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The Briefing

By Martin Peers, Jessica Lessin and the team at The Information

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Recent Editions

The Nasdaq's New York office. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Wish’s IPO Filing Rounds Out Busy Week: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 20, 2020 5:32pm PST
E-commerce firm Wish filed to go public on Friday, the fifth high-profile tech firm to do so in the past week, and confirmation that the last few weeks of the year will be a busy time for IPOs. What’s notable is that four of the five companies—Wish, DoorDash, Roblox and Affirm—have enjoyed a burst of faster growth thanks to the... E-commerce firm Wish filed to go public on Friday, the fifth high-profile tech firm to do so in...
BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

BuzzFeed Snags HuffPo: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 19, 2020 5:31pm PST
Consolidation in digital media took a small step forward today when BuzzFeed announced it will acquire HuffPost from Verizon. It’s an elegant combination from a historical perspective: Media investor Ken Lerer and BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti were both involved in founding HuffPost 15 years ago. But whether the deal helps BuzzFeed amass more... Consolidation in digital media took a small step forward today when BuzzFeed announced it will...
Apple CEO Tim Cook. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Apple’s Tax Cut: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 18, 2020 5:31pm PST · 1 comment
Apple is cutting taxes! Well, at least it’s cutting the infamous “Apple tax,” the commission it charges app developers on money they make through the App Store. In future, developers earning less than a million dollars in proceeds will only pay 15% of the money as a commission, half of what they typically pay now. In its... Apple is cutting taxes! Well, at least it’s cutting the infamous “Apple tax,”...
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg appearing at the Judiciary Committee hearing today. Photo by Bloomberg.
Senators Grill Tech CEOs Again: The Information’s Tech Briefing
By Martin Peers · Nov 17, 2020 5:34pm PST
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg appearing at the Judiciary Committee hearing today. Photo by Bloomberg.
The Briefing

Senators Grill Tech CEOs Again: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 17, 2020 5:34pm PST
Another day, another congressional hearing for tech CEOs. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey (complete with that beard) were at it again, appearing before a congressional committee on Tuesday to discuss Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act—the law that gives internet platforms immunity from liability for what... Another day, another congressional hearing for tech CEOs. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and...
Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Airbnb Unveils IPO Filing: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 16, 2020 5:32pm PST
Airbnb disclosed its IPO paperwork Monday afternoon, setting up what should be a fascinating comparison, in a few weeks’ time, between the public offerings of the travel firm and DoorDash. Investors will get to choose between one company whose business was slammed by the Covid-19 pandemic, and another that enjoyed a bonanza. The former, of... Airbnb disclosed its IPO paperwork Monday afternoon, setting up what should be a fascinating...
DoorDash CEO Tony Xu. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

DoorDash’s IPO Moves Step Closer: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 13, 2020 5:32pm PST
DoorDash’s IPO filing on Friday painted a portrait of a company long underappreciated now coming into its own. The filing sets the scene for what should be a heavily sought-after IPO in a few weeks’ time, probably occurring around the same time as Airbnb’s offering, of which we expect to hear more details in the next few days.... DoorDash’s IPO filing on Friday painted a portrait of a company long underappreciated now...
President Trump. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

TikTok Drama Winding Down: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 12, 2020 5:00pm PST
The first season of the TikTok drama just concluded. That’s one interpretation from the Commerce Department’s decision, reported in the Wall Street Journal, to not enforce a ban that would have prevented Apple and Google from making TikTok available in their app stores. Now the question is whether the saga comes back for a second... The first season of the TikTok drama just concluded. That’s one interpretation from the...
SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son. Photo by Bloomberg
SoftBank’s $20 Billion Tech Stock Portfolio: The Information’s Tech Briefing
By Martin Peers · Nov 11, 2020 5:30pm PST
SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

SoftBank’s $20 Billion Tech Stock Portfolio: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 11, 2020 5:30pm PST
SoftBank is expanding its investor presence in the tech world. In addition to playing a major role as a backer of startups through its Vision Fund, the Japanese investment firm is now playing the market—by buying major tech stocks. The firm’s profit report for the six months to Sept. 30 on Wednesday gave new details about its public... SoftBank is expanding its investor presence in the tech world. In addition to playing a major...
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos appearing before a congressional committee in late July. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Amazon’s Turn in Antitrust Dock: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 10, 2020 5:30pm PST
Europe’s filing of antitrust charges against Amazon marks the second, long-anticipated move in the U.S.-European antitrust assault on big tech. In the U.S., a Federal Trade Commission case against Facebook looms, to add to the lawsuit the Justice Department filed against Google a few weeks ago. The FTC is also investigating Amazon in the... Europe’s filing of antitrust charges against Amazon marks the second, long-anticipated move...
The New York Stock Exchange. Photo by AP
The Briefing

Zoom Gets Hits by Wall Street’s Vaccine Rally: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 9, 2020 5:31pm PST
No, Covid has not been cured. But a vaccine that works may be the next best thing, which is certainly the stock market’s interpretation of Monday’s vaccine news from Pfizer. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 973 points or 3.4% by the close. Notably, though, the reaction from tech stocks was very mixed. Stocks that had rallied... No, Covid has not been cured. But a vaccine that works may be the next best thing, which is...
Election count demonstrators marching in Washington on Friday. Photo by Bloomberg.
The Briefing

Election Uncertainty Starts to Lift: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 6, 2020 5:31pm PST
As the results of Tuesday’s election come into focus, some of the uncertainty hovering over the world has begun to lift. That is good for business, which can begin to prepare for life under what appears likely to be a Biden administration. We’ll have more to say on that in the next few days, when the outcome is more certain than it... As the results of Tuesday’s election come into focus, some of the uncertainty hovering over...
Discovery CEO David Zaslav. Photo by Bloomberg
The Great Ad Shift From TV to Digital: The Information’s Tech Briefing
By Martin Peers · Nov 5, 2020 5:32pm PST · 1 comment
Discovery CEO David Zaslav. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

The Great Ad Shift From TV to Digital: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 5, 2020 5:32pm PST · 1 comment
As much as the pandemic has given a boost to video streaming services, it appears to have sped up the decline of traditional TV. That’s become clear from third-quarter earnings showing shifts in the ad market, including reports out today from Roku and Discovery Communications. Discovery, which owns cable channels such as Discovery Channel,... As much as the pandemic has given a boost to video streaming services, it appears to have sped up...
Uber's San Francisco headquarters. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Uber and Lyft’s Prop 22 Stock Rally: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 4, 2020 5:45pm PST
Shareholders in Uber and Lyft had one of their best days since the pandemic began, as the stocks of both ride-hailing companies soared 15% and 11%, respectively, in the wake of Tuesday’s approval of Proposition 22 in California. The vote overrides a state law requiring their drivers to be classified as employees rather than independent... Shareholders in Uber and Lyft had one of their best days since the pandemic began, as the stocks...
Jack Ma, co founder of Alibaba and the controlling shareholder of Ant. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Ant’s IPO Suspension, Wall Street’s Election Day Rally: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 3, 2020 5:31pm PST
The suspension of Ant Group’s planned IPO scheduled for Thursday is a reminder of how much China’s government dictates the life of Chinese companies. The much-anticipated offering was put off after the government warned Ant's controlling shareholder Jack Ma that the payments behemoth would face new rules that would restrict its... The suspension of Ant Group’s planned IPO scheduled for Thursday is a reminder of how much...
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey at last week's Senate hearing. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Dorsey Keeps Twitter CEO Job: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 2, 2020 5:31pm PST
Maybe it was the beard. An independent committee of Twitter’s board, including a representative of activist investor Elliott Management, has decided CEO Jack Dorsey should keep his job. That’s a big deal. When Elliott bought a stake in Twitter early this year, speculation swirled that the investor would push to oust Dorsey, whose... Maybe it was the beard. An independent committee of Twitter’s board, including a...
Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in March. Photo by Bloomberg
Tech Selloff Follows Earnings: The Information’s Tech Briefing
By Martin Peers · Oct 30, 2020 5:31pm PDT
Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in March. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Tech Selloff Follows Earnings: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Oct 30, 2020 5:31pm PDT
If Thursday was party time for tech companies, most of which reported better-than-expected earnings, Friday was the hangover. Most big tech stocks tumbled, as the Nasdaq led the market down by losing nearly 2.5%. Yes, there is a disconnect there, although major tech stocks have rallied strongly in recent months, so maybe they’re getting... If Thursday was party time for tech companies, most of which reported better-than-expected...
Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Digital Ad Market Rebounds Strongly: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Oct 29, 2020 5:31pm PDT
The digital ad market rebounded surprisingly strongly in the third quarter, a cavalcade of earnings results today showed. The results confirm earlier indications that marketers regained confidence over the summer after slashing spending when the pandemic crisis first began. The question now is whether the new surge in Covid cases will cause... The digital ad market rebounded surprisingly strongly in the third quarter, a cavalcade of...
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey speaking by videoconference to the Senate Commerce Committee on Wednesday. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Tech CEOs Face Angry Senators: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Oct 28, 2020 5:31pm PDT
If today’s Senate Commerce Committee hearing on Section 230 demonstrated anything, it’s the impossible position faced by tech companies in responding to Democrats and Republicans complaining about their content moderation policies. As Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg noted in his opening statement, “Democrats often say we... If today’s Senate Commerce Committee hearing on Section 230 demonstrated anything,...
AMD CEO Lisa Su. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

What the Xilinx Deal Says About AMD: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Oct 27, 2020 5:31pm PDT
AMD’s proposed $35 billion purchase of chip maker Xilinx will get a lot of attention as an example of consolidation in the semiconductor industry. But it is also significant for symbolizing the extraordinary turnaround that Lisa Su has engineered at AMD since taking the helm in 2014. The company wouldn’t be in a position to even... AMD’s proposed $35 billion purchase of chip maker Xilinx will get a lot of attention as an...
Attendees watching a video game streamed at Facebook Gaming's booth during the 2018 Entertainment Expo show in Los Angeles. Photo by Bloomberg
Facebook-Apple Tensions on the Rise: The Information’s Tech Briefing
By Martin Peers · Oct 26, 2020 5:31pm PDT · 3 comments
Attendees watching a video game streamed at Facebook Gaming's booth during the 2018 Entertainment Expo show in Los Angeles. Photo by Bloomberg
The Briefing

Facebook-Apple Tensions on the Rise: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Oct 26, 2020 5:31pm PDT · 3 comments
Facebook escalated its low-level warfare against Apple by unveiling a cloud gaming service that is only available on Android devices. This is a twist on a longstanding reality of mobile phones: lots of apps on iOS aren’t available on Android (try downloading the New Yorker magazine’s app to your Pixel), but because most affluent... Facebook escalated its low-level warfare against Apple by unveiling a cloud gaming service that...