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

Five times/week

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.

By providing your email, you agree to The Information’s Privacy Policy

Recent Editions

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

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

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

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...

Graphic by Jeff Greco. Images by NewhouseSU/Flickr and CBS.

John Malone’s CBS Play and Other Deals to Watch

By Martin Peers · Apr 2, 2015 10:01am PDT · 1 comment

TV deal-making rumors have run high in the past month, as big media companies continue to brace for more change and bankers get antsy. One unreported idea that media investors have been buzzing about: Liberty Media chairman John Malone could buy control of CBS and build a diversified entertainment conglomerate on a par with Walt Disney or 21st... TV deal-making rumors have run high in the past month, as big media companies continue to brace...

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Photo by Bloomberg.

How LiveRail Became Central to Facebook’s Ad Push

By Reed Albergotti · Apr 2, 2015 7:01am PDT

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Photo by Bloomberg.

How LiveRail Became Central to Facebook’s Ad Push

By Reed Albergotti · Apr 2, 2015 7:01am PDT

If U.S. immigration officials had been a little tougher back in 2008, Facebook’s new mobile advertising unit LiveRail might never have seen the light of day. The firm, acquired last July for around $500 million, is intended to be a pillar of the social network’s new Advertising Technology unit, with a focus on mobile. It’s a key part of... If U.S. immigration officials had been a little tougher back in 2008, Facebook’s new mobile...

Apple CEO Tim Cook. Photo by Bloomberg.

Why Analysts are Flying Blind on Forecasting New Markets

By Martin Peers · Apr 1, 2015 10:00am PDT

News reports last month of Apple’s latest attempt to launch an online video service prompted Wall Street firm Nomura Research to publish two research reports. One said any new Apple service wouldn’t be attractive to current “core pay TV customers.” The other implied that Apple’s new service could sign up at least 18.5 million consumers by 2017,... News reports last month of Apple’s latest attempt to launch an online video service prompted Wall...

Art by Matt Vascellaro.

Q&A

Meet the Woman Who Runs Founders Fund

By Jessica E. Lessin · Apr 1, 2015 8:11am PDT · 1 comment

Venture capital is a clubby industry and, as we know, full of men. So it’s all the more interesting when women do rise through the ranks, women like Lauren Gross, the energetic and very under-the-radar chief operating officer of Founders Fund. Since late 2013, the 32-year-old Ms. Gross has been keeping Founders Fund—the high-profile firm founded... Venture capital is a clubby industry and, as we know, full of men. So it’s all the more...

Data via SEC filings, DataFox

Bending the Subscription Software Sales Cost Curve

By Steve Nellis and Peter Schulz · Mar 31, 2015 10:01am PDT · 3 comments

In most subscription software companies, there’s a direct correlation between revenue growth and sales and marketing spending. Any company that gets more growth off the same amount of sales spending has a shot at eventually generating profits—in an industry where that feat is rare. Workday appears to be on track to do so. As the accompanying... In most subscription software companies, there’s a direct correlation between revenue growth and...

Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel. Photo by Flickr/TechCrunch.

Snapchat Hitting Sales Reset After Executive Shakeup

By Tom Dotan · Mar 31, 2015 7:01am PDT

Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel. Photo by Flickr/TechCrunch.

Snapchat Hitting Sales Reset After Executive Shakeup

By Tom Dotan · Mar 31, 2015 7:01am PDT

The abrupt departure of two senior Snapchat executives—chief operating officer Emily White and revenue head Mike Randall—has caused some confusion and concern among employees and outside partners, according to two people close to the situation. Unsurprisingly these changes have been reflected most sharply in the company’s relationship with... The abrupt departure of two senior Snapchat executives—chief operating officer Emily White and...

*Calculation: More Optimistic - Less Optimistic = Score

Subscriber Survey

Optimism About Tech and Economy Dip

By Jessica E. Lessin and Peter Schulz · Mar 30, 2015 10:49am PDT · 3 comments

Even the techies are torn about the Apple Watch. The same number of respondents to this month’s The Information subscriber survey said they were planning to buy one as the percentage who said they weren’t—38 percent. A smaller 24 percent was still undecided. The most popular model? The mid-tier Apple Watch, by a hair over the cheaper Apple Watch... Even the techies are torn about the Apple Watch. The same number of respondents to this month’s...

Graphic by Sam Lessin.

Modest Proposals

The Economics of Sharing: Past and Present

By Sam Lessin · Mar 30, 2015 7:00am PDT · 3 comments

Every six months or a year, a new app reignites a conversation about why people share on social media. I think it is pretty straight forward. Humans are social machines with thousands of years of evolutionary refinement. When we speak, emote or share, we each rapidly run a pretty sophisticated cost-benefit analysis of whether it is in our... Every six months or a year, a new app reignites a conversation about why people share on social...

Relationship Advice for Facebook and the Media Industry

By Jessica E. Lessin · Mar 27, 2015 9:28am PDT · 2 comments

Dear Facebook and Publishers, You’re having relationship issues, some of which are playing out in the press. Tom wrote this morning about media companies’ perception that Facebook wants to own their audiences. And news reports this week, including one from The Information about Facebook’s video “Anthology” plans, have made it... Dear Facebook and Publishers, You’re having relationship issues, some of which are playing out in...

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Photo by Bloomberg.

Facebook’s Message to Content Makers: We Own the Audience

By Tom Dotan · Mar 27, 2015 7:00am PDT

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Photo by Bloomberg.

Facebook’s Message to Content Makers: We Own the Audience

By Tom Dotan · Mar 27, 2015 7:00am PDT

Even before Facebook executives began talking about new plans for articles and videos on its platform at this week’s F8 developers conference, there was grumbling from the media executives present. Part of it was residual angst from a newspaper report that publications like the New York Times, National Geographic and BuzzFeed, among others,... Even before Facebook executives began talking about new plans for articles and videos on its...

A scene from Google’s Ingress game. Via Flickr.

Google Takes Its Web Game to TV

By Tom Dotan and Amir Efrati · Mar 26, 2015 10:38am PDT

When Google launched a gaming studio five years ago, it was largely an effort to keep a valued employee. Now, the first game developed by the studio, Ingress, has become so popular that Google is developing it into a television show. Google’s game studio, called Niantic Labs, is yet to pitch the show to TV networks but it has partnered with Sean... When Google launched a gaming studio five years ago, it was largely an effort to keep a valued...

Disney CEO Robert Iger. Photo by Bloomberg.

Media Investors Are Living in Denial

By Martin Peers · Mar 26, 2015 7:01am PDT

Media company investors appear to be living in their own reality. Pay TV subscribers fell 2 percent in 2014, says Nielsen, while national TV advertising in the fourth quarter dropped 0.9 percent, according to MoffettNathanson. And everyone from Sony to Dish Network to Apple is making it easier for users to cut the cord. Yet a three-year-long... Media company investors appear to be living in their own reality. Pay TV subscribers fell 2...

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg speaks to developers Wednesday. Photo by Bloomberg.

What Facebook Should Learn from WeChat

By Jessica E. Lessin · Mar 25, 2015 12:12pm PDT · 2 comments

Facebook today announced big plans to open up Messenger to developers. This means Facebook wants to make your Messenger inbox as central a communication channel as News Feed. To start, you’ll be able to send stickers, videos and messages made in other apps through Messenger. And more significantly, you’ll be able to use Messenger, not email or... Facebook today announced big plans to open up Messenger to developers. This means Facebook wants...

Art by Matt Vascellaro.

Airware CEO: Putting the Drone Supply Chain on Autopilot

By Steve Nellis · Mar 25, 2015 7:01am PDT

Art by Matt Vascellaro.

Q&A

Airware CEO: Putting the Drone Supply Chain on Autopilot

By Steve Nellis · Mar 25, 2015 7:01am PDT

In the consumer tech business, hardware and software tend to play pretty well together. Not so in the world of commercial drones, which are increasingly being used for everything from monitoring crops to delivering vaccines. The hardware and software in the drone world is often still custom-made from the ground up each time. San Francisco-based... In the consumer tech business, hardware and software tend to play pretty well together. Not so in...