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JK Shin, CEO of Samsung's mobile division, at Mobile World Congress last week. Photo by Bloomberg.

The Smartphone Giveth and the Smartphone Taketh Away

By Amir Efrati · Mar 12, 2015 7:00am PDT · 3 comments

Falling prices of smartphones are causing a shakeup in the hardware part of the industry, opening the door to upstart phone brands, component makers and in some cases to also-rans in the mobile chip world, like Intel. Falling prices of smartphones are causing a shakeup in the hardware part of the industry, opening...

Google's No. 2 executive, Sundar Pichai, in Barcelona Monday. Photo by Bloomberg.

Apple’s Party and the Things I Learned at Mobile World Congress

By Amir Efrati · Mar 5, 2015 10:01am PST

BARCELONA—Mobile World Congress makes headlines for announcements by companies like Google, Samsung Electronics and others, but the real action is always behind the scenes. Wireless carriers from developing countries were busy finalizing deals for a new revenue source—extracting money from developers who are seeking to reach the carriers’... BARCELONA—Mobile World Congress makes headlines for announcements by companies like Google,...

MailOnline North America CEO Jon Steinberg. Photo by Bloomberg.

Technical Glitches Cost Media Firms in Lost Video Ads

By Tom Dotan · Mar 4, 2015 7:01am PST

For many media firms, the allure of video content is the promise of high revenue video ads. But as the amount of video expands, websites are running up against a costly problem: Technical glitches are causing videos to run without the ads meant to accompany them. The result can be the loss of significant ad revenue, several media executives... For many media firms, the allure of video content is the promise of high revenue video ads. But...

Cloudera co-founder Mike Olson. Photo by Bloomberg.

Enterprise Cos. Cry Foul Over ‘Open’ Data Alliance

By Steve Nellis · Mar 3, 2015 7:01am PST · 3 comments

Cloudera co-founder Mike Olson. Photo by Bloomberg.

Enterprise Cos. Cry Foul Over ‘Open’ Data Alliance

By Steve Nellis · Mar 3, 2015 7:01am PST · 3 comments

When three big enterprise software companies announced last month they had agreed to a set of common tools for analyzing big data, it may have seemed like just another boring partnership in the world of business software. But the agreement between Pivotal, Hortonworks and IBM was much more. The creation of the so-called Open Data Platform set... When three big enterprise software companies announced last month they had agreed to a set of...

Sundar Pichai oversees Google's products, including ads. Photo by Bloomberg.

Google’s Display Business Booms, But It’s Complicated

By Amir Efrati · Feb 24, 2015 7:00am PST · 4 comments

Google long ago stopped being a one-trick pony dependent on selling search ads. But having two big advertising businesses—first search, now display—isn’t enough to stop the company’s growth from slowing. Google’s display advertising business is growing much faster than search ads, reaching $10 billion in revenue in 2014, or around 15 percent of... Google long ago stopped being a one-trick pony dependent on selling search ads. But having two...

Alibaba founder Jack Ma. Photo by Bloomberg.

The Red-Hot Race for the Next Alibaba

By Jessica E. Lessin · Feb 18, 2015 7:01am PST · 2 comments

The race among investors to find the next Alibaba is looking a little frenzied. Investors have driven up the price of fast-growing mobile companies in India and China, hoping to find the next breakout company from Asia with global potential. The latest example: mobile shopping service Koudai, which late last year closed a roughly $500 million... The race among investors to find the next Alibaba is looking a little frenzied. Investors have...

Twitter CEO Dick Costolo. Photo by Bloomberg.

Twitter Eyes Originals for Mobile Video

By Tom Dotan · Feb 16, 2015 7:00am PST

As far as social networks are concerned, the most contested digital battle at the moment may be the land grab over mobile video. And while Facebook and YouTube are arguably better positioned because they’re bigger, Twitter is scrambling not to be left behind. Twitter has been developing relationships with short-form video creators, hoping to... As far as social networks are concerned, the most contested digital battle at the moment may be...

Google's Sundar Pichai, who oversees Android. Photo by Bloomberg.

Google’s Next Bid to Lower Mobile Data Costs: Zero Rating

By Amir Efrati · Feb 13, 2015 7:01am PST

Google's Sundar Pichai, who oversees Android. Photo by Bloomberg.

Google’s Next Bid to Lower Mobile Data Costs: Zero Rating

By Amir Efrati · Feb 13, 2015 7:01am PST

Global Web companies like Google and Facebook know that most of their future growth will need to come from emerging markets. But as smartphones continue to bring more people online, data-plan costs and other hurdles are preventing those people from using mobile Web services. In response, Google engineers in recent months have talked to select... Global Web companies like Google and Facebook know that most of their future growth will need to...

Square CEO Jack Dorsey. Photo by Bloomberg.

As Apple Payments Strategy Takes Shape, Google and Square Respond

By Amir Efrati and Jessica E. Lessin · Feb 11, 2015 7:01am PST · 3 comments

Apple rattled tech rivals like Google last year when it entered brick-and-mortar retail with Apple Pay, which lets people use their iPhone to pay for goods in stores. Now Google, which has long offered a similar product for Android phones that hasn’t become widely used, and Square, which helps small businesses accept credit card payments, are... Apple rattled tech rivals like Google last year when it entered brick-and-mortar retail with...

Google's Nick Fox in 2009. Photo by Kenneth Yeung.

At Google, Nick Fox Gets the Message

By Amir Efrati · Feb 5, 2015 1:52pm PST · 1 comment

Nick Fox, the man in charge of Google’s still-unannounced mobile phone service, also has become head of Google’s communications products like Google Voice, Hangouts and Messenger, a signal that the company is getting more serious about building mobile messaging products. The young executive, who previously ran an AdWords unit, started running... Nick Fox, the man in charge of Google’s still-unannounced mobile phone service, also has become...

MongoDB co-founders Dwight Merriman (left) and Kevin Ryan. Photo by Bloomberg.

Taking on Oracle: Inside MongoDB’s Headwinds

By Steve Nellis · Feb 3, 2015 7:01am PST

For the startups vying to attack the $34 billion-plus database market Oracle Corp. has dominated for decades, creating software popular with developers doesn’t guarantee success. Figuring out a sales strategy is crucial. Take MongoDB, so well positioned among the young companies nipping at Oracle’s heels that last summer it was valued at $1.2... For the startups vying to attack the $34 billion-plus database market Oracle Corp. has dominated...

Flipkart co-founder Sachin Bansal. Photo via Wikipedia.

To Fight Amazon in India, Flipkart Borrows Advertising Playbook

By Amir Efrati · Jan 28, 2015 7:00am PST

Flipkart co-founder Sachin Bansal. Photo via Wikipedia.

To Fight Amazon in India, Flipkart Borrows Advertising Playbook

By Amir Efrati · Jan 28, 2015 7:00am PST

Both Amazon and Alibaba have demonstrated that selling digital ads can be a profitable antidote to the low margins inherent in selling goods online. Now Flipkart, India’s e-commerce leader whose backers include Yuri Milner and Tiger Global, is trying to follow suit. Flipkart already sells basic sponsored listings and home page ads to marketers... Both Amazon and Alibaba have demonstrated that selling digital ads can be a profitable antidote...

DST founder Yuri Milner. Photo by Bloomberg.

How Outsider Yuri Milner Built an Inside Track

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jan 27, 2015 7:01am PST

In early December, the founders of several fast-growing Asian startups drove up a steep hill to a stately mansion in Los Altos Hills, California. For hours, they dined in a lavish room with round banquet tables and mingled with executives from JD.com, Huawei, Google, Airbnb, Box and their host—Yuri Milner. Years after the Russian... In early December, the founders of several fast-growing Asian startups drove up a steep hill to a...

Warner Bros. executive Ron Sanders at CES in 2013 when UltraViolet was announced. Photo by AP.

As UltraViolet Fades, Studios Ponder Options

By Martin Peers · Jan 26, 2015 7:01am PST

In hindsight, it was probably an impossible task: Getting major Hollywood studios, technology companies and retailers to agree on a way to sell movies that consumers could watch on lots of devices. And three years after just such an initiative launched, a reaction to the dominance of Apple’s iTunes, its time may be running out. Known as... In hindsight, it was probably an impossible task: Getting major Hollywood studios, technology...

Viacom CEO Philippe Dauman. Photo by Bloomberg.

Viacom Ponders Rollup of Comedy Sites

By Tom Dotan and Martin Peers · Jan 22, 2015 1:46pm PST

Through its ownership of Comedy Central, Viacom has a lock on the television funny space. Now the company is contemplating whether to extend that presence in the digital realm. The New York-based media company is considering whether to buy a trio of Web video comedy sites that started looking for buyers late last year—CollegeHumor, The Onion and... Through its ownership of Comedy Central, Viacom has a lock on the television funny space. Now the...

Google CEO Larry Page. Photo by Bloomberg.

Google’s Next Telecom Move: Becoming a Wireless Carrier

By Amir Efrati · Jan 21, 2015 12:40pm PST · 1 comment

Google CEO Larry Page. Photo by Bloomberg.

Google’s Next Telecom Move: Becoming a Wireless Carrier

By Amir Efrati · Jan 21, 2015 12:40pm PST · 1 comment

Google is preparing to sell mobile phone plans directly to customers and manage their calls and mobile data over a cellular network, according to three people with knowledge of the plans. The new service is expected run on Sprint and T-Mobile’s networks, two people familiar with the product say. Google is expected to reach deals to buy... Google is preparing to sell mobile phone plans directly to customers and manage their calls and...

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. Photo by Associated Press.

Google Nears Major Investment in SpaceX to Bolster Satellites

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jan 19, 2015 8:36am PST · 1 comment

Google is close to investing in rocket maker SpaceX, according to several people familiar with the talks, creating a formidable alliance in Silicon Valley’s accelerating Internet space race. The purpose of a deal, which is still in the works, is to support the development of SpaceX satellites that could beam low-cost Internet around the globe... Google is close to investing in rocket maker SpaceX, according to several people familiar with...

Terry Myerson, head of Microsoft's operating systems group. Photo by Bloomberg.

Microsoft’s Latest Mobile Game Plan is Apps over OS

By Steve Nellis and Amir Efrati · Jan 19, 2015 7:00am PST

Microsoft on Wednesday will unveil the latest strategy to expand its share of the mobile computing market: leveraging its strength in PCs to lift sales of Windows Phone. In previewing its Windows 10 operating system, Microsoft will show a single code base inside the software that will allow an app to run well on phones, tablets and PCs, as... Microsoft on Wednesday will unveil the latest strategy to expand its share of the mobile...

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer; photo by AP

Yahoo Prepares Major Mobile Ad Push

By Tom Dotan · Jan 5, 2015 7:00am PST

For some time Marissa Mayer has been hinting that her strategy for turning around Yahoo hinged on bringing mobile expertise into the company. Now she’s about to show her cards on the advertising side. In the past few months, the company has been aggressively hiring for its mobile ads team ahead of a planned revamp of its ad products in the... For some time Marissa Mayer has been hinting that her strategy for turning around Yahoo hinged on...

Art: Matt Vascellaro

Facebook’s Path to China

By Amir Efrati · Dec 24, 2014 7:01am PST

Art: Matt Vascellaro

Facebook’s Path to China

By Amir Efrati · Dec 24, 2014 7:01am PST

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg intends to develop a consumer business in China. In 2015, we’ll learn more about how he might do so. For political reasons, the core Facebook service has been blocked by the Chinese government for the past six years or so, and that doesn’t seem likely to end in the near term. But current and former... Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg intends to develop a consumer business in China. In 2015,...