investments

Forum

The “B” Word

Beth Callaghan in Forum on April 27 at 1:49 pm PT

Pundits and others are using the B word — bubble — more than ever. Is it time to stop, or will this gain even more traction in 2012?

Amazon’s Stock Fizzles as Holiday Sales Fail to Catch Fire

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on January 31 at 1:21 pm PT

Amazon’s fourth-quarter results fell short of expectations, despite a robust holiday quarter and the launch of the company’s first tablet computer, the Kindle Fire.

Voices

“Great” is Tough To Pick Out of the “Good” Crowd

Bryan Roberts, Partner, Venrock in Voices on December 1, 2011 at 10:46 am PT

One of the oldest adages in start-ups, for entrepreneurs and VCs alike, is that “the key to success is the quality of the people.” My experience supports this notion unequivocally.

Why Was Marc Andreessen Smiling at D9? Ask SilverTail Systems.

Arik Hesseldahl in News on June 6, 2011 at 1:20 pm PT

Asked last week on the D9 stage about security, venture capitalist Marc Andreessen smiled and mentioned an “undisclosed investment.” Today, the firm announced it is leading a $20 million round in Web security start-up SilverTail Systems.

Will Secretary of State Clinton's "Internet Freedom Agenda" Finally Get Traction?

Kara Swisher in News on February 16, 2011 at 7:09 am PT

Yesterday, in a major policy speech in Washington, D.C., Secretary of State Hillary Clinton jumped on the Internet bandwagon again, unveiling a $25 million government investment for entrepreneurs to allow dissidents to thwart “thugs, hackers and censors.” Since that’s about the amount a third-string social photo-sharing site gets while walking down University Avenue in Palo Alto, Calif., from venture capitalists with bags of money to spend, let me just say the money is, well, underwhelming. Clinton’s speech, thankfully, was much better.

Rackspace Is Not for Sale, but Thanks for Asking

Arik Hesseldahl in Enterprise on February 14, 2011 at 6:00 am PT

Rackspace is one of several companies thought to be likely acquisition targets following the buyouts of Terremark and NaviSite. Ask CEO Lanham Napier about it, and he insists the company is not for sale, but he clearly enjoys being asked.

Dell's Got a 10-inch Windows 7 Tablet in the Pipeline

John Paczkowski in News on February 8, 2011 at 10:10 am PT

Hewlett-Packard’s not the only company with an enterprise-ready Windows 7 tablet. Dell’s got one as well and plans to launch it later this year.

China's Tencent Buys Riot Games for $400 Million

Peter Kafka in Media on February 4, 2011 at 6:21 pm PT

Tencent, the giant Chinese Web holding company, has bought Los Angeles-based Riot Games for about $400 million. Yet another big-dollar deal in an industry that’s seen a lot of M&A in the last year, and one of the biggest investments by a Chinese company in an American digital property.