Software as a Service
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Why LinkedIn Sold, Dropbox is Cash Flow Positive
Why did LinkedIn sell? The company almost certainly put itself into a box of its own making, over which it had no control. Meanwhile, Dropbox is cash-flow positive, but the company has made similar mistakes.
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Microsoft and Apple Double Down
Both Microsoft and Apple made news yesterday, and while one was unexpected and the other predictable, both are effectively doubling down on their strategies. And both may not matter.
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Nest and Podcasting Follow-up, Box Earnings, Microsoft’s Cloud Challenge
Follow-up on Nest and Podcasting, then why Box’s numbers are a bit more worrisome than the company is letting on. Plus, a must-read article on Microsoft.
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Everything as a Service
We have likely reached Peak iPhone, and if not, it’s only a matter of time; physical goods can only scale so far. The future, thanks to the Internet, is everything-as-a-service
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Prince, Bowie, and Beyoncé; Google’s Margin Squeeze; Microsoft’s Miss
Prince and David Bowie both understood the Internet, but took drastically different approaches. Then, Google’s business is fine, but it has almost certainly peaked, and the company could learn something from Microsoft about managing expectations.
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Services and Apple’s Strategy, The Power of a P&L, Intel Restructures
First, a follow-up on Apple’s Organizational Crossroads including why a focus on services could make more strategic sense than one might think, and why P&L responsibility can be a powerful tool. Then, Intel is restructuring in the face of increased margin pressure and in pursuit of a vision that is, from the company’s perspective, more radical…
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Apple’s Organizational Crossroads
A core part of what makes Apple Apple is its organization structure; Tim Cook has said it will never change. However, if Apple is serious about being a services company, change it must.
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Dropbox Leaves AWS, Should UPS and Fedex Be Afraid?
In an inconvenient bit of timing Dropbox announced they were leaving AWS just as I was singing its praises; in fact the storage company’s decision reinforces the benefits AWS provides. Then, why Amazon’s move into logistics makes sense, and how it might play out.
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Microsoft SQL Server to Run on Linux, Box’s Great Quarter
Windows is truly dead at Microsoft, as SQL Server will soon run on Linux. Meanwhile, Box had a great quarter, underlying the fact that SaaS economics work — and what happened to Windows Server helps explain why.