Monday, January 09, 2012

Facebook And Profitability: Interesting Video And Some Thoughts About Potential IPO



Facebook keeps growing at a fast pace, and has matured as a strong marketing media, used by a large number of companies throughout the world.

I recently watched this video on Youtube, and wanted to share it with you.Unfortunately I am not able to upload it on my blog...

It is a CNN show where analysts discuss about the move of Godman Sachs to buy for $450 million of Facebook shares, evaluating it at $50 billions. It was on January 2011, a year ago.

At this time, Facebook was counting 600 million members, $2 billions in revenues. The analysts are discussing about the actual profitability Facebook may get. Indeed, it is very difficult, and it remains difficult now, to know exactly what kind of profitability Facebook is right now achieving. Also the fact that Facebook is not public, it does not need to give specific financial data, which could help us see how it works.

Facebook and social media company in overall is a brand new business modell. And as all new groundbreaking business modell, it is difficult to analyse the company's result and profitability in ten years from nom (which is what really matters).

Facebook has great ambition in 2012 to launch an IPO, and to enter stock exchange market. It will allow the company to raise massive money, and therefore give a lift to their effort of developping a leading advertizing hub, to attract advertizing budgets from companies and communication agencies.
 
This video has been published a year from now, and since then, very few information on the financial and business end of Facebook have been released. If Facebook actually really wants to enter the stock exchange market, they will have to publish some information about its profitability, and this is based on these information that the company will actually be rated.

The context is pretty tough for Facebook for a potential IPO:
  • The world is experiencing a major economical downturn, and it impacts most of the Index, including Nasdaq
  • The competition is getting tougher as Google is reaching more and more users with Google Plus.
  • A lot of regulation complains have come up with Facebook, and new laws restricting Facebook's terms of condition may hurt its will to master users' data for commercial purposes.
2012 will be a crucial year for Facebook, because even though the IPO does not happen this year, Facebook will have to prepare for it, and we will probably have more information about Facebook's actual results.

Wednesday, January 04, 2012

Some Thoughts About Tablets And The End Of Computers



Tablets have been the biggest success in the high tech market in 2011. We have seen tablets blossoming and most of the computer manufacturers have launched their products. The two great leaders remain Apple with its Ipad, and Samsung with the Galaxy Tablet, empowered with the Android O.S.

I remember having read couple of Loic Lemeur's about Steve Jobs considering that computers were "trucks", and that ultimately they may disappear. But I am not really into that state of mind.

Here is a very interesting video I found on Youtube, where Bill Gates give his thoughts on the Ipad.



Obviously, as Bill Gates explain, his opinion is biased. But I must agree also with one of his point: there is a lack of ability to edit things with a tablet.

I personnaly own a tablet (an Ipad 1) and I truly love it. I use it all the time, read news, watching videos. It is a great device, which actually is in a lot of cases easier to use and better than PCs, even laptops.

However, a tablet is not enough, if you have to own only one computer device. Indeed, I find it very hard to write a blog post, or to use a worksheet, or edit a powerpoint presentation. A computer remain by far the easiest way to create or edit something.

So I do agree with Bill Gates when he says there is a lot of room for improvement for tablets.

The fact is that I don't believe we will have a sole "computer device" at our hand. The tablet is the perfect example of what is happening: We did not really need a tablet, but it just expands our connection with Internet.


And computers, the ones we use to edit and create which will exist at least for the next decade and beyond, will be a slight part of our interaction with computers and Internet.

Most of our "products", or "things" will be connected:
  • We will have our smartphone, connected to the Internet, with enough computing power to play, to watch videos and so on.
  • Our tablets, to relax and have access to Internet
  • Our computers to work, to edit, for "inputs" as Bill Gates say
  • Our car, where we get more and more options to access to social media, to GPS information (traffic, restaurant yellow pages, among other things).
  • And all the things we are not aware of, but that will eventually come.


Sort of like in the Minority report film, we will have access to computers and Internet every where, and therefore, tablets will have its place, but I believe not the central place, and computer also will have an important place in it.

I believe that what will remain the core, will be the smartphones, as they are always on people, so the easiest way to get in contact with the Internet.

What do you think about it?