Daily Update: Xiaomi Wins on More than Price, Micromax and Local Taste, Local Brands and Scale

Good morning, Today’s update is really one big piece focused on the rise of local players in smartphones, with a specific focus on Xiaomi and Micromax. On to the update: Xiaomi Wins on More than Price Big news from China, from the Wall Street Journal: Xiaomi, the Chinese smartphone maker with the diminutive name, becameSubscribe […]

Pleco: Building a Business, not an App

This past week has not been the first outbreak of independent developer angst over the app store, but it feels like it has been one of the more intense. The pump was primed by the news that Kim Kardashian: Hollywood is on pace to make $200 million this year, news that was in stark contrast […]

Daily Update: Media and Authority, The Structural Changes in VC, Kim Kardashian: Hollywood

Good morning, While there are a few more earnings results this week – Twitter’s should be especially interesting – we are otherwise into the summer news slowdown, which means today’s Update is a bit more circumspect, yet hopefully interesting all the same. On to the updates: Media and Authority Yesterday the New York Times editorialSubscribe […]

Daily Update: Apple’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats

Good morning, I am on vacation this week, so instead of Daily Updates based on the news of the past few days, I am doing Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats (SWOT) analysis’ of five of the most important companies in tech: Microsoft, Apple, Google, Facebook and Amazon. These analysis’ are not meant to be comprehensive – I’m going toSubscribe […]

Daily Update: Apps on Xiaomi, LINE Making US Push, Facebook’s Messaging Strategy

Good morning, Today is Asia-themed, but with a US twist. On to the updates: Apps on Xiaomi According to Flurry, Xiaomi users love apps: Over the past 6 years, the average Apple iPhone consumer has spent more time in apps than consumers of every Android device we track – by a wide margin. This year,Subscribe […]

Smartphone Truths and Samsung’s Inevitable Decline

For me, anyway, the most surprising thing about Samsung’s disappointing earnings was just how surprised many folks seemed to be. The smartphone market is a massive one, but also rather predictable if you keep just a few key things in mind: Everyone will own a smartphone – I don’t think this is controversial, but it’s […]

Daily Update: Samsung Profits Falling, Panasonic Toughbooks, Standards and the Internet of Things

Good morning, Just how useful is theory in understanding, and more importantly, predicting markets? Well, in the case of Samsung, pretty darn useful I’d say. On to the updates. Samsung Profits Falling From The Guardian: Samsung Electronics says that its second-quarter operating profits will fall to a two-year low, blaming growing competition in China, reluctantSubscribe […]

Daily Update: The Aereo Case, Searching Phones Requires a Warrant, GoPro’s Successful IPO

Good morning, Yesterday I posted my promised piece about Android Wear specifically and contextual computing broadly (I’m a bit skeptical of both). Check it out here: Economic Power in the Age of Abundance. On to today’s update: The Aereo Case The Supreme Court decided against Aereo, a startup that offered a service which transmitted over-the-airSubscribe […]