Continue reading Buyout Capacity for Private Equity Biz Still Growing

Buyout Capacity for Private Equity Biz Still Growing originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 31 Dec 2009 13:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

As I mentioned in my post about Blogher, AIM is where it's at for the sorts of people who use instant messenger programs to communicate. Not only do teenagers love the product, with all the spiraling viral effects that has for AOL, but I use it for work -- and many other businesses are becoming IM-savvy.

AIM, however, may have come to a bit of an innovation plateau -- the unit seems to be focusing on cuteness and personality rather than functionality. AOL needed to get working if the company wished to expand into the nether reaches of instant communication and electronic networking. Today's announcement of the company's acquisition of Userplane (for an undisclosed sum) underscored Time Warner's dual strategies in this market, which are (1) dominate and innovate and (2) do it by acquisition, whenever possible.

Userplane CEO Mike Jones says the company will remain a separate unit, and the company's venture capitalist lauds Userplane for having been cashflow positive "for a long time." Userplane brings a very strong position in the dating and social networking market, and it's oh-so-Web 2.0. According to TechCrunch, Userplane "uses Flash and Ajax to offer video, audio and text chat in the browser, in single or multiple chat rooms. Those video and audio chats can be recorded using the company's Webrecorder application."

Continue reading AOL acquires even more of IM market with Userplane

AOL acquires even more of IM market with Userplane originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 14 Aug 2006 15:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

I came of age in the business climate of the late 80s. You remember, I'm sure, the headlines about Japan buying the entire West Coast. It was like World War II was happening all over again, and this time, we were just handing over our weapons in the guise of the keys to our most precious homegrown businesses.

Now Nissan and Renault are interested in forming an alliance with the venerable U.S. car manufacturer, General Motors, which could include the purchase of up to 20% of GM's shares. What could be worse than the Japanese buying our car companies? Why, the Japanese and the French (but of course).

Perhaps Toyota will become an unlikely knight, says Business Week -- perhaps even offering to purchase GM. One executive near the transaction says that Toyota "has no interest" in any form of alliance between GM and its rivals. Already GM and Toyota work together in California, where Toyota's Corolla, Matrix and Tacoma are assembled alongside GM's Pontiac Vibe.

We're not afraid of the Japanese any more, it seems. Chairman and CEO Richard Wagoner Jr. might even benefit from a takeover by Toyota -- according to some who are familiar with the Renault-Nissan deal, the plans could include replacing Wagoner with Carlos Ghosn, CEO of Nissan and Renault. Other sources, of course, say that Toyota would be unlikely to do anything so aggressive as a takeover bid. Either way, due to a 90-day timeframe set out in the Renault-Nissan-GM alliance announcement, Toyota will have to make a decision quickly or watch as its biggest competitor squeezes it out of the partnership race.

Could Toyota buy GM? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 17 Jul 2006 18:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Firing quite the shot across the bow of its satellite radio rival, Sirius Satellite Radio CEO Mel Karmazin told audience members at a conference on media convergence that he'd happily buy XM Satellite Radio. Executives from XMSR (surely wondering what "the right price" might, exactly, mean) hadn't commented, yet, at the time of this post.

That would be quite some convergence. As the two companies have raced each other to forge deals with opposing car makers and big media names, and have struggled to out-innovate and out-subscribe one another, it seems as if nothing defines the sector so much as the rivalry.

Monopolistic concerns would certainly be raised by regulators, although really: what harm could come of having only one satellite radio company? It's not like consumers have no other choice for their listening pleasure in their cars, or anywhere else, for that matter -- what with offerings ranging from the iPod to the common FM station.

Regulators, it's possible, wouldn't agree with my "who cares?" analysis: they stopped an earlier proposed deal between DirecTV and Echostar.

Sirius: would happily buy XMSR (if regulators said 'yes') originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 26 Jun 2006 17:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

It must be nice to be a tech billionaire.  Look at Hasso Plattner, a co-founder and supervisory board chief at the German software powerhouse, SAP.

While the typical US software billionaire would not speculate on buyers for their own company, that's not the case with Plattner.  In fact, he named the three possible buyers for his company:  IBM, Microsoft and Google.

Of course, IBM and Microsoft make a lot of sense. Both companies have a large corporate business. For example, two years ago, both Microsoft and SAP talked about a deal. The problem, though, was the antitrust mess.

But Google?  Well, maybe. 

Continue reading Google and SAP?

Google and SAP? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 19 May 2006 08:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.