LinkedIn to acquire content sharing website SlideShare

Professional social network LinkedIn announced today that it plans to acquire community content sharing website SlideShare for about $118.75 million. Expected to close sometime in the second quarter of this year, the deal would bring SlideShare under LinkedIn control. SlideShare was founded in October of 2006 and recently surpassed over 29 million unique visitors. The website allows presentations and other content to be uploaded and shared with others on the Internet.

Facebook confirms $28-$35 per share price for IPO

In its fifth amendment filing with the SEC, Facebook today announced the price of its upcoming initial public offering (IPO) at $28 to $35 per share. At that price range, Facebook should have a valuation between $85 billion and $95 billion, beating the previous technology record currently held by Google at $23 billion. The world's largest social network plans to offer 157,415,352 shares of Class A common stock at a later date.

Facebook released the following statement:

Facebook, Inc. is offering 180,000,000 shares of its Class A common stock and the selling stockholders are offering 157,415,352 shares of Class A common stock. We will not receive any proceeds from the sale of shares by the selling stockholders. This is our initial public offering and no public market currently exists for our shares of Class A common stock. We anticipate that the initial public offering price will be between $28.00 and $35.00 per share.

Twitter was considering Camera+ acquisition after Facebook bought Instagram

According to a report from Bloomberg, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey met with the development company behind popular iOS app "Camera+" shortly after Facebook announced it would be acquiring Instagram to discuss a possible acquisition. Instagram allows users to place filters on their photos and share them on social networks. While Camera+ is similar in that sense, it is also a full-on photo editing app for iOS.

A deal fell apart between Twitter and developer Tap Tap Tap because the company didn't want to relocate to San Francisco.

Twitter executives held several meetings with Camera+ developer Tap Tap Tap, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the talks were private. The talks broke down before Twitter could make an offer because the startup’s far-flung workforce was reluctant to relocate to San Francisco, they said. While 10 employees are already based there, Tap Tap Tap has 20 others in Austria, New Zealand, Spain and elsewhere.

Report: Facebook IPO coming May 18

According to The Wall Street Journal, Facebook will be launching its initial public offering on May 18, 2012, just about three (3) months after the world's largest social network filed for the IPO. If rumors over the past few months prove to be true, Facebook's IPO will be the largest in technology history, raising $10 billion with a $100 billion valuation.

Late last month, a report came out that claimed the company's IPO would be delayed until June because CEO Mark Zuckerberg was focusing his efforts on acquisitions of other companies (most notably Instagram for $1 billion).

Motorola Mobility reports Q1 2012 financial results: $86 million net loss

Today, Motorola Mobility reported its financial results for the first quarter of 2012, announcing a net revenue of $3.1 billion, but a net loss in the quarter of $86 million. The company, which is working on finalizing its $12.5 billion acquisition by Google, shipped 5.1 million smartphones in the period, but total device shipments were actually lower than the previous quarter at 8.9 million units.

“The introduction of RAZR™ MAXX marked another successful addition to the Motorola product family and contributed to our growth in smartphones. Our Home business delivered another solid quarter highlighted by improvement in year-over-year profitability,” said Sanjay Jha, chairman and chief executive officer, Motorola Mobility. “We continue to work closely with Google to complete the proposed merger during the first half of the year.”

Microsoft invests $300 million into Barnes and Noble partnership

Microsoft and Barnes and Noble announced today that Microsoft will be investing $300 million in a new Barnes and Noble subsidiary, dubbed "Newco" for the time being. The subsidiary will be focused around Barnes and Noble's Nook e-reader and college business, and as a result of the investment, Microsoft will receive a 17.6% stake in the partnership.

Barnes & Noble Inc. (NYSE: BKS) and Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) today announced the formation of a strategic partnership in a new Barnes & Noble subsidiary, which will build upon the history of strong innovation in digital reading technologies from both companies. The partnership will accelerate the transition to e-reading, which is revolutionizing the way people consume, create, share and enjoy digital content.

The new subsidiary, referred to in this release as Newco, will bring together the digital and College businesses of Barnes & Noble. Microsoft will make a $300 million investment in Newco at a post-money valuation of $1.7 billion in exchange for an approximately 17.6% equity stake. Barnes & Noble will own approximately 82.4% of the new subsidiary, which will have an ongoing relationship with the company’s retail stores. Barnes & Noble has not yet decided on the name of Newco.

Samsung reports Q1 2012 financial results: $39.9 billion in revenue

Yesterday, Samsung reported its financial results for the first quarter of 2012, announcing a revenue of 45.27 trillion won (about $39.9 billion). TV and semiconductor sales were actually down in the quarter, while display and mobile phone sales went strongly. Mobile phone sales for Samsung grew 86% since the same quarter last year.

The company's full press release is included below:

Samsung Electronics Announces First Quarter 2012 Earnings Results

(SEOUL–Korea Newswire) April 27, 2012 — Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. today announced revenues of 45.27 trillion Korean won on a consolidated basis for the first quarter ended March 31, 2012, a 22-percent increase year-on-year.
For the quarter, the company’s consolidated operating profit reached an all-time high of 5.85 trillion won representing a 98-percent increase year-on-year. Consolidated net profit for the January-March period was 5.05 trillion won.

Despite a decrease in sales of semiconductor chips and TVs due to seasonal factors, an increase in profitability in display panels and mobile phones pushed up quarterly operating profit margins by 1.7 percentage points to 12.9 percent.

In its earnings guidance disclosed on April 6, Samsung estimated first-quarter consolidated revenues would reach approximately 45 trillion won with consolidated operating profit of approximately 5.8 trillion won.

Samsung’s strong performance in the quarter was driven mainly by the IT & Mobile Communications (IM) segment, which is comprised of four businesses, Mobile Communications, Telecommunication Systems, IT Solutions and Digital Imaging. In particular, solid growth in the Mobile Communications business, with brisk sales of flagship GALAXY Note and GALAXY S II devices contributed to the company’s profitability.

The consolidated operating profit for IT & Mobile Communications businesses reached 4.27 trillion won on revenue of 23.22 trillion won. The Display Panel business rebounded in the first quarter with operating gains of 280 billion won, following an uptick in demand for high-margin panels used in tablets, 3D/ LED TVs and premium OLED panels.

“Despite difficult business environments including seasonal low demand for major products such as PCs and TVs amid a global economic slowdown, we achieved record quarterly results based on our differentiated products and technology leadership. We cautiously expect our earnings momentum to continue going forward, as competitiveness in our major businesses is enhanced,” said Robert Yi, Senior Vice President and Head of Investor Relations.

Looking into the second quarter, Samsung expects to improve profitability in the chip business with a recovery in PC DRAM price and by expanding its new product category with mobile application processors based on 32 nanometer-class process technology. Samsung plans to also bolster its competitive edge in mobile phones with the debut of new high-end smartphones, and by reinforcing the full lineup of products and its presence in emerging markets.

Capex 7.8 Trillion Won in Q1

Capital expenditure in the first quarter was 7.8 trillion won, with 5.8 trillion won invested in the Semiconductor Business and 1.3 trillion won in the Display Panel segment.

Earlier this year, Samsung announced plans to spend a total of 25 trillion won in capex for 2012.

Fifteen trillion won will be invested in the Semiconductor Business that consists of Memory and System LSI. For the Display Panel segment, 6.6 trillion won has been allocated for investment.

Organizational Change

Starting from the first quarter, the business segment financial disclosure will reflect the organizational changes, which took place in December, 2011. We will provide sales and earnings of Device Solutions, including Semiconductor and Display Panel businesses; and Digital Media & Communications, including IT & Mobile Communications and Consumer Electronics (CE) divisions.

IT & Mobile Communications includes Mobile Communications, Telecommunication Systems, IT Solutions and Digital Imaging; and CE includes Visual Display and Digital Appliances.

Seasonal Factors Dampen Chip Demand

Samsung’s Semiconductor Business – including Memory and System LSI – posted an operating profit of 760 billion won in the first quarter. Revenue retreated to 7.98 trillion won on-year, a 13-percent decrease compared with the same period last year.

Weaker-than-expected off-peak season demand and a global supply crunch of HDDs coupled with low demand for PC DRAM chips and the oversupply of mobile DRAM impacted profit margins, in which the memory portion saw its revenue slip to 4.89 trillion won. For NAND, spot price remained weak due to sluggish demand compounded by early stage products from geometry migration flowing into the channel market.

Despite adverse market conditions, Samsung’s chip business was buoyed by strong demand for server DRAM and by expanding our value-added product mix such as products based on the 30-nanometer-class and 20-nanometer-class process technologies.Increased orders for Solid State Drives (SSDs) and Embedded Multimedia Cards (eMMC) also helped the chip business to cushion the market squeeze.

Looking ahead, the global HDD supply shortage is expected to be alleviated in the second quarter and demand for specialty DRAM products including mobile and server DRAMs will be strong. However, elevated competition among manufacturers of 30-nanometer-class chips will lead to a price decline.

In the second quarter, Samsung is poised to ramp up supply of high-capacity, power-efficient DRAM for servers based on our green memory solution. As for NAND, we will spur growth by expanding the 20-nanometer-class portion. Sales of CMOS image sensors will remain high in the April-June quarter, as demand for smartphones equipped with high-resolution cameras is expected to be strong.

Display Business Swings to Profit

Operating profit for the Display Panel Business turned around from the previous quarter to register 280 billion won on revenue of 8.54 trillion won in the first quarter.

Despite traditionally weak seasonality, continued economic stagnation in Europe, and the prolonged supply shortage in the PC industry, the Display Panel Business was able to improve profitability by expanding sales of high-end premium panels such as LED TV and 3D panels, which pushed TV panel sales up in the mid-20 percent range on-year. Increased sales of high-resolution panels for tablet PCs and OLED panels for smartphones also helped boost profit in the quarter.

Looking ahead, although the market for monitor panels will remain stagnant, demand for tablet and notebook panels is expected to increase on seasonal education-related demand while TV panels are expected to lift due to Chinese Labor Day sales and the London Olympics.

Moving forward with the establishment of Samsung Display Corporation, the company will continue to enhance profitability by expanding sales of premium panel products such 3D, large size and LED panels, while smartphone demand is expected to continue to fuel OLED panel sales.

Profits Propped Up by Strong Sales of Smart Devices

The IT & Mobile Communications division – including Mobile Communications, Telecommunication Systems, IT Solutions and Digital Imaging – registered quarterly operating profits of 4.27 trillion won for the first period. Revenue reached 23.22 trillion won, and the mobile unit accounted for 18.90 trillion won, up 86 percent year-on-year.

Growth in shipments of Samsung’s flagship GALAXY Note and GALAXY S II and other premium mobile devices yielded high returns, with significant growth in China, Central and South America, the Middle East and Africa.

Samsung is expected to continue its strong growth momentum in the second quarter, following the announcement of the next GALAXY device in London on May 3.

The Telecommunication Systems business saw growth both in revenue and operating gains due to an increase in LTE (Long Term Evolution) wireless broadband technology equipment. In the case of IT Solutions, a boost in sales of mid-to-high-end products, including PCs and printers improved quarter-on-quarter earnings.

We expect to further solidify our leading position in LTE business in the US market and make further inroads into countries newly adopting the service.

Premium TV Sales Lift Profitability

Samsung’s Consumer Electronics businesses, which encompass Visual Display and Digital Appliances, registered an operating profit of 530 billion won in the quarter, up 550 percent year-on-year, on revenues of 10.67 trillion won.

Although weak seasonality led to a quarter-on-quarter dip in revenue, strong sales of premium TVs in developed markets and LED TVs in emerging markets saw shipments outstrip market growth and drive a sharp increase in profitability. Highlights for the quarter included an increase in sales of more than 50 percent for Samsung’s flagship 7000/8000 TV series on-year, while the Digital Appliances Business improved profitability, both on-year and on-quarter, by increasing its portion of premium product sales.

In the second quarter, market growth for flat panel TVs in the mid-single digits is expected on rising demand in emerging markets and increased sales of LED TVs which are forecast to account for over 60 percent of the TV market in the quarter. In emerging markets, Samsung aims to expand its presence with region-specific LED TV models, while its range of Smart TV models with enhanced features will continue to maintain the company’s leadership in developed markets.

As for digital appliances, demand is expected to rise led by growth in emerging markets. Samsung will aim to improve profitability in the quarter by enhancing R&D efficiencies, expanding sales of premium products and sales in emerging markets, and capitalizing on strong seasonal demand for air conditioners.

Amazon reports better than expected financial results in Q1 2012

Today, Amazon reported its financial results for the first quarter of 2012, announcing a revenue of $13.18 billion, which beats analyst expectations by about $0.32 billion.

Operating cash flow increased 1% to $3.05 billion for the trailing twelve months, compared with $3.03 billion for the trailing twelve months ended March 31, 2011. Free cash flow decreased 39% to $1.15 billion for the trailing twelve months, compared with $1.90 billion for the trailing twelve months ended March 31, 2011.

Report: Facebook IPO delayed until June

According to CNBC, Facebook's initial public offering (IPO) will be delayed until at least June of this year because of recent acquisitions and business decisions that the world's largest social network has made. Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg has reportedly been focusing more on acquisitions and planning for the future rather than preparing for the IPO, thus leading to its delay.

Facebook filed for an IPO back in February of this year, and could raise up to $10 billion at a $100 billion valuation, making it one of the largest technology-related initial public offerings in history.

It was initially expected that the IPO would come on or around May 17, 2012.

Apple reports Q1 2012 financial results: $39.2 billion in revenue

Apple has just reported its financial results for the first quarter of 2012, announcing a revenue of $39.2 billion and a net profit of $11.6 billion. Gross margin was up in this quarter (47.4%) when compared year-over-year, while international sales accounted for 64% of Apple's overall revenue in the quarter. Revenues and profit were both records for the Cupertino-based company for the quarter.

Sales numbers break down as follows:

• 35.1 million iPhones shipped (up 88% year-over-year)
• 11.8 million iPads shipped (up 151% year-over-year)
• 4 million Macs shipped (up 7% year-over-year)
• 7.7 million iPods shipped (down 15% year-over-year)

"We're thrilled with sales of over 35 million iPhones and almost 12 million iPads in the March quarter," said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. "The new iPad is off to a great start, and across the year you’re going to see a lot more of the kind of innovation that only Apple can deliver."

Netflix reports Q1 2012 financial results: $870 million in revenue

Today, Netflix reported its financial results for the first quarter of 2012, announcing a revenue of $870 million, which beats analyst expectations. The company says that it added three (3) million streaming customers in the first three months of the year, which includes 1.21 million international subscribers. The total amount of streaming customers currently sits around 26 million, while DVD rental subscribers actually dropped by about one million in the quarter.

Netflix is bracing itself for a loss of around $6 million to $8 million in the second quarter of 2012 as subscriber numbers are expected to drop a bit.

Facebook and Microsoft agree to $550 million patent acquisition

Microsoft and Facebook jointly announced today that the software giant will be selling 650 patents that it recently acquired from AOL to the world's largest social network in a deal worth $550 million. Microsoft will be licensing the 650 patents, and will continue to hold control of the remaining 275 that came from the original deal with AOL.

“Today’s agreement with Facebook enables us to recoup over half of our costs while achieving our goals from the AOL auction,” said Brad Smith, executive vice president and general counsel, Microsoft. “As we said earlier this month, we had submitted the winning AOL bid in order to obtain a durable license to the full AOL portfolio and ownership of certain patents that complement our existing portfolio.”

“Today’s agreement with Microsoft represents an important acquisition for Facebook,” said Ted Ullyot, general counsel, Facebook. “This is another significant step in our ongoing process of building an intellectual property portfolio to protect Facebook’s interests over the long term.”

Facebook reveals Q1 2012 financial results: $1.06 billion in revenue

Today, Facebook filed with the SEC an updated version of its S-1 that includes the company's financial results for the first quarter of this year. According to the documents released to the public, Facebook had a $1.06 billion revenue in the quarter and a net income of $205 million. In addition, Facebook revealed that it now sees 532 million active daily users on the social network and that 901 million people are currently registered. Finally, the social network announced that users usually upload around 300 million photos per day (average), creating around 3.2 billion likes and comments per day.

Nokia reports troubling Q1 2012 financial results as executive VP of sales resigns

Yesterday, Nokia reported its financial earnings for the first quarter of 2012, announcing a $9.7 billion billion revenue, down 30% year-over-year. Troubles continued as the Finland-based company announced a $1.7 billion loss in the quarter, and smartphones sales plummeted 52% to only 1.7 billion units.

Commenting on the Q1 results, Stephen Elop, Nokia CEO, said:"We are navigating through a significant company transition in an industry environment that continues to evolve and shift quickly. Over the last year we have made progress on our new strategy, but we have faced greater than expected competitive challenges.

We have launched four Lumia devices ahead of schedule to encouraging awards and popular acclaim. The actual sales results have been mixed. We exceeded expectations in markets including the United States, but establishing momentum in certain markets including the UK has been more challenging.

At the same time, the lower price tiers of our industry are undergoing a structural change, and traditional feature phones are challenged by full touch devices. As a result we are taking deliberate measures to continue to renew our Series 40 platform, and we plan to strengthen our line-up in Q2 2012. We are making investments in our Mobile Phones business unit aimed at addressing the gaps in our offering.

We have a clear sense of urgency to move our strategy forward even faster. We are pursuing step function changes by having launched the Lumia 610 and Lumia 900 in the first quarter, expanding market coverage, increasing advertising, introducing key customer-requested features and broadening our most successful go-to-market activities. At the same time, we have focused our efforts in the low-end of smartphones and feature phone asset to drive improved business results and conserve cash.

We are confident in our strategy and focused on responding urgently in the short term and creating value for our shareholders in the long term."

Finally, Nokia confirmed that its executive vice president of sales, Colin Giles, has resigned.

Microsoft reports record Q3 financial results – revenue of $17.41 billion

Today, Microsoft reported its financial results for Q3, announcing a revenue of $17.41 billion and an operating income of $6.37 billion, up 12% year-over-year.

Financial results broke down to the following:

• Server & Tools Division - $4.57 billion revenue
• Microsoft Business Division - $5.81 billion revenue
• Windows and Windows Live Division - $4.62 billion revenue
• Online Services Division - $707 million revenue
• Entertainment & Devices Division - $1.62 billion (down 16% from prior quarter)

“We’re driving toward exciting launches across the entire company, while delivering strong financial results,” said Steve Ballmer, chief executive officer at Microsoft. “With the upcoming release of new Windows 8 PCs and tablets, the next version of Office, and a wide array of products and services for the enterprise and consumers, we will be delivering exceptional value to all our customers in the year ahead.”

Report: Facebook IPO coming May 17

According to a report from TechCrunch, Facebook is aiming for its initial public offering (IPO) to become official on May 17, 2012, pending final approvals from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Facebook initially filed for its long-awaited IPO back in February, and since then, reports have been pointing to a May offering date.

If previous reports hold true, Facebook could be preparing for a $100 billion valuation when it goes public, raising $10 billion. The company has apparently chosen the NASDAQ exchange and the ticker "FB" for its stock.

New York sues Sprint for $300 million over tax fraud claims

Today, New York sued Sprint for $300 million over alleged tax fraud, claiming that the nation's third largest mobile carrier failed to collect and pay over $100 million in taxes over the past seven (7) years. The suit was filed by Attorney General Eric Schneiderman in the New York State Supreme Court.

The reason Sprint may be forced to pay triple the amount that it is accused of not paying is because of New York's False Claims Act. Schneiderman claims that Sprint has been lying on tax reports since 2005 by underpaying.

Sprint issued the following statement:

“This complaint is without merit and Sprint categorically denies the complaint's allegations. We have collected and paid over to New York every penny of sales taxes on mobile wireless services that we believe our customers owe under New York state law. With this lawsuit, the Attorney General's office is claiming New York consumers, who already pay some of the highest wireless taxes in the country, should pay even more. We intend to stand up for New York consumers' rights and fight this suit."

Verizon reports Q1 2012 financial earnings – $28.2 billion revenue

Earlier today, Verizon reported its financial results for the first quarter of 2012, announcing a revenue of $28.2 billion. Net subscribers for the quarter were listed at 734,000, and overall, numbers beat analyst expectations by a narrow margin. The company also revealed that 47% of its wireless customer base owns a smartphone, which is up from the 43.5% in the year-ago quarter.

“Verizon delivered double-digit earnings growth and strong cash flow this quarter,” said Lowell McAdam, Verizon chairman and CEO.  “We built momentum coming out of 2011, and our results show that we continue to execute in the key growth areas of our business.  Verizon Wireless produced both great growth and great margins, and we produced another strong quarter of FiOS growth.  We are confident we will improve Wireline margins for the full year.  Our repositioning of Verizon Enterprise Solutions has better aligned our strengths in high-growth markets, and we expect our enterprise business to contribute even more to overall Wireline revenue growth and profitability over time.”

Report: Instagram CEO wanted $2 billion from Facebook acquisition

Earlier this month, Facebook announced that it acquired popular photo upload and filter service Instagram for a price tag of $1 billion. According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, Instagram chief executive officer (CEO) Kevin Systrom initially wanted to receive upwards of $2 billion for his company from Facebook, but Facebook CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg apparently convinced Systrom to lower the price tag. In addition, Zuckerberg agreed to allow Instagram to operate as a separate company if it accepted the $1 billion offer.

The report goes on to claim that Zuckerberg held all discussions about acquiring Instagram by himself and that one day before the announcement came, he informed Facebook's board of directors that the company would be buying Instagram. Overall, the deal was negotiated in three days, according to the article.

Twitter was interested in acquiring Instagram before Facebook?

According to a report from The New York Times, Twitter was interested in acquiring popular photo upload and filter service Instagram before the company was bought by Facebook earlier this month for $1 billion. The fact that Twitter founder Jack Dorsey hasn't uploaded any pictures to Instagram since the announcement further supports this rumor. Dorsey had apparently been trying to secure a deal months before Facebook, but ultimately failed to do so.

Mr. Systrom may have lost one connection in the deal: Mr. Dorsey of Twitter. His company, according to several people briefed on the matter, had expressed interest in buying Instagram in recent months. Mr. Dorsey once used Instagram daily to send photos to Twitter, but he has not been back since the deal was announced, perhaps a sign that he is not happy to see it in the hands of a competitor. A Twitter spokeswoman declined to comment.