Pages

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Why Net Neutrality Matters

A funny take on a very real issue.  


Time Warner Says Its Content Is King

Time Warner, owner of HBO, CNN, TBS, TNT, Warner Bros. and more, sees its worth more than the huge sums being thrown at it by Fox.  It should come as no surprise that Time Warner is being pursued.  By streamlining themselves over the years, first by splitting off Time Warner Cable, itself up for sale by Comcast, and most recently its Time Inc group, Time Warner has turned itself into a video content pure play.  And while they have initially rejected the Fox and Rupert Murdoch offer, I believe this is more a negotiation process to get to a higher valuation.  As content is king, it demands  a premium price.  And if not Fox seeking to acquire, then perhaps CBS or Viacom or Liberty.  So let the dance begin, the end of Time Warner is approaching. 

Apple And IBM Becoming Friends

Back in 1984, Apple's Super Bowl commercial was clearly aimed at big business and its most present leader IBM.  Much has happened since then.  IBM sold off its PC business and put its emphasis into the corporate customer; Apple pursued the home customer with phones and tablets that have simply revolutionized the world.  And today, these once brand enemies are becoming partners.

Working together, Apple and IBM have forged a partnership to provide corporations with the devices and apps to improve productivity, manage communication, and drive revenue growth.  "The two companies said they hope to use the expertise of IBM's consultants and relationships with corporate customers to create business apps that offer the simplicity—a hallmark of Apple products—of today's consumer apps. The apps will draw on IBM computing services such as security, device management and big-data analytics."  The immediacy of these devices to support the business selling chain and to draw out improved data for analysis and response will surely be a game changer.  For one, it will lead to improved customer service, quicker managing of the order process, and a more secure experience.  Specifically how it will work will come soon.  "The companies said Apple and IBM engineers are together developing more than 100 new apps for various industries. "The companies said Apple and IBM engineers are together developing more than 100 new apps for various industries."  But it is a big step for Apple into the enterprise world and an opportunity for IBM to connect its services, through Apple devices, more effectively across industries. 

This partnership seems to be a win-win.  Where once they were rivals, now they are partners to an ever changing mobile landscape.  In the meantime, we will wait and see more specifically how they will put this partnership into action.  But should it prove effective, it certainly will produce another strong revenue stream.