Social Media

Chinese social network loses friends in new way

14 May 2018

Some Renren investors are unhappy about a deal to sell assets to a firm co-controlled by the CEO. The rationale for its low valuation of a stake in online lender SoFi looks thin. An antisocial share structure and Cayman Islands base, however, mean it's probably a losing battle.

A tale of two super-voting stakes – and steaks

3 May 2018

Zynga’s Mark Pincus converted his founder’s stock into regular shares, cutting his vote from 70 pct to 10 pct. Though overdue, it liberates the online-gaming firm. Meanwhile, the owner of Steak n Shake jammed through a dual-class structure – a backward step, as investors showed.

Peppa Pig can survive Chinese censor’s cleaver

3 May 2018

Video-sharing app Douyin chopped the cartoon swine after it appeared in “subversive” videos posted by users. The ban does not directly hurt owner Entertainment One’s revenue. Still, it’s a reminder that even the most innocent media characters can fall out of official favour.

Facebook dating reality may fall short of fears

1 May 2018

News of a matchmaking add-on to the social network tanked the shares of Match and owner IAC on Tuesday. People are spending less time on Facebook and this could persuade some to linger. But they’d have to believe Mark Zuckerberg’s promiscuous data-sharing days are behind him.

Squeezed Facebook is set to squeeze others

1 May 2018

Mark Zuckerberg has touted a new, responsible privacy approach since the Cambridge Analytica mess. Outside developers fear it will dent their business. And users of WhatsApp – whose founder is quitting Facebook – may need reassurance they aren’t the social network’s next product.

Facebook’s future could look like Microsoft’s past

25 Apr 2018

Tumbling valuations and regulatory attacks crushed the shares of Bill Gates’ software juggernaut two decades ago. Mark Zuckerberg’s social network is growing fast. But that’s no reason to assume that Facebook is immune to the same kinds of risks that challenged Microsoft.

Twitter’s international flight may prove fleeting

25 Apr 2018

Strong overseas growth helped the social-media outfit boost sales by 21 pct in the first quarter. As Facebook has shown, it can be relatively easy to find people internationally to use a digital service. Making money on them, however, becomes progressively harder.

Widening net of China censors puts tech on notice

17 Apr 2018

Jokes and gay content are disappearing from the web. It's a fresh sign censors are policing beyond political discourse. For $25 bln microblog Weibo and peers, appeasing both users and regulators will get harder. It will make life tougher for China hopefuls like Facebook, too.

Instagram might want to unfriend Facebook

12 Apr 2018

Mark Zuckerberg snapped up the photo-sharing site for $1 bln in 2012. The savvy purchase could now be worth more than 80 times as much, Breakingviews estimates. But Facebook’s data fiascos are becoming a liability. Setting Instagram free could maximize its value.

Lawmakers’ puzzlement is hazard for Facebook

11 Apr 2018

In Congress, Mark Zuckerberg mostly faced confused questioning about his company’s use of data, not a focused grilling. Rather than a let-off, that’s a risk. When the average politician is baffled by something new but suspects pernicious behavior, regulation may not be far away.

Washington zeroes in on correct Facebook target

10 Apr 2018

At his first congressional hearing on data practices, Mark Zuckerberg got a grilling about the social network’s confusing terms of service. More clarity and user control would be a start. But Facebook with its ad-driven business model can’t be trusted to police itself.

Facebook not Zuckerberg is under fire in D.C.

9 Apr 2018

It will be tempting for U.S. lawmakers grilling Mark Zuckerberg to focus on his all-too-apparent flaws. That would miss the bigger question: whether Facebook is too complex to manage, whoever runs it. That is key to knowing whether the company ought to be regulated.

Fintech lenders will struggle to regain mojo alone

9 Apr 2018

The likes of LendingClub, On Deck and SoFi want to put recent problems behind them. But their loan books, and earnings, are small. The banks they once dared to threaten have been catching up. Even Goldman is nipping at their heels. A bout of M&A could do them credit.

Mark Zuckerberg could learn from Jamie Dimon

5 Apr 2018

Crises forced both CEOs onto the public stage. Over the past decade, JPMorgan’s boss has regularly confronted issues and explained the firm’s strategy. Social networks, like banks, rely on confidence to survive and thrive. The Facebook founder would do well to recognize that.

Telegram sends warning to Wall St and Sand Hill Rd

3 Apr 2018

Russian entrepreneur Pavel Durov’s messaging service raised $1.7 bln from private sales of its crypto-currency this year, besting all but three IPOs. Booming coin offerings face more oversight and many ring hollow. But Durov’s tech chops should give bankers and VC firms pause.

Viewsroom: Facebook’s multiplying problems

29 Mar 2018

The social network founded by Mark Zuckerberg is reeling from a data harvest on some 50 million users. It will take time for the $440 billion firm to feel the impact but people are starting to slowly unplug. Plus, the world’s largest consumer-drone maker may go public.

Holding: #MeToo is putting corporate law on trial

29 Mar 2018

Claims of sexual misconduct at the likes of Fox and Wynn Resorts have led to suits over board duties and disclosure. They’re long shots, largely because business governance is an awkward tool for social change. Yet investors and victims are giving it a new and useful purpose.

Zuckerberg’s slow defense reveals real weakness

21 Mar 2018

The Facebook founder finally explained how users’ information was harvested - four days after it was revealed by press reports. But his promise to tighten controls rings hollow. The trouble is the social network is built on data. Truly securing it may blow up its business.

Facebook leads Silicon Valley to its Minsky moment

21 Mar 2018

The social network feasted on burgeoning data and devices, just as banks gorged on easy money before the crisis. Society’s focus on benefits over risk gave tech companies free rein – until the resulting abuses couldn’t be overlooked. As user trust evaporates, regulation beckons.

Cox: Dual-class buyers’ early remorse at Facebook

20 Mar 2018

IPO investors in 2012 granted founder, CEO and Chairman Mark Zuckerberg totalitarian power to build the social network. He's now in over his head, seemingly struck dumb, amidst a whirl of data-mishandling allegations. His nearly 60 pct voting control means shareholders are stuck.