Wall Street

Virtual Skinny: Read Up!

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on in Internet & Tech, Newsletter 0 Comment

2.2.2016

Good to Know: Turns out that if you’ve got a case of imposter syndrome (when you feel like you have no idea what you’re doing), it may actually be a good indicator that you’re on the right track. 

THE SKINNY

Taking Over For the ’16? 

Alphabet, Inc., aka Google, just bumped Apple from the #1 spot.  It’s now considered the world’s most valuable company. The company pulled in US $ 21.3 billion in the last quarter of 2015.

Playing by the Rules … 

Google was never one for Wall Street, but now Alphabet is following the rules and doing things like letting investors in on just how it’s main advertising business is doing. This is turning out to be a good move seeing as Alphabet’s stock price went up by 43% from just a year ago.

No Growing Pains Here … 

Alphabet is still growing thanks to advertising including things like search advertising, YouTube, the Google Play Store, and Google’s mobile app store. While it’s bringing in the cash, it’s still shelling out a bunch of it for projects that are in the works (e.g., self-driving cars).  These projects known as moonshots are costing the company about US $3.6 billion per year. But, as long as it let’s people know exactly what’s profitable and what’s not, Wall Street should be pretty forgiving. 

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON ?

When Things Aren’t Look So Rosy …

While Alphabet is killing it on Wall Street, Yahoo is doing quite the opposite. CEO Marissa Mayer is still struggling to get the company back on track. Rumor has it that she’ll be making even more employee cuts – 15% of employees or 1600 people are ’bout to get pink slips. In addition to cuts, we’re expected to learn Yahoo’s latest plan to get itself on track when the company puts out its earnings report for Q4 2015. Will it sell its main Internet business or not? Looks like we’ll find out sooner rather than later …

Game Over … 

The U.S. and European Union (EU) had until the end of January 2016 to reach an agreement on how American companies would transfer European citizens’ personal information in a way that protects people’s privacys.  They gave it the good ol’ college try but came up empty.  They just couldn’t agree on certain things, namely how the U.S. government would keep its nose out of Europeans’ personal biz. The U.S. said it was willing to do things like appoint a government official to be a contact for Europeans on data misuse issues. But, the EU wasn’t impressed.  Not sure whether both sides will meet somewhere in the middle. But, in the meantime, the EU’s making an outline of its proposal public. 

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’ 

Is Uber the Walmart of rides? The ride hailing company just royally ticked off its New York City drivers. The company reduced its UberX rates by 15%. The company says lower rates will increase demands and decrease wait times between trips. Drivers beg to differ. Some want out of the service all together but can’t because they’ve taken on car loans via Uber. Oy!

Welcome to the club. WhatsApp, messaging app owned by Facebook, just reached the billion users club. Now, it’s trying to figure out how to make money while staying true to its roots (i.e., no ads, please).  Sidenote: the Democratic Republic of Congo and Congo-Brazzaville are not the same country, but WhatsApp seems to think so. 

Speaking of the billion users club, Gmail is officially in too.

Popular e-mail app Airmail is now available for iPhones.

The Virtual Skinny FinTech Ed: Reverse, Reverse …

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on in FinTech Edition, Newsletter

1.15.2016

Good to Know: The Virtual Skinny is out with a weekly newsletter on what’s going on in financial technology aka FinTech. Sign up here! And, please don’t forget to tell you friends about us. Happy Friday!

THE SKINNY

Can’t We All Just Get Along?

Bitcoin, the virtual currency network, is going mainstream. And you know what they say: Mo’ money, mo problems.

What’s the Problem?

It really comes down to how many financial transactions the network can handle. Bitcoin’s creator Satoshi Nakamoto initially put a temporary limit on the number of transactions to protect computers on the system.  But, to compete in the big leagues along side companies like PayPal and Visa, the Bitcoin network would need to process more transactions. So, to increase the number of transactions on the network or not? That is the question.

Is It Really That Serious?

When the question came up last year, two camps quickly formed: One in favor of the increase and the other against it. Points of contention over technical capabilities and financial interests have added to the mounting tension between both groups. Some Bitcoin developers have even received death threats, ultimately leading them to bow out of the whole Bitcoin system all together.

GIVING THE PEOPLE WHAT WE THINK THEY WANT?

To settle the score, the group favoring the increase peeled off and created software allowing for more transactions called Bitcoin XT (XT). But shortly after XT’s release and endorsements of the software from the likes of CoinBase and others, a hacker released Bitkiller, a malicious software, to take down computers running XT. The hacker claims he was paid off to get rid of Bitkiller.

Where Do We Go From Here?

Since then, the Bitcoin community has gotten together twice to try to reach a better compromise but no answers yet. It’s pretty unclear where things are headed. Oh, the drams!

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON? 

Party’s Over … 

China’s not the place if you’re trying to get your Fintech company off the ground.  The government’s taking “corrective actions” that’ll force Fintech startups to either consolidate or simply fold. This is a 180 from the Chinese governments initial outlook.  At one time, It was all about Fintech startups so they could compete with Chinese e-commerce companies like Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent. But, now China has changed its mind. Thanks to things like new regulations, unsustainable business models, and low return on investments (ROIs), these startups will struggle this year.  E-commerce companies aren’t safe either. But, you know who will be? The banks, of course. If things go as planned, banks in China should reclaim their power in no time.

When You’re All About It …

Wall Street is embracing Fintech companies with open arms. Fintech can mean a lot of things but basically covers services and apps that help make financial transactions happen. Banking vet and Silicon Valley Bank’s Head of EMEA & President of the UK branch Phil Cox thinks that Fintech “winners” will be companies that can offer solutions to major problems like improved customer service from banks. Seems like a no-brainer …

If Only We Knew What You Were Talking About …

Nasdaq, the New York Stock Exchange, and the entire capital markets crew wants to know how they can make blockchain technology work for them.  So, what’s stopping them?  According to one study, the talent just isn’t there.  In other words, there just aren’t people that understand both blockchain technology and the ins and outs of capital markets. Also, there’s the other issue that blockchain technology may not pair nicely with existing IT infrastructure of capital market firms.

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

Messaging app Snapchat wants to do more than just make sure that your sketchy pics don’t last.  It wants to help manage your funds by getting into the robo-adivsor biz.

Moneybox, a U.K. startup coming to us soon, wants to make sure that you save and invest some of your coins. It just pulled in US $3 Mill to help make its dreams a reality.

CoinDesk, an online publication about all things Bitcoin, just got bought out by the Digital Currency Group, an industry leader.

Is PayPal drinking the Bitcoin kool-aid? Likely story. The company just brought on bitcoin entrepreneur Wences Casares to join its Board of Directors.

It’s a good time to be in the payments biz.  The 10-year-old payment startup Adyen is worth about US $2 billion, but no one’s heard of it. The startup wants to change that and is looking to cause a media frenzy by taking its financial situation public (even though it’s still a private company). Interesting…

The Virtual Skinny: Blurgh!

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on in Internet & Tech, Newsletter

12.2.2015

Good to Know: Use ride-hailing app Uber? Want that 5-star rating status? Just be a decent human being.  Sounds like general life advice to us. 

THE SKINNY

When A Crazy Idea Isn’t So Crazy After All … 

Wall Street is buzzing with news that Internet veteran Yahoo may actually consider selling off its core ad business to the highest bidder when its Board of Directors (board) meets this week. This is all according to the Wall Street Journal.

This Is How Rumors Get Started …

Thank activist investor Starboard Value for the suggestion. Last month, Starboard fired off a letter to Yahoo where it pitched the idea. The Internet vet has yet to respond publicly, but news reports triggered a 7 percent spike in Yahoo’s shares.

They Build You Up, Only to Tear You Down …

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer probably took on the role all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. The former Googler seemed like the answer to Yahoo’s problems. However, after three years on the job, Mayer’s attempts to put Yahoo back on the map aren’t doing much good. Lately, some company execs have said “deuces.” Media reports are speculating that Yahoo’s board isn’t happy, and this could mean curtains for Mayer. Reports have even dropped Facebook Sheryl Sandberg’s name as a potential replacement. Highly unlikely but still!

Everyone, Calm Down … 

It’s true. Yahoo isn’t in a good place. But, talk about selling its core business and numbering the days of Mayer’s tenure as CEO could be all media hype. Re/code says that the meetings this week are business as usual. And, the board isn’t ready to ditch Mayer as it still has faith in her leadership.  We’ll wait and see …

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?

Taking Things To The Next Level … 

#GivingTuesday happened, and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Dr. Priscilla Chan got the memo. First, they announced the birth of their first child, a daughter named Max.  Then, they stunned everyone by vowing to give 99% of their FB shares (worth about US $49 billion) towards making the world a better place. The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative intends “to advance human potential and promote equality for all children in the next generation.”  The initiative is set up as a LLC and not a charity. So over the course of their lifetime, the Zucks will still have control over how their money is spent via private investments. #Mazel

There’s A First Time for Everything … 

Home-sharing service AirBnB and New York City (NYC) haven’t exactly had warm and fuzzy feelings for each other. The New York State Attorney General’s (AG) Office has traditionally been anti-AirBnB and is convinced that most AirBnB rentals in the city are illegal. Things came to a head earlier this year when a court ordered AirBnB to share anonymized data about its hosts with the AG.  But, that was the past. AirBnB’s now trying to smooth things over with local governments and is voluntarily sharing hosts’ data with NYC. The company hopes being transparent will show that 99% of hosts’ rentals are legit, and people benefit financially. As they say, you catch more bees with honey …

When Big Brother UK Means Something Different … 

GCHQ, the UK’s digital spying agency or its version of the NSA, is owning up to its hacking activities. The agency basically confirmed things we learned through the Edward Snowden leaks.  GCHQ admits that it hacks into people’s devices and networks not only in the UK but abroad as well. Proper search warrants not needed…. Awesome! Cambridge University Professor Ross Anderson says this behavior could harm the public. The agency sees nothing wrong and credits hacking for scrapping 6 alleged terrorist attacks this year alone.

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’ 

Professional networking platform LinkedIn just upgraded its app. You’ll notice the common theme is all about de-cluttering the user experience. The app’s new private messaging feature’s got that texting-type feel.  TBH, it looks more like FB, and we don’t hate it.

It’s a hard knock life for Jay Z’s music service Tidal. The service has been out for only 8 months and is already on its third CEO Jeff Toig, previously chief business officer at streaming service SoundCloud. Toig starts in January 2016.

Software company Adobe is officially ridding itself of web animation tool, Flash. Not that anyone liked it in the first place. Hopefully, Flash’s replacement, Adobe Animate CC, is a keeper.

Ride-hailing app Uber is still snatching up Google employees. The latest? Former Google Maps exec Manik Gupta.

The Virtual Skinny: Make Room…

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on in Internet & Tech, Newsletter

11.25.2015

Good to Know:  Tomorrow is American Thanksgiving. Startups want people to stay at home, eat, drink, and be merry. This Thursday, these companies are prepared to deliver last-minute, wine, stuffing, movies, etc. straight to your door within an hour. BTW, like many people in the U.S., we’ll be busy gobbling up turkey. See you back here on Monday, November 30. 

THE SKINNY

When You Can’t Remember Your Password … 

It’s not you … It’s them. E-commerce company Amazon reset passwords for some of its users recently.

Why?

Well, if you got an email from Amazon, then you probably know that the company feared that some users’ passwords may have been inadvertently exposed to third parties. Amazon said it has “no reason” to believe that this actually happened but wanted to take precautionary measures.

Safety First … 

Amazon’s also pushing users to make sure their information is secure via two-factor authentication.  With this system, hackers would need more than just your username and password to get into your accounts. They’d also need another device like your mobile phone.

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON? 

Shady “Mr. Grey…”

If you’re up to some shady things, it’s probably best to just keep your mouth shut. Around this time last year, cybersecurity firm Hold Security id-ed a Russian hacker group responsible for stealing 1.2 million credentials and over 500 million email addresses. Shortly thereafter, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) got involved. According to official court documents, the FBI figured out that the hacker, known as “mr. grey,” is linked to a Russian email address. mr. grey hasn’t been shy… The group previously boasted that it could hook people up with user account information for popular sites like Facebook and Twitter. For now, FB, Twitter, the FBI, and the U.S. Department of Justice have nothing to say on the matter.

Going Solo … 

Tor, the place where Internet users go for private and secure messaging, wants your money. The organization’s network is mainly U.S. government backed (about 80-90%), but Tor thinks that it’s time to fly solo. The project thinks that being more independent will allow it the flexibility to offer its communication services to those around the world who need increased privacy.

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

Do it for the kids. YouTube’s under fire for allegedly pushing junk food ads on the kids’ version of its video platform. Two children advocacy groups have filed complaints with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.

Talk about trying to bring someone back down to Earth …  Earlier this week, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos took to Twitter for the first time to brag about his other company, Blue Origin. The aerospace company successfully launched and landed a rocket-ship. Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, must’ve been feeling some kind of way. Musk gave the ultimate back-handed compliment:  First, he congratulated Bezos but then quickly implied that SpaceX did it first.

Amazon’s e-commerce rival Jet.com just pulled in $350M and is expected to add $150M more. The company says most of it will go to marketing, customer support, and growing its team. Who needs a job?

Three ex-Goldman Sachs bankers are trading in their designer suits for jeans and hoodies. The former bankers recently joined Uber adding to the growing trend of people opting out of Wall Street for tech companies.  In more Uber news, the company’s pulling together a ‘Safety Advisory Board,’ to help the company navigate its consumer safety issue. It’ll focus on the U.S. first before taking the show worldwide.

The Virtual Skinny: Cheers!

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on in Internet & Tech, Newsletter

11.20.2015

Good to Know:  Singer Adele’s much-anticipated album, “25,” drops today. If you want to hear it in full, get ready to either fire up iTunes or physically make your way to a store. She’s keeping the album off of all streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music. Some people think this could backfire and make her fans pretty angry. But, we suspect many of you won’t care since Adele’s music is SO good. Cue the tears…  

THE SKINNY

Now That’s What We Call A Rally … 

Things were looking pretty bleak for mobile payments company Square when it set its IPO price at $9/share.  But, after making its New York Stock Exchange debut yesterday, its share shot up by 45%. By day’s end, the company was valued at $4.2 billion ($13.07/share). Hopefully, this performance will be the gift that keeps on giving for CEO Jack Dorsey who turned 39 yesterday.

Onwards and Upwards … 

Moving forward, Dorsey just wants to get back to business as usual. The company’s still focused on making payments easier via its infamous card reader.  But, investors are uncertain of the company’s ability to grow as it goes up against competitors like PayPal and Verifone.  Not to worry, Square’s looking to diversify its business with services that take care of company payroll or that help set up appointments. It’s even acquired a startup called Caviar that’s in the food delivery biz.

What Does This Mean? 

TBH, it’s unclear. There’s been speculation that Square’s low IPO price could mean that unicorns in Silicon Valley, private companies in the billion dollar club, would start to see low market valuations moving forward. It’s hard to say what’s really happening. While there’s certainly a shift towards more conservative valuations, financial experts are saying we shouldn’t expect to see any drastic changes.

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON? 

Time’s Supposed to Heal Ya, But You Ain’t Done Much Healing … 

That’s probably because you’re still Facebook friends with your ex whose new fab life is taking over your newsfeed.  So, not cool!  Facebook doesn’t want you feeling down anymore when break ups happen.  The company’s testing out a new tool that’ll help people distance themselves from their exes without de-friending them. This means seeing less of the ex’s name, profile picture, and posts on your newsfeed.  Why didn’t anyone think of this sooner? Just saying …

When The Stakes Are Just Too Damn High … 

Starboard Value, an activist hedge fund, has an idea for Yahoo. It wants the Internet veteran to sell off its core advertising business.  Whaaa? It’s no secret that Yahoo is struggling and has tried almost everything under the sun to get back on track. Nothing has worked. One thing the company has tried to do is sell off its ownership stake in Chinese Internet company Alibaba. But, pursuing this spin-off could take forever and who knows how the U.S. Internal Revenue Service would handle that transaction.  Basically, the spin-off comes with too much uncertainty and too much risk. Starboard wants Yahoo to strip down to just its stake in Alibaba and Yahoo Japan.  That’s a sure thing in the company’s opinion.  No comment from Yahoo on this recommendation.

Keep A Closer Watch, Will Ya?

U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton wants social media companies to make more of an effort when it comes to preventing terrorists from recruiting followers and spreading their ideas via companies’ platforms.  Hacker group Anonymous recently waged war against Islamist militant group ISIS and claims that it has personally closed down thousands of “pro-ISIS Twitter accounts.”  Companies like Facebook, YouTube  and Twitter say that they take this type of thing seriously, which is reflected in their policies. They keep a close watch on terrorist-type activity and have no problem taking down content or shutting down accounts when users violate these policies.

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

Jack Dorsey, CEO of mobile payments company Square, wants to bring Square Wallet back. He thinks the digital wallet could work a second time around.

It’s a good day to be Diane Greene.  Google just brought on Greene, a veteran in the cloud computing industry, to run point on its growing enterprise cloud business. And, it also scooped up bebop, Greene’s enterprise development startup.

Online music streaming service Spotify says employees can take up to six months of parental leave. Did we mention, its six months PAID? The Swedish company wants make sure all of its employees world-wide are on the same page after their bundle of joy(s) arrive.

Oops! Their b … Indonesia only meant to cut off access to social and messaging platforms like Facebook, WhatsApp, and Viber, but the government inadvertently kicked off a country-wide black out of the entire Internet instead. Could you imagine absolutely no Internet access for an hour? The horror!

 

The Virtual Skinny: Getting on Your Radar…

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on in Internet & Tech, Newsletter

11.9.2015

Good to Know:  Online retailers are bringing their items to you in the real world just in time for the holidays. 

THE SKINNY 

Coming Up Short… 

Late last week, mobile payments company Square announced its IPO price, which had people doing head tilts.

Why?

Well, Square says its price will be between $11 and  $13 per share, which values the company at $4.2 billion. That’s obviously a ton of money, but people were originally expecting a $6 billion valuation.

What Does This Mean? 

Two things. First, the company agreed that it would have to fork over additional shares  to investors if its price came in below $18.55/share so that’ll probably happen. If Square’s shares go for about $12, it’ll be on the hook for about 5.3 million shares to investors. And for other “unicorns” aka companies valued at $1 billion or more, it’s not looking great for them.  This could mean that if other private companies in the $1 billion club decide to go public, their valuation probably won’t be high either.

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON? 

When You Hate To Burst Someone’s Bubble… 

Square’s latest IPO news had people saying that there’s a tech bubble, and that “ish” is about to blow.  Venture capitalist Marc Andreessen sees things differently. Andreessen took to Twitter to sound off on what the Square news means to him.  Put simply, he says that a tech bubble isn’t a thing at the moment.  Basically, for a tech bubble to exist, there’d have to be a ton of excitement and things happening with no real rationale or justification in equity markets.  Square’s “modest pricing” doesn’t quite live up to that type of hype. Don’t believe him? Andreessen dares you to compare and contrast what’s going on today with what happened in ’99.

When You Reinvent Yourself, Madonna-Style … 

In the world of online streaming and digital music, some small, non-profit music stations aren’t going out like that. Rather than fighting the Internet and streaming services like Pandora, Spotify, Apple Music, etc., they’re taking a different approach.  KXEP, a Seattle, Washington-based radio station that’s put acts like the Lumineers, Mackelmore and Ryan Lewis on the map, says it’s no longer just a radio station but is using the Inter-webs to transition into a community organization.  These stations are taking a cue from online services and are building communities that turn to them for curated playlists by trusted sources that often help with the discovery of new artists. Nonprofit stations like KXEP are also turning to Internet platforms such as YouTube to expand their reach.  If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em …

When You Can’t Control Them … 

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is not getting into the online tracking business.  The agency said that it won’t do anything to make it hard for the likes of Google, Facebook, and other internet companies to track what you do online.  Naturally, Internet companies are happy about this since they rely on your information to make money. Privacy advocates, on the other hand, are understandably salty about the decision because they hoped the FCC would make it standard for online companies to recognize a “do not track” button while users are on their sites. But alas, the FCC said no and hopes that’s the end of that debate … at least as far as the FCC is concerned.

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’ 

Verizon will soon start selling the Blackberry Priv, the first phone using Android mobile operating system that has a physical keyboard.  Speaking of … reviews are in and let’s just say it’s a mixed bag.

Online search via text is played out like an 8-track. “Discovery engines” is where it’s at, according to Pinterest. Starting today, you can search Pinterest with images only. This new tool could mean more ad sales for the company.

When your love only grows … for Snapchat.  The company says its daily video views are up to 6 billion.  It’s catching up to Facebook, which says its video views are up to 8 billion on a daily basis.

Facebook’s trying things out with its new digital assistant, M. FB wants to use a single interface to replace all those web searches you tend to do. The company sees M as a one-stop shop so to speak.  If things work out, all we’ve gotta say is … watch your back, Google.

Yahoo is enlisting management consulting firm McKinsey & Co. to clean things up. The Internet company wants McKinsey to tell it what parts of its biz to keep and which to chuck.

U.S. university MIT picked Hong Kong as the location for its new innovation center.

 

The Virtual Skinny: Come Fly With Me…

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on in Internet & Tech, Newsletter

10.22.2015

Good to Know:  Next week, we’ll be at Money 20/20, a huge financial services conference with big names like PayPal.  FinTech is on fire right now, and we’ll be right there keeping you in the loop via our tweets.  Twitter handle: @virtual_skinny  

THE SKINNY

WHEN YOUR RELATIONSHIP STATUS IS “IT’S COMPLICATED…” 

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey is trying to make things right with the company’s outside app developers.  He issued a very public apology.

Getting Back On Track … 

Dorsey admits Twitter has had a complicated relationship with developers and wants a “do over.”  Basically, under Twitter’s last CEO who will remain unnamed (*cough* Dick Costolo), the company put strict rules on what developers could and couldn’t do. Why? Mainly because Twitter was becoming almost like a free for all, and we were seeing all sorts things that were taking away from the platform’s user experience.  But, some cool things came out that time too (e.g., ability to post pics to Twitter and shorten links you want to share).

You Help Me, I Help You … 

Twitter is trying to mend relationships by offering new tools to lure developers back to the platform.  In a nutshell, developers making cool things brings more users to Twitter.

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON? 

Everything’s Gonna Be Alright … 

For a while there, people were worried about eBay after it separated from PayPal.  But, the online marketplace saw a 9% spike in its stock price after reporting third-quarter earnings amounting to $539 Mill. Revenues came in at $2.1 billion.  eBay says it “can’t stop, won’t stop” bringing its A-game. Next, the company says it’ll offer better tools to its top sellers for them to better manage inventory and customer returns.

Seeing Red … 

It’s been a long time coming. Online video platform YouTube just introduced us to Red, its new subscription service.  The company’s Chief Business Officer Robert Kyncl says more and more people would rather pay up than sit through ads when watching online content. Google’s YouTube wants to make you happy. So for $10/month, you can watch your fave videos ad-free. It’s also getting into original programming with YouTube Originals.  You can expect reality shows like “Scare PewDieDie” where the Swedish YouTube star (whose government name is Felix Kjellberg) will be put in precarious situations. As the name suggests, we assume he’ll be scared most of the time.  Media companies such as Time Warner, NBC, and Fox will be offering up programming as well.  Watch your back, Amazon and Netflix…

Stealth Mode … 

Balaji Srinivasan, CEO of bitcoin startup 21, says the underlying technology behind virtual currency bitcoin, known as blockchain technology, is going to change things up in a big way.  Blockchain technology is used to track how every single Bitcoin user is spending their virtual coins. Basically, it’s just a big ole’ ledger that anyone using Bitcoin can see. Srinivasan says blockchain technology usually flies under the radar but has potential to be a game changer in how we pay for stuff. He says there’s no stopping the technology once it starts being included in our devices. We’ll see… 

In Other Bitcoin-Related News …

The European Union (EU) decided that for tax purposes, bitcoin should be treated as “real” money. And for bitcoin exchanges that convert “real” money into the virtual currency, they’re not on the hook for taxes. 

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

Crowdfunding platform Indiegogo just launched a new site, Generosity.com, for all non-profits seeking to raise money. It’s for your personal fundraising efforts too.  Unlike its main site, Generosity.com won’t be charging fees for campaigns.

Vietnam’s government is testing out its very own Facebook page called “Government Information.”  From press releases about government policies to pics of its Prime Minister meeting with foreign leaders, the government is using the page to make sure its young people are aware of what the country’s doing. But, Vietnamese citizens should take note, don’t get too crazy with your FB comments about the government because it’ll likely be deleted. 

The Virtual Skinny: Give Me A Beat

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on in Internet & Tech, Newsletter

10.21.2015

Good to Know:  Facial recognition technology can tell if people are depressed just by the muscles they use to smile. 

THE SKINNY

When Your grades come out, but … 

Yahoo released its earnings report for the third quarter, and the numbers are dim. Though revenues went up by 7% reaching $1.23B, sales fell by 8% to $1B. After three years on the job, CEO Marissa Mayer is still trying to make Yahoo work.

It’s Definitely Broken, Fix It … 

Advertisers aren’t flocking to Yahoo anymore, and Mayer anticipates that things won’t improve during the fourth quarter. This is concerning because the holiday season is usually when advertisers score big.  But, Mayer says not to worry.  She’s a woman with a plan.

The Glass is Half Full … 

Mayer’s looking on the bright side and sees this as an opportunity to narrow the company’s focus and prioritize its transition in becoming more mobile-friendly. Cue the cuts. First up? Yahoo’s foray into content has gotta go.  It took on NBC’s axed show Community and other original programming for $42 Mill but saw no clear path to making money from its investment.  That’s what we call a sunk cost, folks. Mayer also wants everyone to take a chill pill over recent news about some of her execs leaving the company.  She says those decisions came from “careful planning.”

What Are We Going To Do?   

Yahoo thinks teaming up with Google will make things better.  The search company will return search results and display ads for Yahoo users.  But first, the Department of Justice needs to give the Yahoo-Google partnership its blessing.  Mayer’s got more things lined up and will let us know more over the next three months.

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON? 

Courage Social Media Under Fire … 

Austrian law student Max Schrems initially wanted the Irish Data Protection Commissioner (IDPC) to look into how Facebook was handling Europeans’ information.  Specifically, Schrems was concerned that the U.S. government (NSA) was poking around Europeans’ private details via FB’s system. At the time, the IDPC said no. But, things change. After a major decision by the EU Court of Justice that invalidated the way U.S. companies move data across the Atlantic, the IDPC has decided it will launch an investigation into the matter.  FB says it’s done nothing wrong and plays by Irish and EU rules. To be continued … 

I Want You Outta My System … 

U.S. law enforcement wants to see what’s in your iPhone (in the name of criminal investigations of course). But, Apple isn’t buying it. The company is very vocal about its commitment to making sure Apple users are secure and protected.  The smartphone manufacturer just told a judge that if users protect their latest iPhone with a password, pin, or fingerprint, the company simply cannot get into the device on behalf of law enforcement. iOS encryption just won’t allow it.  Sorry Department of Justice, looks like Apple won’t be giving you the access you want.

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

Facebook is bringing TechPrep to the industry’s diversity party.  TechPrep is a way for students and their parents to learn how to get a jumpstart in computer science. The resource will be available in English and Spanish.   Oh, and it’s also taking cues from emerging markets when it comes to product development. 

Sukhinder Cassidy founded Boardlist to place women on companies’ Board of Directors. The org, which counts former Twitter CEO Dick Costolo as a member, took just 2 months since launching to make its first placement. Cassidy says she’s working with women first but could see this being an effective resource for underrepresented groups too.

Tyra Banks tried to teach us all how to “smize” with her app.  It failed (just keeping it real). Banks is giving it another go with her new beauty startup, which she hopes will empower women entrepreneurs.

Add ’em to the line up. New York federal prosecutor Preet Bahara just joined the list of people trying to figure out whether fantasy sports sites like FanDuel and DraftKings are legal under U.S. federal law.

Yahoo execs aren’t the only ones making moves.  Snapchat’s Chief of Communications Jill Hazelbaker is catching a ride over to Uber (see what we did there?) as its new VP of Communications and Public Policy.

Uber has no plans to make a Wall Street debut anytime soon.  CEO Travis Kalanick said “We’re like eighth graders and someone’s telling us we need to go to the prom.” We guess that means he thinks the company needs more time to grow and mature before going public. Kalanick also wants you to know that his company’s China strategy may be working. China now accounts for 30% of Uber’s rides.

After five years, Google is getting back into the Chinese market with an investment in artificial intelligence (AI) company Mobvoi. The AI company operates a language voice activated search engine.  In other news, Google wants merchants to see just what products people across the U.S. search for on its machine.

Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba is getting a little help from Russian shops to grow its marketplace.

All this talk about shopping.  Amazon’s prepping for the holiday season by bringing on 100k temp employees.

Ex-military officers are a big draw for Israeli tech startups apparently.

SHARING IS CARING

We appreciate you taking a few minutes to be with us on a daily basis and would love if you shared this newsletter with your friends! They can go here to join us.

 

 

The Virtual Skinny: Halfway There, Already

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on in Internet & Tech, Newsletter

10.14.2015

Good to Know:  Working remotely is generally a good deal unless you’re about to be canned. Yesterday, Twitter employees working remotely found out they got laid off only when they could no longer access their company e-mail.  Ouch! 

THE SKINNY

It’s Hard Out There …

Breaking into the music biz is tough. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) just said “see you in court” to Aurous, a newly released music streaming service, and one of its creators Andrew Sampson.

RING THE ALARM …

Aurous came out just this week. Unlike what we’re used to with Spotify-type services, Aurous is completely free (look Ma, no ads!). Spotify-types usually negotiate and license music from record labels so you can listen to your sweet jams.  Aurous doesn’t bother. Instead, the service fancies itself an aggregator of sorts and pulls music from third-party services like Spotify, YouTube, SoundCloud, etc. The RIAA is giving Aurous major blank stares. The music industry rep says that the service is blatantly violating copyrights left and right. Plus, it says Aurous’ main sources are Russian sites notorious for offering pirated music. They want the court to shut it down and for Sampson to cough up $3 million in damages. Shots fired!

joke’s on them …

Aurous and Sampson took to Twitter to respond to the RIAA. Let’s just say, they’re not taking it that seriously. The company seems confident that the suit is rubbish, and it will be able to continue operating.  But, it should be a little worried. Turns out using those Russian sites may not bode well in court. In the meantime, Sampson is telling the music industry to be cool because he plans to create a system for them to flag infringing songs.  He even wants users to be able to tip their fave artists with virtual currency bitcoin. We shall see…

What Else Is Going On?

Pop Up Video … 

What can we say? Facebook is literally into everything.  The company announced that it’s trying its hand at video.  FB wants people to be able to save videos right from their homepage, and it’ll also offer up suggested videos based on viewing habits and give access to vids posted courtesy of your friends, celebs, companies, etc.  What’s the big deal? It’s all about the $200 billion companies are shelling out for TV ads. Naturally, FB wants some of those ad dollars and will begin sharing its ad revenue with video creators soon. For now, FB is testing the video feature only with a small group of people. But, it’s probably still safe to say, watch out YouTube,  FB’s coming for you.

Read Between the Lines … 

Fresh off the biggest tech merger ever between EMC and Dell, some people on Wall Street are getting worried about the amount of deals going on this year.  Companies joining forces have already captured $3.5 trillion in merger transactions.  Bankers are concerned that this could be signs of a weak economy. Taking a look at recent mergers, particularly the EMC/Dell collabo, many have been in efforts to cut costs and to turn around struggling companies.  These mergers are coming from a place of weakness and not strength – another cause for concern.  We should expect to see more of this trend over the course of the next year, but it could be longer due to low interest rates.  Financial analysts are saying this type of deal-making isn’t sustainable and are watching the markets.  Hold onto your hats, people!

The Streets Are Talkin’

Chinese Internet giant Alibaba is going European.  As growth slows in China, the company continues its international expansion by opening offices in Italy, France, and Germany.

Nothing like having good conversations while breaking bread with strangers.  Under the radar app, EatWith is still working to bring strangers together over a shared meal.

Staying on the food trend, UberRush, Uber’s new courier service, is launching in Chicago and San Francisco. Services aren’t limited to just food deliveries either. Flowers anyone? Also, Uber is lending its driver network for a good cause. It’s partnering with the U.S. National Center for Missing & Exploited Children to send Amber alerts to drivers.

Snapchat is trying to figure out what it wants to do in the content space and creating its own original content isn’t on the list. The company just let its ‘SnapChat Channel’ team go.

FB heard your complaints and no longer wants you to re-live those hard moments in your life. It’s now letting you filter out stuff you don’t want to be reminded of via its ‘On This Day’ feature. Once is enough, please and thank you!

Laser Razor sounded too good to be true, and Kickstarter thought the same thing.  The crowdfunding platform pulled the project after it raised $4 million. No working prototype? No funding!

Apparently, reality shows about startups are a bad idea. Cross that off your list of #LifeGoals.