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

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Recent Editions

Zendesk's San Francisco headquarters. Photo by Bloomberg.

Lessons in Takeover Strategy: Zendesk-Momentive Edition

By Martin Peers · Feb 11, 2022 5:00pm PST

If there’s a next season of “Billions,” the writers may want to pivot to the enterprise software world, focusing on what has to be the most drama-laden takeover deal in recent memory. That would be Zendesk’s bid to buy Momentive Global, the company formerly known as SurveyMonkey. This software soap opera hasn’t received a lot of mainstream media... If there’s a next season of “Billions,” the writers may want to pivot to the enterprise software...

Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao. Photo by Bloomberg

Binance Blesses Forbes’ SPAC Deal

By Martin Peers · Feb 10, 2022 5:00pm PST

When it comes to weaving a fun story, it’s tough to beat the news media. That’s why we’re skeptical of the explanation crypto exchange Binance is giving for its $200 million investment in Forbes. This is likely less about Binance helping Forbes adapt to Web3 and more about saving Forbes’ SPAC deal from a BuzzFeed-like embarrassment.Let’s... When it comes to weaving a fun story, it’s tough to beat the news media. That’s why we’re...

Disney CEO Bob Chapek. Photo by Bloomberg.

The Risks of Disney’s Quick Fix for Subscriber Growth

By Martin Peers · Feb 9, 2022 5:00pm PST

Disney has figured out an ingenious way to jump-start its streaming subscriber growth—give people less of a choice! Since late December, Disney has automatically included Disney+ and ESPN+ in one of its Hulu offerings, at a slightly higher price than it previously charged, we learned today. Ingenious! It’s a reminder that the customer-unfriendly... Disney has figured out an ingenious way to jump-start its streaming subscriber growth—give people...

Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang. Photo by Bloomberg.

What Demise of Nvidia-Arm Deal Says About Regulators’ Impact

By Martin Peers · Feb 8, 2022 5:00pm PST

Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang. Photo by Bloomberg.

What Demise of Nvidia-Arm Deal Says About Regulators’ Impact

By Martin Peers · Feb 8, 2022 5:00pm PST

It’s been an action-packed 24 hours in tech and, unlike most of the past month, the stock market didn’t drive today’s developments. If there is a common thread running through the latest news, it’s the specter of big tech companies expanding their market power. That’s most obviously true in Nvidia’s abandonment of its Arm acquisition, confirmed... It’s been an action-packed 24 hours in tech and, unlike most of the past month, the stock market...

A Rivian truck driving past the Nasdaq in New York the day of Rivian's IPO. Photo by Bloomberg.

The Problem With Amazon’s Big Rivian Gain

By Martin Peers · Feb 7, 2022 5:00pm PST

Here’s a puzzle: Did Amazon’s fourth-quarter profit rise or fall? Depending on what you read, it could be either. One metric, Amazon’s net income, nearly doubled while another, slightly nerdier metric called operating profits, fell by about half. It might sound confusing. But all anyone needs to know is that the net income increase was... Here’s a puzzle: Did Amazon’s fourth-quarter profit rise or fall? Depending on what you read, it...

Meta Platforms' Menlo Park headquarters. Photo by Bloomberg.

Believing in Zuckerberg’s Startup Chops

By Martin Peers · Feb 4, 2022 5:00pm PST

Here’s a question for investors and employees contemplating Meta Platforms after this week’s stock drop: Do you think Mark Zuckerberg can do it again? If you believe the co-founder of Facebook still has the startup chops to turn Meta’s metaverse investment into a lucrative business, then you’re probably going to be buying Meta stock right now.... Here’s a question for investors and employees contemplating Meta Platforms after this week’s...

Evan Spiegel. Photo by Bloomberg.

Snap Shows Up Meta

By Martin Peers · Feb 3, 2022 5:00pm PST

Talk about a mood-altering drug. All three of the tech companies reporting fourth-quarter numbers this afternoon—Amazon, Snap and Pinterest—had some good news to deliver. The result was a dramatic change in mood on Wall Street. For hours tech stocks had been hammered, thanks to Meta Platforms’ downbeat report on Wednesday night. But stocks... Talk about a mood-altering drug. All three of the tech companies reporting fourth-quarter numbers...

Mark Zuckerberg. Photo by Bloomberg.

TikTok’s Meta Effect

By Martin Peers · Feb 2, 2022 5:00pm PST

Mark Zuckerberg. Photo by Bloomberg.

TikTok’s Meta Effect

By Martin Peers · Feb 2, 2022 5:00pm PST

Wow. TikTok just managed a feat that advertiser boycotts and years of complaints about toxic content on Facebook couldn’t pull off—it loosened Meta Platforms’ grip on advertisers. Meta issued a first-quarter revenue growth outlook today that was so slow (3% to 11%) it could have come from an old-media company. One of the key reasons: Meta is... Wow. TikTok just managed a feat that advertiser boycotts and years of complaints about toxic...

Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai. Photo by Bloomberg.

Alphabet's Boom Time

By Martin Peers · Feb 1, 2022 5:00pm PST · 1 comment

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times for Alphabet in 2021. Amid a multifront regulatory assault levied against the company, Alphabet today reported a solid fourth quarter that brought revenue for the full year to $257 billion. That number was 41% higher than what it reported for 2020. The company has not grown that fast since... It was the best of times, it was the worst of times for Alphabet in 2021. Amid a multifront...

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek. Photo by Bloomberg.

Spotify’s Real Challenge

By Martin Peers · Jan 31, 2022 5:00pm PST · 1 comment

If the past few days have proved anything, it’s that reporters pay more attention to Neil Young and Joni Mitchell than do investors. After rising 13% today amid a broader market upswing, Spotify shares are now back to where they were trading before Neil Young pulled his music off the service last week in protest over its hosting of Joe Rogan and... If the past few days have proved anything, it’s that reporters pay more attention to Neil Young...

Alphabet's Mountain View headquarters. Photo by Bloomberg.

The Dangers of War Against Google’s Ad Tech

By Martin Peers · Jan 28, 2022 5:00pm PST · 1 comment

Google’s legal department has its hands full these days, given numerous antitrust lawsuits filed both by the Justice Department and individual states targeting different parts of its business. Our scoop today—about how a bipartisan group of senators is putting together a bill to force Google to divest its ad tech operations—will only add to the... Google’s legal department has its hands full these days, given numerous antitrust lawsuits filed...

Apple's new Mac laptop. Photo by Bloomberg.

Apple’s Mac Renaissance

By Martin Peers · Jan 27, 2022 5:19pm PST

Apple's new Mac laptop. Photo by Bloomberg.

Apple’s Mac Renaissance

By Martin Peers · Jan 27, 2022 5:19pm PST

For a company as routinely successful as Apple, continued success can get repetitive. Tonight’s earnings call, for instance, was so full of the usual hyperbole about record revenues that Chief Financial Officer Luca Maestri repeated a segment of his commentary without missing a beat. But within the eye-glazing recitations of Apple’s various... For a company as routinely successful as Apple, continued success can get repetitive. Tonight’s...

Neil Young. Photo by Bloomberg.

What Neil Young’s Protest Means to Spotify

By Martin Peers · Jan 26, 2022 5:00pm PST · 2 comments

You can be a huge fan of Neil Young (guilty!) but still acknowledge that his decision to pull his music off Spotify, in a protest over its hosting of Joe Rogan, probably won’t cause millions of people to cancel their Spotify accounts. Yes, Spotify subscribers could switch to Apple. Given the likely age of the 76-year-old rocker’s typical fan,... You can be a huge fan of Neil Young (guilty!) but still acknowledge that his decision to pull his...

Pinterest CEO Ben Silbermann. Photo by Bloomberg.

What Pinterest and Peloton Have in Common

By Martin Peers · Jan 25, 2022 5:00pm PST

Here’s a thought experiment: How would Pinterest or Peloton be doing today if they weren’t controlled by their co-founders? Both companies appear to be in disarray—Pinterest is losing users and lately a string of executives, as The Information scooped today. Peloton’s challenges…well, let’s just say they’ve been well chronicled. Both companies... Here’s a thought experiment: How would Pinterest or Peloton be doing today if they weren’t...

Peloton executives when the company went public in 2019. Photo by Bloomberg.

Tech Stock Slump Hits 2021 Stock Comp

By Martin Peers · Jan 24, 2022 5:00pm PST

Tech company managers have some interesting compensation discussions coming up with their direct reports, thanks to the bear market affecting much of tech. If those subordinates receive annual awards of stock or options, they’ll very likely hear both good and bad news. The good news is that grants made this year will have lots of upside as the... Tech company managers have some interesting compensation discussions coming up with their direct...

A trader on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Photo by Bloomberg

Netflix Stock Slump Drags Down TV Stocks

By Martin Peers · Jan 21, 2022 5:00pm PST

A trader on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Photo by Bloomberg

Netflix Stock Slump Drags Down TV Stocks

By Martin Peers · Jan 21, 2022 5:00pm PST

Greetings!Another day, another market sell-off. And things are getting a little indiscriminate. Take today’s 5% to 7% drop in the stocks of Disney, Discovery and ViacomCBS, apparently triggered by a 22% plunge in the price of Netflix. It’s a little like a teacher punishing an entire class for the misdeeds of one student. Penalizing TV stocks for... Greetings!Another day, another market sell-off. And things are getting a little indiscriminate....

Peloton bikes in a company store. Photo by Bloomberg.

Why Apple Will Buy Peloton

By Martin Peers · Jan 20, 2022 5:00pm PST · 4 comments

Tim Cook, please call Peloton’s head office. Today’s CNBC scoop that Peloton has temporarily halted production of its bikes and treadmills feels like the prelude to an acquisition of the troubled fitness equipment maker. Surely Apple must be the obvious buyer if it comes to that. Judging by Peloton’s 24% stock plunge today to $24.22—85% below... Tim Cook, please call Peloton’s head office. Today’s CNBC scoop that Peloton has temporarily...

A trader on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange earlier this month. Photo by Bloomberg.

Nasdaq’s Belated Correction

By Martin Peers · Jan 19, 2022 5:00pm PST

The big news this afternoon was that the Nasdaq’s sell-off put it in “correction territory,” Wall Street lingo for a drop of more than 10%, since the tech-heavy index hit a high in mid-November of 16,057. In reality, declaring a correction today is akin to a baby boomer discovering last week that TikTok is a big deal. Many tech stocks have... The big news this afternoon was that the Nasdaq’s sell-off put it in “correction territory,” Wall...

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Photo by Bloomberg.

Microsoft’s Big Activision Bet

By Martin Peers · Jan 18, 2022 5:00pm PST

Bobby Kotick could be the star in a fun new videogame we’ll call The Great Escape: how a CEO extricates himself from a scandal over his handling of sexual harassment allegations by selling his company. Not only does the Activision Blizzard CEO get to keep his job until the deal closes—at least a year from now—but the value of his stock just rose... Bobby Kotick could be the star in a fun new videogame we’ll call The Great Escape: how a CEO...

Netflix's Reed Hastings. Photo by Bloomberg.

What Netflix Risks With Its Latest Price Hike

By Martin Peers · Jan 14, 2022 5:00pm PST

Netflix's Reed Hastings. Photo by Bloomberg.

What Netflix Risks With Its Latest Price Hike

By Martin Peers · Jan 14, 2022 5:00pm PST

Netflix is raising prices—again—to as much as $20 a month. Yes, while the video-streaming pioneer may have improved a lot on the cable television experience—no ads!—it’s copying one of cable’s worst habits: regular price hikes. Today’s increase is the third time in just the past three years that Netflix has raised prices in the U.S. The service’... Netflix is raising prices—again—to as much as $20 a month. Yes, while the video-streaming pioneer...