Incentives
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Google Earnings, Microsoft Earnings
Google’s earnings were fantastic, but I’m still not totally convinced about their shift to mobile. Microsoft’s were good as well, but what was under the surface was more important.
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Amazon’s Overwhelming Leverage, P&G Scaling Back Targeted Facebook Ads, Facebook Earnings
In case I wasn’t clear in yesterday’s article, Walmart really has no chance to catch Amazon in e-commerce. Then, the news that P&G will reduce targeting isn’t a surprise, but it’s not necessarily that much of a problem for Facebook. Plus, notes on Facebook’s earnings.
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Walmart and the Multichannel Trap
Walmart wasted years trying to retrofit their model to ecommerce. Buying Jet.com will give them a better chance, but it’s almost certainly too late to compete with Amazon.
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Apple Earnings, Apple Car Updates, Apple TV and Leverage
Apple’s earnings were better than expected but the growth challenge remains; might it come from the Apple Car? The Apple TV’s challenges are instructive in that regard.
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Didi Acquires Uber China, Why Uber China Was Doomed, Was Uber China Worth It?
Didi has acquired Uber China. This Update goes through the history of ride-sharing in China, why Uber China was doomed, and evaluates whether Uber China was worth the investment.
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Netflix Earnings, Netflix and the Aggregation Dream
Netflix’s earnings were disappointing for reasons characteristic to disappointing earnings for all service companies. For Netflix, though, the stakes are higher.
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Amazon Prime Day and Prime Challenges, Facebook Diversity Numbers Don’t Budge
Amazon Prime Day was a smashing success, at least if you ask Amazon. The ongoing shift in ecommerce models, though, threatens Prime’s underlying value proposition. Then, Facebook’s disappointing diversity numbers.
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Brexit and Tech; More on Musk, Tesla, and Solar City; The Allure of Live: Facebook and ESPN
Why Brexit would be bad for U.S. tech companies, Why Tesla May be Hurt Even if Solar City Isn’t Acquired, and the power of live for escapism and sports
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A Word on Tesla, Follow-up: The Big Picture, Tencent Acquires Supercell
Tesla offering to buy Solar City is why corporate governance matters. Then, a follow-up to yesterday’s piece on TV and why there is something much bigger going on, and why Tencent bought Supercell
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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.