6 posts and columns on holding company

TweetDeck Finds a Home, and $30 Million, at UberMedia

in Media on February 11, 2011 at 8:02 pm PT

UberMedia, the holding company that specializes in Twitter-based start-ups, has added its highest-profile company to date: Tweetdeck, the biggest Twitter application not owned by Twitter itself.

New Motion Control Patent Could Shake Up Smartphone Industry

in Mobile on March 24, 2010 at 5:00 am PT

Here’s a potentially noteworthy development in the patent litigation-riddled mobile device market. Last week, the United States Patent and Trademark Office issued a very broad patent on motion-based smartphone control, one that could have significant implications for the industry.

Whoops! Are Reports of the Ad Recovery Greatly Exaggerated?

in Media on October 28, 2009 at 7:55 pm PT

Here’s the counterpoint to Publicis’s mildly optimistic take on the ad market yesterday: Rival ad-holding company Interpublic Group’s report, which is mildly pessimistic. But the takeaway is the same: If things get better, anyone who’s not Google won’t see much real sign of it until next year.
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Ad Market Prediction of the Day: Recovery Is Here, Says Ad Giant Publicis

in Media on October 27, 2009 at 1:15 pm PT

It’s all well and good for Google to say the worst is over. But what about media companies that survive on revenue streams other than search ads? Things should be better for them, too, says Publicis, one of the biggest advertising companies in the world. The French holding company, which announced its results today, says things bottomed out this summer.
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Facebook’s Zuckerberg: $10 Billion Is a “Fair” Valuation

in Media on May 26, 2009 at 10:48 am PT

Looking for lots of specifics about the $200 million at $10 billion valuation deal that Facebook and Digital Sky Technologies just announced? Then you have come to the wrong conference call, my friend. But for what it’s worth, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg did sound fairly upbeat and confident during his chat with reporters Tuesday morning–the way you’d expect someone who just cashed a check for a couple hundred million to sound. The big picture: Even though Facebook’s official valuation has slid from $15 billion (November 2007, when Microsoft invested) to $10 billion, Zuckerberg is OK with that, arguing that 1) that deal was done at the peak of the market, and 2) it was never really a financial deal, but a way for Microsoft to partner up with Facebook.

Sumner Redstone: I’m Done Selling CBS, Viacom Shares. I Mean It.

in Media on October 30, 2008 at 6:20 am PT

CBS chairman Sumner Redstone’s message to investors: Don’t worry, I’m done selling shares in my beaten-down media properties. But Redstone, who has already had to sell $233 million worth of CBS and Viacom stock earlier this month, wouldn’t discuss his current debt troubles with analysts during this morning’s earnings call.