Private Equity
Big Non-News: Katie Couric will be trying to fill the Oprah vacuum. She's got a deal with ABC for a syndicated afternoon talk show. iCloud: Steve Jobs wants to kill PC hard drives. Users can move their "digital life" to the cloud. Silence Isn't Golden: Goldman should take more credit for its failures. For Charity: Bidding for lunch with Warren Buffett has hit $2 million. They Got Nada: SEC can't find anything to sue former Lehman execs so the regulator may issue a very angry letter of disappointment, according to DealBreaker. Dumbest DM Ever: Rep. Weiner admits that the photo was of him. But he's not resigning. Tilting at Windmills: News Corp. didn't get high enough bids for MySpace so now they're looking for a "partner." Not New: Neil Young releases 26-year old music video for "Amber Jean." Is there a social media bubble? The Deal talks to execs from Accel Partners, Foundry Group and others.
1 min read · 06 June 2011
Getting Cut: Moody's may downgrade the U.S. government's Aaa debt rating. Next To Go Public: Zynga is close to hiring Goldman for its IPO. No More: PayPal cuts ties to Alibaba. Going Legit: How 7 black hat hackers landed regular jobs. A Deal: Vangent is up for sale and may fetch $1 billion. Prediction: Android will overtake the iPad just the way it did the iPhone. Getting Smacked: John Edwards is expected to be indicted today on criminal charges for trying to cover-up his extra-marital affair. Cure Possible: The man who had HIV and now he doesn't. With Certitude: Rep. Anthony Weiner, of New York, now goes quiet about the "photo" after talking endlessly about it.
1 min read · 03 June 2011
A Predictor: What experiment provides a link between environmental pollutants and crime? The marshmallow test. In For a Dollar: Mitt Romney formally entered the 2012 Republican presidential race in New Hampshire. Lost in the Groupon Hype: Pandora is looking to raise $123.2 million in IPO. And Felix Salmon talks about "Grouponomics." Apple: Steve Jobs & Co. has cut a licensing deal with holdout Universal Music Group. Apple already has deals with EMI, Sony and Warner Music. We Knew This: The ivy league is still the best way to get a job on Wall Street. Rivals: Amazon enters the daily deals space with AmazonLocal.
1 min read · 02 June 2011
Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey, the world's leading questionnaire tool. Today, Goldman Sachs received a subpoena from the Manhattan District Attorney, which is investigating the behemoth bank's role in the financial crisis. Goldman has not been accused of any wrongdoing. A subpoena is merely a request for info, Dealbook says. Today's subpoena stems from a Senate subcommittee report released in April. The report accuses Goldman of
2 min read · 02 June 2011
Saying Goodbye: Shaq announces his retirement from the NBA via Twitter. Being Bad: New York times denies hacking Goldman Sachs trader's email account. Felix Salmon: Do good reviews cause restaurants to hike their prices? Defense Breach: Northrop Grumman may have been hit by cyber attack. Sending that Pic: Twitter unveils photo and video sharing. And CEO claims 80% of Twitter advertisers renew. Near a Deal: Liberty Media is conducting due diligence on Barnes & Noble. Hard Day: The Dow and S&P 500 fall the most since August. We Knew This: Taxpayers likely won't get back the $14 bln spent on the auto bailout. Groupon: Kara Swisher takes on Groupon CEO Andrew Mason at D9 (he says nothing when asked why company didn't sell to Google). Going Thru A Divorce: 67.3% of bankers put up a fight for the family dog, kids not so much, according to Dealbreaker. No Deal: Nokia claims a report that it sold its mobile phone business to Microsoft for $19 bln is false.
1 min read · 01 June 2011
Causing Cancer: The WHO lists cell phones in the same "carcinogenic hazard" category as lead, engine exhaust and chloroform. Apple: Steve Jobs will kick off the company’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference on June 6 and unveil their cloud computing service. Wrong Again: Jan Wenner thinks it will be a generation or two before readers switch from printed mags to tablets. New Low: Home prices fell 4.2% in first quarter and hit a new post bubble low. Deals: Bank United, which is backed by Blackstone and Carlyle, is near a deal to buy Herald National Bank. And, buyout firms are morphing into asset managers. Saying No: Sprint files to block AT&T's $39 bln buy of T-Mobile.
1 min read · 31 May 2011
Awwww: Alan Rickman, a.k.a "Severus Snape," takes out a full page ad to thanks J.K. Rowlings for Harry Potter. Human Side: The Internet has changed everything but these four things. Options Pool: Eight important term sheet items to evaluate before investing in a startup. Rising Gas: Consumer spending slowed in April. And, pending sales of U.S. existing homes plunged 12% last month. Overkill: How Apple hunted down the teen who sold white iPhone kits. Lawsuit: Paypal sues Google less than 24 hours after Google introduced technology to allow consumers to use their phones as credit cards. Not Over Yet: MSFT could still get some meaningful percentage of the tablet market. Take that, NYSE! Zillow has applied with the Nasdaq to trade under the letter "Z." Lying: Top ways to annoy a tech blogger (or any blogger). Video: Salad Fingers returns!
1 min read · 27 May 2011
FB Butcher: Mark Zuckerberg's new hobby is to eat only what he kills. Free $10: Google unveiled its Google Wallet and is giving users $10 free to use. But there's a catch. In Pajamas: How to increase your productivity while working from home. Not so Fast: MSFT's board stood by Steve Ballmer after David Einhorn called for the CEO to be ousted. Would You Work for DSK? 46% of people would, according to FINS. A Rebound: Delphi, which filed for bankruptcy protection in 2005, is going public with a $100 mln IPO.
1 min read · 26 May 2011
Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey, the world's leading questionnaire tool. What do PE and VCs execs do on their holiday weekends? We've all heard about the rise in deals. M&A, which was down in Q1, is supposed to go up later this year. If this is true, then PE pros, VCs and their investment bankers should start getting busy just about now.
1 min read · 26 May 2011
AxialMarket: Four trends affecting lower middle market M&A. Knowing the Team: 10 things you need to know before investing in a startup. Good for It: Chrysler repays $7.6 billion in U.S. and Canadian government loans. Dude! The Big Lebowski comes to Blu-Ray on Aug. 16. Co-founders Do It Better: What makes a startup successful. Salud! Diageo is in talks to buy Jose Cuervo for more than $2 billion. A Maid Walks Into the Room: Agustin Carstens pitches himself for IMF head but doesn't tell the most important thing. Product Wars: Barnes & Noble introduces a touch-enabled Nook for $139. Remembering When: Here's an interview with Apple's first CEO Michael Scott.
1 min read · 24 May 2011
