N. Venkatraman

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    • Mon Jul 28th 10:05 AM
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      Microsoft: Investor Day Leaves Analysts Lukewarm
      I think we will know in about six months how the strategy is shaping up. I agree that there is no new information except that Kevin Johnson's leaving allows Microsoft to perhaps refocus on its core. The downside is that if they lose ground in their core business, then they are in trouble. We have to give Ballmer six months of post-Gates to craft his own strategy and start having his own imprint. Time will tell.. Six months will be a good window to assess the strategic focus.
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    • Wed Jul 23rd 17:38 PM
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      New York Times Co. - No End to the Pain in Sight
      Well.. Increasing the newsstand rate by 25 cents is not the answer for the long-term. Shunting 100 jobs also is a temporary fix to the cost structure. May be buying Boston Globe is now looking to be a poor decision. But, NY Times needs to look forward to the digital, network era.

      NY Times and every major newspaper has to figure out a compelling digital business model. The early attempt at charging did not go well because the consumers were not enthused to pay for online content. Just as music industry is slowly coming to grips with a digital business model (orchestrated by Apple), the newspaper industry needs a new business model that has at its core a revenue model that is a mix of advertisement and subscription. The question is will NY Times and others architect such a business model or will it require someone outside to do it. Google News is still in its infancy. So, NY Times has a chance to step up and do something. But, it requires bold moves.. and out-of-the-box thinking. It requires cooperation with other newspapers and a new set of competencies. Will NY Times win? It is a multi-billion dollar question!
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    • Tue Jul 22nd 15:31 PM
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      Earnings Preview: Yahoo
      I think the real new information will be when we know what the Board composition will be and how Yahoo creates a credible business model to compete against Google. Today, it needs to be just above the expectations and the stock may move a bit up after hours. I do not see the stock moving anywhere significantly higher until we get clarity on long term strategy. As long as it does not disappoint seriously, Yahoo may be able to dodge the current quarter performance. Look at how Google got hit... So, the expectations are low for Yang & Co. in the short term.
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    • Thu Jul 10th 15:18 PM
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      Yahoo's BOSS: Radically Opening Web Search
      This is a brilliant strategy for the #2. For Yang & Co., the timing is all wrong. On the one hand, they want to partner with Google (after the fiasco with Microsoft) and then they want to create an alternative model. Different modes of experimentation (that are mutually conflicting) may be OK when the company is doing well. But, when the company is under attack as Yahoo has been, such initiatives may come across as incoherent. I am waiting to see how Yang & Decker will convince their shareholders to retain their slate of directors against Icahn. What they need is a simple-yet-powerful strategic vision and credible numbers that people can rally behind. The first six months have been nightmarish for them. Will the next six months be significantly better? All will depend on August 1. This is a good piece of the larger and compelling vision that Yang & Co. need to unveil...
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    • Thu Jul 10th 14:02 PM
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      Earnings Preview: General Electric
      If Immelt misses the Q2 numbers, the stock will take a huge beating. Welch had such a fine-tuned engine that he met or beat the guidance and never negatively surprised the street. Now, GE seems to be at an inflection point--the future is not an extrapolation of the past. Shedding some businesses should be seen not as a temporary fic but as a way to create the new business model of GE. Tomorrow is a big day for GE and Immelt. Missing the numbers twice in a row will be a huge shock to not only GE stockholders but could adversely affect the market tomorrow. .
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    • Wed Apr 30th 14:49 PM
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      Ready To Rumble: Who Microsoft Will Bring to a Fight Over Yahoo
      I think Steve B. should walk away. Prolonging the fight through proxy battles only creates further problems with post-merger integration of two different cultures. And, if Microsoft is prepared to pay up to $1.5 Billion to keep key Yahoo employees on the payroll after the acquisition is consummated, it is implicitly adding that much to the value--while not directly paying it to the shareholders. The marketplace is fast moving and Microsoft is better off figuring out a portfolio of 41 (or more) $1 billion bets than put a lot of billions on one horse--which has never shown that it has the horsepower to be a leader for a sustained period of time.
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    • Tue Apr 29th 11:54 AM
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      Microsoft Should Fire Steve Ballmer, or Hire SuperNanny. Or Both.
      I think Steve B. should just walk away. There are many other ways to invest the $41B to develop the capabilities to win in the online space. The postmerger integration is usually thorny; the fact that it is a hostile (or quasi-hostile) acquisition will only make postmerger integration worse. And MSFT stockholders will lose (and Yahoo stochholders will also partly lose since they will get 50% of the value in MSFT stock. Just walk away, Steve.
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    • Mon Mar 31st 11:27 AM
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      Google and the Analysts: Ignore Price Targets
      Great summary of the irrational take on Google stock. And to think that these analysts are experts and get paid the $$$ that is on the basis of trades that the fund managers and individuals pay (either directly or indirectly). We are all suckers! and then Fed bails out Bear, Stearns for their incompetence.
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