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

Pete Cashmore. Photo by Bloomberg.

Time Warner Investing More in Mashable

By Tom Dotan · Mar 17, 2016 3:02pm PDT

Time Warner is pumping more money into Mashable, a millennial-focused tech and pop culture news site, according to two people familiar with the matter.The site has been on and off the market for several years and has been in acquisition discussions with Time Warner more than once, including late last year. Those discussions don't appear to... Time Warner is pumping more money into Mashable, a millennial-focused tech and pop culture news...

Evan Spiegel, left. Photo by Larry Busacca/Getty Image.

Loyalty Pays Off for Snapchat Employees

By Tom Dotan · Mar 17, 2016 7:02am PDT · 5 comments

For Snapchat employees hoping to cash in on the startup’s $16 billion valuation, the company has offered them a firm message: don’t go anywhere.In a departure from the norm, Snapchat makes employees wait until the third and fourth year of employment for the bulk of their stock compensation to vest, say former employees and attorneys... For Snapchat employees hoping to cash in on the startup’s $16 billion valuation, the...

San Francisco City Hall. Photo by Flickr/Ken Lund.

How Telegram Offers Way Around Public Records Laws

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 16, 2016 3:20pm PDT · 1 comment

Here’s a new twist on governments’ tussles with technology companies over privacy: San Francisco legislators are using the ephemeral messaging app Telegram, which could allow them to sidestep public record disclosure laws.Several elected members of San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors are active users of the app, along with... Here’s a new twist on governments’ tussles with technology companies over privacy:...

A scene from "Clevver Now," a Defy Media show on go90. Photo by Defy Media.

Verizon’s Costly go90 Ad Spending Plans

By Amir Efrati and Tom Dotan · Mar 16, 2016 7:00am PDT

A scene from "Clevver Now," a Defy Media show on go90. Photo by Defy Media.

Verizon’s Costly go90 Ad Spending Plans

By Amir Efrati and Tom Dotan · Mar 16, 2016 7:00am PDT

Verizon Communications planned to spend nearly $30 million to drive two million downloads of go90, its “mobile TV network” app, in the months before and after its launch last fall, according to a confidential marketing plan reviewed by The Information. On a per download basis, the marketing cost would be many times the amount paid by... Verizon Communications planned to spend nearly $30 million to drive two million downloads of...

Sources: PitchBook, The Information Research

When an Up Round Isn’t

By Alfred Lee and Peter Schulz · Mar 15, 2016 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

Getting headlines for a big increase in valuation is a sure way for private tech companies to lure investors and employees. But rising headline valuations don’t always mean that each share has risen in value–and some may not translate to investor gains at all.Take MongoDB, which early last year raised an $80 million round that was... Getting headlines for a big increase in valuation is a sure way for private tech companies to...

Photo by AP.

Modest Proposals

Why We Should Abolish Time Zones

By Sam Lessin · Mar 14, 2016 10:00am PDT · 14 comments

One of my favorite factoids about China is that the whole country operates in one time zone—just like the U.S. army. In most countries, before contacting someone, you have to think about what region they’re in and whether they’re on daylight savings. But in China it is simple. Everyone runs on the same clock.I strongly believe... One of my favorite factoids about China is that the whole country operates in one time...

WhatsApp founder Jan Koum. Photo by Bloomberg.

WhatsApp’s Other Encryption Dilemma

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 14, 2016 7:00am PDT · 2 comments

As WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption increasingly puts it on a collision course with governments around the world, the Facebook-owned company has its own internal encryption dilemma complicating its first effort to make serious money.The messaging app has made clear it hopes to sell businesses on using WhatsApp as a way to communicate with... As WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption increasingly puts it on a collision course with...

The Information You Missed This Week

By The Information Staff · Mar 12, 2016 8:00am PST

The Weekly Digest

The Information You Missed This Week

By The Information Staff · Mar 12, 2016 8:00am PST

Good Morning!The presidential primaries are devouring news coverage but there’s still plenty going on in tech. Apple, for instance, is having an event on March 21. And we’re still breaking news. Check out this week’s stories. Good Morning!The presidential primaries are devouring news coverage but there’s still...

The Information’s 411 — Hazing

By Tom Dotan · Mar 11, 2016 2:05pm PST

On this week's episode, Stephen Nellis discusses Slack's new funding round. Cory Weinberg talks about Facebook's ad tech strategy. Tom talks to podcaster and comedian Marc Maron and his producer.You can find our RSS feed here or subscribe via iTunes and SoundCloud. On this week's episode, Stephen Nellis discusses Slack's new funding round. Cory...

Tsinghua University's x-lab.

A Lesson About Chinese Entrepreneurship

By Jessica E. Lessin · Mar 11, 2016 8:23am PST · 1 comment

Greetings from Beijing, where I was honored to give a talk about trends in Silicon Valley to some students at the Tsinghua University School of Economics and Management. The school is a pre-eminent business school in Beijing with close ties to U.S. finance and tech. CEOs seeking to do business in China—Elon Musk, Tim Cook and Mark... Greetings from Beijing, where I was honored to give a talk about trends in Silicon Valley to some...

Dropbox's COO Dennis Woodside, left, and CEO Drew Houston. Photo by Bloomberg.

Dropbox Picks up Enterprise Sales Vets

By Steve Nellis · Mar 10, 2016 12:02pm PST

Dropbox has quietly hired two enterprise sales veterans, part of a broader push to gain big corporations as customers.Yamini Rangan and Eddie O'Brien both joined earlier this year, the company confirmed on Thursday. Ms. Rangan, who was an executive at Workday for four years, is overseeing global sales operations. Mr. O’Brien is... Dropbox has quietly hired two enterprise sales veterans, part of a broader push to gain big...

Marc Maron, left, and Brendan McDonald. Photo by Sarah Cain.

Marc Maron on Media, Louis C.K. and Podcasting’s Future

By Tom Dotan · Mar 10, 2016 7:00am PST · 2 comments

Marc Maron, left, and Brendan McDonald. Photo by Sarah Cain.

The Big Interview

Marc Maron on Media, Louis C.K. and Podcasting’s Future

By Tom Dotan · Mar 10, 2016 7:00am PST · 2 comments

Like a Silicon Valley startup, comedian Marc Maron built his WTF podcast in the garage of his Highland Park, Calif. home. But unlike startups that have moved from scrappy beginnings into shinier digs, that garage is where he’s remained.What has scaled in the show’s six years, though, is the audience and the business model. Mr. Maron,... Like a Silicon Valley startup, comedian Marc Maron built his WTF podcast in the garage of his...

Twitter's office in San Francisco. Photo by Flickr/Guilhem Vellut

SF’s Tech-Fueled Real Estate Surge Slows

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 9, 2016 10:00am PST

After financial technology firm Credit Karma raised a $175 million Series D financing round last summer, the company went searching for office space in San Francisco that could hold hundreds of eventual hires. But after getting close to a deal that would nearly triple its footprint, top executives in recent weeks got cold feet about renovation... After financial technology firm Credit Karma raised a $175 million Series D financing round last...

Catcha Group CEO Patrick Grove. Photo by Bloomberg.

Iflix Funding Fuels SE Asia Video War

By Tom Dotan · Mar 9, 2016 7:02am PST

In the worldwide land grab for video streaming services, a battleground has emerged in Southeast Asia. Startups, telecom operators, movie studios and Netflix have all converged on the region in the last year to try and establish themselves within the nascent—but promising—video streaming market.The newest development comes from... In the worldwide land grab for video streaming services, a battleground has emerged in Southeast...

Slack CEO Stewart Butterfield. Photo by Bloomberg.

Slack in Talks with Thrive Capital

By Steve Nellis and Jessica E. Lessin · Mar 8, 2016 4:48pm PST · 2 comments

Thrive Capital is in talks to take a big piece of Slack’s next funding round, according to people familiar with the situation.Slack could raise between $200 million to $250 million at a $3.6 billion pre-money valuation, according to a person briefed on the conversations. The talks remain ongoing and fluid. Thrive Capital is in talks to take a big piece of Slack’s next funding round, according to...

Photo by Flickr/Kansir.

Former Samsung Execs Headed to China’s LeEco

By Amir Efrati and Tom Dotan · Mar 8, 2016 11:43am PST

Photo by Flickr/Kansir.

Former Samsung Execs Headed to China’s LeEco

By Amir Efrati and Tom Dotan · Mar 8, 2016 11:43am PST

Two former Samsung executives in the U.S. are expected to join Chinese video streaming service and electronics manufacturer LeEco, previously known as LeTV, according to people familiar with the matter. Their hirings are part of a push by LeEco, sometimes called the Netflix of China, to establish a bigger presence in the U.S.The two are... Two former Samsung executives in the U.S. are expected to join Chinese video streaming service...

Art by Ben Rosen.

VCs Face Questions on Valuation Gap

By Alfred Lee · Mar 8, 2016 7:00am PST · 1 comment

As mutual funds continue to mark down the value of their private tech holdings, venture capitalists say they are facing more questions from their investors about how they are valuing the same companies on their books. The VCs predicted that mutual funds markdowns could start to pressure their own valuations if firms were found by investors to be... As mutual funds continue to mark down the value of their private tech holdings, venture...

Cornerstone executives, including CEO Adam Miller in the center, on the day the company listed on Nasdaq. Photo by Nasdaq.

Activist Investors Get SaaS-y

By Steve Nellis · Mar 7, 2016 10:01am PST

With share prices hitting new lows in recent months, activist investors such as Paul Singer’s Elliott Management are flooding into the enterprise software industry, taking stakes in companies ranging from Citrix Systems to Qlik. They’re hoping to cash in on—and possibly even spark—what could be a wave of consolidation led... With share prices hitting new lows in recent months, activist investors such as Paul...

Mark Zuckerberg. Photo by Bloomberg.

Facebook Pulls Plug on Ad Software

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 7, 2016 7:01am PST

Last year, Facebook tested software that would represent a bold expansion of its display ads business beyond its own inventory, a move potentially worth billions in revenue. Using a demand-side platform, or a DSP, marketers would be able to use Facebook users’ identity data to bid on ad slots across the mobile and desktop Internet in real... Last year, Facebook tested software that would represent a bold expansion of its display ads...

The Information You Missed This Week

By The Information Staff · Mar 5, 2016 1:01pm PST

The Weekly Digest

The Information You Missed This Week

By The Information Staff · Mar 5, 2016 1:01pm PST

Good Morning! We’re looking forward to the start of our China trip next week, where we’ve got a number of events planned, including an entrepreneur meetup in Beijing on March 13. Good Morning! We’re looking forward to the start of our China trip next week, where...