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

Art by Jeff Greco.

Ties that Bind U.S. and China Tech

By Steve Nellis · Apr 28, 2015 7:01am PDT

You can tell a lot about a company based on where it puts its money. Take Chinese tech giants Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent and Xiaomi, each flush with cash, courtesy of their booming businesses. Increasingly they’re putting some of that money to work in emerging U.S. Internet companies, creating a new Web of U.S.-China tech alliances. (An earlier... You can tell a lot about a company based on where it puts its money. Take Chinese tech giants...

*Calculation: More Optimistic - Less Optimistic = The Information Score

Subscriber Survey

Tech Bullishness Rising

By Jessica E. Lessin and Peter Schulz · Apr 27, 2015 9:31am PDT

The Information subscribers were more optimistic about the tech sector than the overall economy for the first time in four months, another good sign for tech. We tallied the survey a week before the Nasdaq hit a record close on strong tech earnings last week. The Information subscribers were more optimistic about the tech sector than the overall economy...

Art by Sam Lessin.

Modest Proposals

The Downside of Positive Feedback

By Sam Lessin · Apr 27, 2015 7:01am PDT · 2 comments

It is well known that anonymous and pseudo-anonymous feedback forums online, like Yelp and Craigslist, have a negativity problem. In emotionally disconnected and consequence-free environments, users tend towards over-the-top and unhelpful negative feedback, and just plain meanness. I am starting to believe that apps whose services involve human... It is well known that anonymous and pseudo-anonymous feedback forums online, like Yelp and...

The Truth About Female Networking

By Jessica E. Lessin · Apr 24, 2015 10:15am PDT · 1 comment

The Truth About Female Networking

By Jessica E. Lessin · Apr 24, 2015 10:15am PDT · 1 comment

As the inbox of any female founder will prove, all-female networking is alive and well in the tech industry. There’s a “women” version of virtually every conference on the books and by my count, I’m a member of about a dozen groups of females in tech or media that convene regularly. But if women want to start closing the leadership gap that... As the inbox of any female founder will prove, all-female networking is alive and well in the...

Trying out Samsung's VR headset and phone. Photo by Bloomberg.

The Coming VR Software War

By Jessica E. Lessin and Tom Dotan · Apr 24, 2015 7:01am PDT · 3 comments

Since 2007, Google, Apple and others have been sparring over who controls the software that powers our phones. Now, a battle that some hope could similarly reshape power structures is brewing over software that powers virtual reality. It’s early days for the simulation technology, and even some of VR’s biggest supporters say it may not go... Since 2007, Google, Apple and others have been sparring over who controls the software that...

Data via The Information Research and Amazon

Tracking Amazon’s Cloud Profits to the Source

By Steve Nellis · Apr 23, 2015 3:32pm PDT · 1 comment

Amazon.com disclosed Thursday that its cloud computing unit is both bigger in revenue terms and a more important profit contributor to the retail giant than many analysts expected. But the figures also show the unit’s profit margin is declining, highlighting questions about which part of the cloud business is driving most of the growth at the... Amazon.com disclosed Thursday that its cloud computing unit is both bigger in revenue terms and a...

Short-selling specialist Jim Chanos. Photo by Bloomberg.

Shorting Private Stocks Would Be Good for Tech

By Martin Peers · Apr 23, 2015 7:00am PDT · 2 comments

Public market investors are pouring more into the private tech markets, able to put big sums to work and be well-positioned in the event a company goes public. But one thing these investors can’t do in the private-company market is to bet on a stock going down in price, by selling short. That should change. Investors who sell short—selling... Public market investors are pouring more into the private tech markets, able to put big sums to...

Photo by Bloomberg.

Rosenberg Takes Over Google Robotics, Temporarily

By Jessica E. Lessin and Amir Efrati · Apr 22, 2015 10:41am PDT · 1 comment

Photo by Bloomberg.

Rosenberg Takes Over Google Robotics, Temporarily

By Jessica E. Lessin and Amir Efrati · Apr 22, 2015 10:41am PDT · 1 comment

Google’s robotics unit—the former pet project of Andy Rubin—has had its leadership shuffled as it remains in limbo. The unit is now reporting to Jonathan Rosenberg, who oversaw Google’s products when Eric Schmidt was CEO but recently has taken a back seat, doing things like leading the operating committee at Motorola Mobility (before Lenovo... Google’s robotics unit—the former pet project of Andy Rubin—has had its leadership shuffled as it...

Art by Matt Vascellaro.

Q&A

Has Live Video Arrived in the West?

By Amir Efrati · Apr 22, 2015 7:00am PDT · 1 comment

Visiting the live-video app or website of YouNow can quickly become a voyeuristic journey into the narcissism of American Millennials, or their counterparts in other parts of the world. At any moment, hundreds or thousands of them are cursing, crying, laughing, rapping, singing, playing guitar, gossiping or even sleeping. They use the... Visiting the live-video app or website of YouNow can quickly become a voyeuristic journey into...

Data via Jana and Google Play

How Apps Get Skinny

By Amir Efrati and Peter Schulz · Apr 21, 2015 10:01am PDT · 2 comments

For mobile apps trying to make it big around the world, size matters. Storage space on low-end Android phones that dominate markets like India and China is severely limited. Every megabyte counts. The Information charted some of the smallest apps to see who has mastered the process of keeping it light and how. In a sign of the importance of the... For mobile apps trying to make it big around the world, size matters. Storage space on low-end...

Jawbone CEO Hosain Rahman. Photo by Bloomberg.

Inside Jawbone’s Up3 Misstep

By Reed Albergotti · Apr 21, 2015 7:01am PDT

Jawbone founder and chief executive officer Hosain Rahman was dealt bad news in late summer of 2014. Early tests of his company’s forthcoming flagship product, a health-tracking bracelet called the Up3 designed with swimmers in mind, showed the product wasn’t consistently water-resistant. Scheduled to be released during the holiday season late... Jawbone founder and chief executive officer Hosain Rahman was dealt bad news in late summer of...

Xero Chief Executive Rod Drury. Photo by Bloomberg.

Subscription Software’s New Playbook

By Steve Nellis · Apr 20, 2015 9:35am PDT · 1 comment

Xero Chief Executive Rod Drury. Photo by Bloomberg.

Subscription Software’s New Playbook

By Steve Nellis · Apr 20, 2015 9:35am PDT · 1 comment

Selling software to small business isn’t for the faint of heart. But companies that do so are drawing big interest from venture capitalists optimistic about their ability to deploy certain best practices and tactics to retain customers. These tactics are also valuable for the growing number of startups selling subscriptions, such as food... Selling software to small business isn’t for the faint of heart. But companies that do so are...

Photo by Bloomberg.

Partners Push Snapchat to Reveal More Audience Data

By Tom Dotan · Apr 20, 2015 7:01am PDT

Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel tweeted out a week ago that the app’s Coachella Live Story, a curated collection of video snippets submitted by people at the music festival, had drawn more than 40 million viewers over the weekend. For Snapchat’s advertisers and media partners, the question is who’s in that audience. And while the company has started... Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel tweeted out a week ago that the app’s Coachella Live Story, a curated...

What Technologists Get Right in Criticizing Government

By Jessica E. Lessin · Apr 17, 2015 10:04am PDT

It sounds like a plot line out of HBO’s “Silicon Valley”: Techies, miffed by government interference in their business, proposing entities outside of government influence where they can run their businesses without worrying about laws. The tech industry has a long history of such ideas. Larry Page has sometimes mused about creating... It sounds like a plot line out of HBO’s “Silicon Valley”: Techies, miffed by government...

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

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...

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

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...