Pinterest is back where it started. Pinterest has exactly the same problem that plagued both LINE and KakaoTalk in that users in the home country are very productive but overseas they are virtually worthless. This became clear in Pinterest’s Q3 19 results which missed expectations as the home market is slowing and international is not taking over the mantle of...
Big tech is just fine. Apple FQ4 19 – Accessories assemble Apple reported good FQ4 19 results as wearables and services offset a less than expected decline in iPhone shipments. FQ4 19 revenues / EPS were $64.0bn / $3.03 ahead of consensus forecasts of $62.9bn / $2.84. A 9% YoY decline in iPhone sales was offset by a 16% increase...
Grubhub clearly demonstrates a lack of barriers. Grubhub reported reasonable Q3 2019 results compared to already lowered expectations but took expectations even further down in a clear demonstration that there are no barriers in this brutal business. Grubhub Q3 19 revenues / EPS were $322.1m / $0.01 both below consensus of $330.0m / $0.02 but not enough to trigger the...
Google Q3 19, Another Softbank write-down, Huawei’s UK respite. Google Q3 19 – Core drives. The rest lags. Alphabet reported good Q3 19 results that were poorly received as cost pressure from Google Cloud roll-out and the strong US$ dented profitability. Q3 19A revenues / EPS were $40.5bn / $10.12 compared to consensus at $40.1bn / $12.46 with further profitability...
Better search but not assistant. Google is going to get even better at search which will improve its relevance with users and increase its dominance, but it won’t help in the struggle with Amazon for the smart home Google has announced the launch of a major revision to its search engine which sees it improve its relevance in the long...
Radio Free Mobile is taking a short break. Daily commentary will resume on October 28th.
Goodbye blue sky. Softbank needs to take a good hard look at its processes as the valuation that it is prepared to pay for WeWork has fallen by 83% in a matter of weeks despite no fundamental change in the business outlook for WeWork. Softbank looks set to bail out WeWork in a deal that will see it inject a...
Airbnb is not WeWork. Airbnb is being tarred with the WeWork, Uber and Lyft brush, but a closer look reveals a company that has already proved that it can make money. Whether the company is worth the $31bn it was valued at when it last raised money is a story for another day, but what is clear is that it...
Vested interests sink Libra. There are certainly regulatory issues that need to be addressed with Facebook’s or any digital currency, but I suspect that the main reason for Libra’s failure is the protection of vested interests. The banking system as it exists to today is not fit for purpose. Despite massive consumer digitisation, it is still slow, overly bureaucratic, expensive...
Richard is founder, owner of research company, Radio Free Mobile. He has 16 years of experience working in sell side equity research. During his 11 year tenure at Nomura Securities, he focused on the equity coverage of the Global Technology sector.
Google and Fitbit – No Panacea.
Engineering disease bill rises to $16bn. Doctor Porat has been able to do very little to treat Google’s chronic case of engineering disease (see here), the bill for which is about to rise to $16bn (hardware acquisitions minus divestments) and where the outlook remains very difficult. Fitbit has done what I always thought it would to do (see here) and...