a bit. Native ads, traditionally described as advertising that matches the form and function of a... Native advertising, savior of the online publishing industry, could already be doomed. And if...

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer with Adam Cahan, mobile and emerging products group senior VP.

At Yahoo and Tumblr, Organizational Changes Afoot

By Amir Efrati · Apr 7, 2015 4:40pm PDT

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer with Adam Cahan, mobile and emerging products group senior VP.

At Yahoo and Tumblr, Organizational Changes Afoot

By Amir Efrati · Apr 7, 2015 4:40pm PDT

A major shake-up is brewing at Yahoo that could end Tumblr’s run as a standalone unit and rearrange the upper ranks of the Web firm’s product organization, which has struggled under CEO Marissa Mayer. She discussed some of the coming changes last week during an executive off-site meeting. A major shake-up is brewing at Yahoo that could end Tumblr’s run as a standalone unit and...

Dropbox CEO Drew Houston. Photo by Bloomberg.

Dropbox’s Softbank Deal Highlights Enterprise Push

By Steve Nellis · Apr 7, 2015 11:59am PDT · 1 comment

Dropbox’s announcement late Monday that it will use SoftBank to sell Dropbox to businesses in Japan highlights a new reality for the company: uncertainty about growth in the consumer market means enterprise customers are likely to be of increasing importance. But the company is playing from behind in terms of features prized by corporate... Dropbox’s announcement late Monday that it will use SoftBank to sell Dropbox to businesses in...

Data via Quettra

Which Apps Retain Their Users—And Which Ones Don’t

By Amir Efrati and Peter Schulz · Apr 7, 2015 7:00am PDT · 7 comments

The hardest thing about building a mobile company isn’t gaining users; it’s retaining them. And by this measure most social apps, including Snapchat, Vine and Twitter, are doing badly compared to Facebook and, surprisingly, Blackberry Messenger, particularly in Asia’s emerging markets. The Information asked a startup called Quettra for... The hardest thing about building a mobile company isn’t gaining users; it’s retaining them. And...

Illustration by Matt Vascellaro

The Ascension of Google’s Sridhar Ramaswamy

By Amir Efrati · Apr 6, 2015 7:00am PDT · 2 comments

In late 2013, Google’s top two ad executives, Sridhar Ramaswamy and Susan Wojcicki, were at war. They complained about each other to colleagues and tussled over an important new ad technology initiative. Tensions culminated in a meeting when Mr. Ramaswamy suggested Ms. Wojcicki and her team were “hiding the truth,” according to... In late 2013, Google’s top two ad executives, Sridhar Ramaswamy and Susan Wojcicki, were at...

IBM CEO Ginni Rometty. Photo by Bloomberg.

Cloud Proves Big for Everyone But Cloud Providers

By Steve Nellis · Apr 3, 2015 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

IBM CEO Ginni Rometty. Photo by Bloomberg.

Cloud Proves Big for Everyone But Cloud Providers

By Steve Nellis · Apr 3, 2015 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

Cloud computing has long been seen as the next big thing in tech. But while the cloud has proved valuable for businesses needing access to cheap computing power, selling public cloud services hasn’t become a big money-making business for anyone yet. Nine years after Amazon launched the first major cloud service, total revenue for cloud hardware... Cloud computing has long been seen as the next big thing in tech. But while the cloud has proved...