The Information

Vudu's app on an iPhone. Photo by Bloomberg

Walmart Eyes Vudu Sale

By Jessica Toonkel, Priya Anand and Tom Dotan · Oct 30, 2019 11:18am PDT · 2 comments

Walmart is considering selling its 15-year old Vudu on-demand video service, say people familiar with the situation, a sign of how the digital video business has evolved from on-demand rentals and purchases to streaming.Word of Walmart’s desire to sell Vudu comes days before Disney and Apple each launch video streaming services meant to... Walmart is considering selling its 15-year old Vudu on-demand video service, say people familiar...

YY CEO Li Xueling, holding the hammer, at the New York Stock Exchange last year when YY's subsidiary Huya went public. Photo by Bloomberg

As TikTok’s Growth Slows, a Chinese Rival Gains Ground

By Yunan Zhang · Oct 30, 2019 7:00am PDT · 1 comment

ByteDance, the Chinese developer of TikTok, the worldwide hit downloaded more than a billion times, was the first Chinese company to challenge Facebook and Snap on the global stage. But now, ByteDance is facing a Chinese challenger of its own, a short-form video-sharing app called Likee.Launched two years ago and now owned by Nasdaq-listed YY... ByteDance, the Chinese developer of TikTok, the worldwide hit downloaded more than a billion...

Mary Meeker, Mamoon Hamid and John Doerr. Photos by Bloomberg (Meeker and Doerr), Kleiner Perkins (Hamid)

Mixed Returns for Kleiner Perkins: Weak Venture Funds, Strong ‘Growth’

By Zoë Bernard · Oct 28, 2019 7:00am PDT · 1 comment

Kleiner Perkins—the venture firm once celebrated for early stakes in Amazon, Google and Genentech—has a long way to go in its quest to claw its way back to the top of Silicon Valley investors. But recent, previously unreported data on the performance of its funds from the past nine years show there are also some bright spots for the... Kleiner Perkins—the venture firm once celebrated for early stakes in Amazon, Google and...

Sony's Vue streaming service being demonstrated at the E3 convention in 2015. Photo by Bloomberg

Sony Explores Sale of Vue, Signaling Shift on Streaming

By Jessica Toonkel and Tom Dotan · Oct 24, 2019 12:28pm PDT · 1 comment

Sony's Vue streaming service being demonstrated at the E3 convention in 2015. Photo by Bloomberg

Sony Explores Sale of Vue, Signaling Shift on Streaming

By Jessica Toonkel and Tom Dotan · Oct 24, 2019 12:28pm PDT · 1 comment

Sony Corp. is exploring the sale of its Playstation Vue service, which offers a slimmed-down version of cable TV delivered over the internet, said people familiar with the situation. Sony’s move is the latest sign that the four-year-old trend toward cheaper cable-like streaming services also promoted by YouTube, DirecTV and Dish Network... Sony Corp. is exploring the sale of its Playstation Vue service, which offers a slimmed-down...

WeWork’s Biggest Losers—and Remaining Winners

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 24, 2019 10:15am PDT · 4 comments

SoftBank has given WeWork a new lease on life. But some of the company’s biggest shareholders, including Hony Capital, Fidelity and thousands of employees—as well as SoftBank itself—are now in the red.WeWork’s new valuation of $11.60 a share is below what was paid by every outside investor who put money into WeWork since... SoftBank has given WeWork a new lease on life. But some of the company’s biggest...

Carbon Robotics co-founder and CEO Rosanna Myers at a conference in Hong Kong last year. Photo by Bloomberg.

Startup Carbon Robotics Shutting Down, Selling Assets

By Kevin McLaughlin · Oct 23, 2019 12:49pm PDT

Robotic arms that can perform complex, delicate tasks—from assembling electronics to picking and packing online orders in warehouses—are one of the holy grails of researchers and tech companies. Developing them is also proving to be highly risky, as the failure of another robotic arm startup shows. Carbon Robotics, a San... Robotic arms that can perform complex, delicate tasks—from assembling electronics to...

CNN's offices in Atlanta. Photo by Bloomberg

CNN to Launch Digital News Service to Compete With Facebook, Apple

By Jessica Toonkel · Oct 23, 2019 7:01am PDT · 2 comments

First there was Knewz. Now there is “Newsco.” Media companies are ramping up their efforts to take on Facebook and Apple with digital news services. Just a few months after Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. announced it was developing Knewz.com, a news aggregation service offering articles from a wide range of outlets, CNN is... First there was Knewz. Now there is “Newsco.” Media companies are ramping up their...

Lime scooters in Munich, Germany. Photo: AP

Lime’s Loss to Top $300 Million in 2019

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 21, 2019 3:37pm PDT

Lime scooters in Munich, Germany. Photo: AP

Lime’s Loss to Top $300 Million in 2019

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 21, 2019 3:37pm PDT

Scooter rental operator Lime has touted itself as one of the fastest-growing startups ever, blanketing cities such as Berlin, Paris and Los Angeles with thousands of two-wheeled electric vehicles. But the firm is losing money nearly as quickly as it expands in part because the company’s vehicles tend to break down before they can generate... Scooter rental operator Lime has touted itself as one of the fastest-growing startups ever,...

AWS Customers Rack Up Hefty Bills for Moving Data

By Kevin McLaughlin and Amir Efrati · Oct 21, 2019 7:01am PDT · 3 comments

There are a lot of ways companies can rack up high bills for using cloud services, sometimes unexpectedly. One particularly stiff expense is the cost of shifting data from one cloud provider’s servers to another provider, or to a company’s own data center. The Information has learned just how much some companies have had to pay for... There are a lot of ways companies can rack up high bills for using cloud services, sometimes...

Former HBO chief Richard Plepler. Photo by Bloomberg

Ex-HBO Chief Plepler Has Discussed Launching Studio

By Jessica Toonkel and Alex Heath · Oct 18, 2019 11:36am PDT

Less than a year after leaving WarnerMedia, former HBO CEO Richard Plepler appears to be getting back in the entertainment business. Plepler has told industry associates over the past several weeks that he is looking to start his own production studio, tentatively called Eden Productions, according to people who have spoken to him. Plepler... Less than a year after leaving WarnerMedia, former HBO CEO Richard Plepler appears to be getting...

Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky. Photo: Bloomberg

Airbnb’s Q1 Loss More Than Doubled

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 17, 2019 7:02am PDT · 1 comment

Airbnb’s operating loss more than doubled in the first quarter to $306 million from the year-earlier period, previously undisclosed financial data shows, a result in part of a sharply increased investment in marketing. While that spending could bring in a lot of new business, prospective investors could be unnerved if subsequent quarters... Airbnb’s operating loss more than doubled in the first quarter to $306 million from the...

Export of Sensitive U.S. Technology Slows Under Trump

By Matt Drange and Mike Sullivan · Oct 15, 2019 7:00am PDT

Export of Sensitive U.S. Technology Slows Under Trump

By Matt Drange and Mike Sullivan · Oct 15, 2019 7:00am PDT

The Trump administration has made it harder for U.S. tech companies to export sensitive U.S. technologies, such as encryption software, semiconductors and drones. Export license approvals have dropped and rejections have risen in recent years, data obtained by The Information shows, and lawyers advising companies seeking export licenses say... The Trump administration has made it harder for U.S. tech companies to export sensitive U.S....

Photo by Bloomberg

Head of Airbnb’s ‘Experiences’ Division to Step Down

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 8, 2019 4:44pm PDT · 1 comment

One of Airbnb’s earliest employees plans to leave his position atop the company’s “Experiences” division that sells travel tours and other activities, putting a spotlight on a division seen as key for Airbnb’s hopes of diversifying into a broader group of travel services than just accommodation, people familiar with... One of Airbnb’s earliest employees plans to leave his position atop the company’s...

Hillhouse Chairman Zhang Lei. Photo by Bloomberg

Tencent to Invest $500 Million in Hillhouse China Drugstores

By Wayne Ma · Oct 8, 2019 3:21pm PDT

Chinese internet giant Tencent is planning to invest about $500 million in Hillhouse Capital Group’s Chinese drugstore business, in a deal that values the unit at around $2.5 billion, a person familiar with the matter said.The potential investment would be another sign of how Tencent, which operates the ubiquitous WeChat social messaging... Chinese internet giant Tencent is planning to invest about $500 million in Hillhouse Capital...

A WeWork location in London. Photo: Bloomberg

WeWork Plans to Shed One-Third of Technology Employees

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 8, 2019 2:32pm PDT · 1 comment

WeWork expects to shed about 500 of the roughly 1,500 software engineers, product managers and data scientists employed in the company’s technology division, a person familiar with the matter said, as a result of layoffs and selling businesses. The job cuts could further dilute WeWork’s identity as a tech company in the real estate... WeWork expects to shed about 500 of the roughly 1,500 software engineers, product managers and...

Tubi CEO Farhad Massoudi. Photo courtesy of Tubi TV.

Video Streaming Service Tubi TV Looks to Raise $150 Million

By Tom Dotan and Jessica Toonkel · Oct 4, 2019 1:39pm PDT · 1 comment

Tubi CEO Farhad Massoudi. Photo courtesy of Tubi TV.

Video Streaming Service Tubi TV Looks to Raise $150 Million

By Tom Dotan and Jessica Toonkel · Oct 4, 2019 1:39pm PDT · 1 comment

Tubi TV, a free ad-supported video streaming service that shows old movies and TV shows, is in talks to raise around $150 million in a new round of funding, according to two people familiar with the plans. If successful, it would be by far the largest round raised by the service and would signal the interest investors have in the ad-supported... Tubi TV, a free ad-supported video streaming service that shows old movies and TV shows, is in...

Artie Minson, left, and Sebastian Gunningham. Photos courtesy of WeWork.

Inside WeWork’s Apologetic All-Hands

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 4, 2019 9:59am PDT

WeWork co-CEO Artie Minson apologized to employees Thursday for the controversies that have roiled the company in recent weeks and for the layoffs ahead. He said he knows what it is like to lose a job in a corporate restructuring. “Actually, in a very public way—cover of the Wall Street Journal way,” he said, an apparent... WeWork co-CEO Artie Minson apologized to employees Thursday for the controversies that have...

Travis Kalanick in San Francisco in 2018. Photo by Bloomberg.

Travis Kalanick Looks to China for CloudKitchens Expansion

By Juro Osawa · Oct 4, 2019 7:01am PDT

Travis Kalanick is trying again in China. The former Uber CEO’s latest startup, kitchen-rental firm CloudKitchens, has quietly acquired six Chinese startups this year as he looks to expand the business into a global leader.Earlier this year, Kalanick bought a Shanghai-based startup called Jike Alliance, one of the leading players in... Travis Kalanick is trying again in China. The former Uber CEO’s latest startup,...

Former CEO of WeWork, Adam Neumann. Photo by Reuters.

‘The Crew Was Not Tipped’: The Fallout From WeWork’s Excesses

By Cory Weinberg and Jessica E. Lessin · Oct 3, 2019 10:03am PDT · 1 comment

Even though it was an early flight, Adam Neumann’s airplane was stocked with champagne and Don Julio 42 tequila. Neumann, along with his personal assistant, a WeWork real estate executive, a pair of architects and a rabbi who was close to Neumann were flying to Mexico City in June 2015. It was a year before the company opened its first... Even though it was an early flight, Adam Neumann’s airplane was stocked with champagne and...

Blockchain CEO Peter Smith. Photo: Bloomberg

Executive Departures Roil Crypto Firm Blockchain

By Jon Victor · Oct 2, 2019 7:02am PDT · 1 comment

Blockchain CEO Peter Smith. Photo: Bloomberg

Executive Departures Roil Crypto Firm Blockchain

By Jon Victor · Oct 2, 2019 7:02am PDT · 1 comment

Five years ago, the cryptocurrency startup Blockchain was seen as a rising star within the burgeoning field. Equipped with a conspicuous name and a practical-sounding plan to help consumers store crypto assets, it attracted $70 million in venture capital over several years from prominent funders.But behind the scenes, the London-based startup... Five years ago, the cryptocurrency startup Blockchain was seen as a rising star within the...