Data Point

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Data Point

Skinny Bundles Hit Their Weight Limit

By Tom Dotan and Martin Peers · Feb 15, 2019 6:31am PST · 7 comments
In the battle to sign up consumers for low-priced streaming versions of cable TV, the streaming-only internet companies appear to be gaining on the traditional media firms.The two biggest firms in the market, Dish Network’s Sling TV and AT&T’s DirecTV Now, each posted anemic growth for the December quarter. That followed several... In the battle to sign up consumers for low-priced streaming versions of cable TV, the...
Data Point

Amazon Adapts to New India Rules, But Uncertainty Remains

By Priya Anand · Feb 7, 2019 11:13am PST · 3 comments
Days ago, top sellers on Amazon’s India website removed hundreds of thousands of product listings from the site to comply with new government regulations in the country, in what seemed like a perilous development. But on Thursday, after Amazon scrambled to restructure its relationship with one of those top sellers, some of those products... Days ago, top sellers on Amazon’s India website removed hundreds of thousands of product...
Data Point

Deep Job Cuts Hit Media in January, Tech Sees Hiring Slowing This Year

By Tom Dotan · Feb 6, 2019 10:01am PST · 3 comments
Quarterly financial updates from major tech companies in the past week have provided a shifting picture of jobs and hiring in the industry, with Silicon Valley giants including Alphabet, Amazon and Facebook all saying they plan to keep hiring in 2019, but at a slower pace than most of last year.It’s a different scene in media, which saw... Quarterly financial updates from major tech companies in the past week have provided a shifting...
These Tech Firms Destroyed Value the Fastest
By Alfred Lee · Jan 31, 2019 12:17pm PST · 3 comments
Data Point

These Tech Firms Destroyed Value the Fastest

By Alfred Lee · Jan 31, 2019 12:17pm PST · 3 comments
Much has been made of Snap’s huge drop in value. But when it comes to public tech companies that lost value the fastest, Snap pales in comparison with a company some may have forgotten about—Groupon.The online deals firm lost $10.4 billion in market capitalization, or 81%, in its first year on the public markets—and is worth... Much has been made of Snap’s huge drop in value. But when it comes to public tech companies...
Data Point

Online Shopping Offers a Bright Spot as China’s Economy Slows

By Wayne Ma · Jan 30, 2019 9:01am PST
China’s economy is expanding at its slowest pace in almost three decades, but online shopping is still growing at the country’s biggest e-commerce companies, driven by customers in smaller cities and a general shift to more buying on the internet, official and third-party data show.The data—collected from e-commerce sites... China’s economy is expanding at its slowest pace in almost three decades, but online...
Source: Apple filings
Data Point

At Apple, a Spotlight on Services as iPhone Slows

By Nick Wingfield and Aaron Tilley · Jan 29, 2019 6:32am PST
While Apple is discouraging investors from thinking about its stalled iPhones sales, there is another business it is eager for them to pay attention to: services.When the company reports financial results later today, it will for the first time disclose the gross profit margins for Apple services—a broad category that includes AppleCare... While Apple is discouraging investors from thinking about its stalled iPhones sales, there is...
Data Point

Scooters’ Worst Enemies: Wintry Weather, Vandals

By Cory Weinberg · Jan 24, 2019 7:01am PST · 2 comments
The two leaders in electric scooter rentals, Bird and Lime, saw significant declines in ridership in November and December—the first wintry months they’ve had to navigate with large fleets, new data show. The drops put a year-end chill on months of rapid expansion and showed how seasonal the scooter business is likely to be, which... The two leaders in electric scooter rentals, Bird and Lime, saw significant declines in ridership...
‘Non-Amazon’ Online Retail Strategies Attract Venture Funding
By Priya Anand · Jan 17, 2019 7:00am PST · 4 comments
Data Point

‘Non-Amazon’ Online Retail Strategies Attract Venture Funding

By Priya Anand · Jan 17, 2019 7:00am PST · 4 comments
Amazon may be the Goliath of online retail. But venture capitalists last year poured more money into startups that are hoping to carve out niches in areas where they feel they can build businesses around the e-commerce giant’s edges, data show.U.S. venture capitalists put about $5 billion into internet retail startups last year, according... Amazon may be the Goliath of online retail. But venture capitalists last year poured more money...
Data Point

A 5G Smartphone Revival? Not So Fast

By Aaron Tilley · Jan 10, 2019 7:02am PST · 1 comment
The increasing price tags on smartphones is often blamed for the stagnation in sales of the devices. Unfortunately, the next big thing in smartphones—super-fast 5G wireless networks—isn’t likely to make the devices any cheaper.Optimism abounds in the wireless industry that 5G will spark sales growth by giving smartphone users... The increasing price tags on smartphones is often blamed for the stagnation in sales of the...
Data Point

The Tech Firms With the Strongest Balance Sheets

By Martin Peers · Jan 4, 2019 7:00am PST · 3 comments
Quick question: Which tech company has more debt than nearly every other company in America? The answer is likely to surprise you. It’s Apple.As of the September quarter, Apple had $114.5 billion in debt. That puts it only behind AT&T, Ford and GE for how much money it owes, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence, excluding... Quick question: Which tech company has more debt than nearly every other company in America? The...
Tech Giants Turn to Madison Avenue to Burnish Image
Data Point

Tech Giants Turn to Madison Avenue to Burnish Image

By Sarah Kuranda · Dec 18, 2018 7:01am PST · 2 comments
Big tech is better known for eroding the traditional ad business than contributing to it. But that’s changing. Alphabet, Amazon and Facebook each ramped up U.S. advertising sharply in the first half of this year, looking to promote individual products and trust in their services.In many cases, the companies are spending a greater... Big tech is better known for eroding the traditional ad business than contributing to it. But...
China’s Video Craze Drives Growth for ByteDance
By Juro Osawa and Yunan Zhang · Nov 26, 2018 10:00am PST · 1 comment
Data Point

China’s Video Craze Drives Growth for ByteDance

By Juro Osawa and Yunan Zhang · Nov 26, 2018 10:00am PST · 1 comment
China’s ByteDance, the world’s most valuable startup, had its first success with a personalized news feed, Toutiao. New data shows its short-form video app Douyin has become an even bigger hit. But there are signs that the rapid growth rate of Chinese video apps is starting to slow. And that raises a new question for ByteDance: Does... China’s ByteDance, the world’s most valuable startup, had its first success with a...
Data Point

What Lyft’s Internal Numbers Show

By Amir Efrati · Nov 15, 2018 7:01am PST · 4 comments
The next few weeks are shaping up to be pivotal for Lyft and how its IPO will be received. A detailed review of the company’s results for the three quarters to Sept. 30, based on confidential data made available to The Information, confirms a steady improvement in key expenses such as marketing and insurance. That is helping lift key... The next few weeks are shaping up to be pivotal for Lyft and how its IPO will be received. A...
Data Point

Apple’s iPhone Prices Soar, but Not Profit Margins

By Aaron Tilley · Nov 14, 2018 7:01am PST · 2 comments
The enormous profits Apple generates from its iPhone business are legendary. Even though they account for less than 20% of all smartphone shipments, iPhones capture 87% of the entire market's profits, according to estimates from Canaccord Genuity.But what’s less understood is that as iPhones have increased in hardware complexity, the... The enormous profits Apple generates from its iPhone business are legendary. Even though they...
Data Point

From Data Centers to AI, a Spending Surge at Big Tech Companies

By Kevin McLaughlin · Nov 7, 2018 7:02am PST · 2 comments
Spending on data centers, the computers needed to run them and undersea internet cables were among the investments contributing to a dramatic surge in capital expenditures this year by some of the biggest technology companies. Facebook and Alphabet, the parent company of Google, boosted their capital expenditures the most of any of their peers,... Spending on data centers, the computers needed to run them and undersea internet cables were...
Source: Company filings
Amazon a Money-Loser in Retail? Not in the U.S.
By Priya Anand · Sep 27, 2018 7:00am PDT
Source: Company filings
Data Point

Amazon a Money-Loser in Retail? Not in the U.S.

By Priya Anand · Sep 27, 2018 7:00am PDT
In its early days, Amazon developed a reputation for shunning profits as it built market share in its retail business. More recently, Amazon critics have painted an image of the retailer as willing to indefinitely bleed red ink to drive rivals out of business.  That perception should be retired, judging by the growing profits of its... In its early days, Amazon developed a reputation for shunning profits as it built market share in...
Source: SuperSymmetry Technologies
Data Point

Pinduoduo’s Rapid Growth Slows Sharply

By Juro Osawa and Wayne Ma · Sep 18, 2018 10:01am PDT · 1 comment
Chinese discount shopping app Pinduoduo has grown explosively to challenge the country’s biggest ecommerce giants, Alibaba and JD.com, paving the way for the company to go public in the U.S. in July. But new data suggests Pinduoduo’s growth in transactions has slowed in the past four months, throwing into question whether the... Chinese discount shopping app Pinduoduo has grown explosively to challenge the country’s...
Sources: Company filings; Prime Unicorn Index; PitchBook
Data Point

As Private Tech Heats Up, Share Prices Lag

By Alfred Lee · Sep 17, 2018 7:01am PDT · 5 comments
When Instacart raised money at a $4.35 billion valuation in April, it marked a 28% step up from its previous valuation of $3.4 billion. That was surprising: Instacart raised the round as it was facing tougher competition from Amazon.com’s introduction of same-day Whole Foods grocery deliveries. It turns out, though, that investors... When Instacart raised money at a $4.35 billion valuation in April, it marked a 28% step up from...
Sources: Pitchbook; The Information
Data Point

Market Rally Lifts 2018 Tech IPOs

By Alfred Lee · Sep 13, 2018 9:29am PDT · 1 comment
It has been a strong year for tech IPOs, with high-profile firms including Spotify and DocuSign soaring well above their initial prices on the public markets. Their performance stands in contrast to last year, when notable IPOs like Snap and Blue Apron flopped spectacularly. More deals are to come: Ticketing site Eventbrite and survey firm... It has been a strong year for tech IPOs, with high-profile firms including Spotify and DocuSign...
Source: Second Measure Data
U.S. Slowdown at Uber and Lyft
By Amir Efrati · Sep 12, 2018 10:01am PDT · 2 comments
Source: Second Measure Data
Data Point

U.S. Slowdown at Uber and Lyft

By Amir Efrati · Sep 12, 2018 10:01am PDT · 2 comments
The once-hot ride-hailing business is cooling down—just as the two biggest players are thinking about going public.Revenue growth rates for the U.S. ride-hailing businesses of Uber and Lyft slowed this summer to their lowest point in years, according to research firm Second Measure, which tracks credit and debit card transactions. Growth... The once-hot ride-hailing business is cooling down—just as the two biggest players are...