If you want to build a multi-billion dollar business, you can’t just build a product: you need to build a platform. That was my major takeaway from the news that Spotify is launching an app platform. It’s in its infancy (thus why journalists are rightfully bashing it), but it’s the start of a transformation for… Continue reading The Platform Is King
Author: Ben Parr
Why Women Are Failing at Salary Negotiations
Women are still paid far less than men on average. Women make approximately 0.77 cents to every dollar a man makes, according to Time Magazine. There are a lot of contributing factors to this problem, but one that a lot of people don’t focus on is how most women are losing out during the salary… Continue reading Why Women Are Failing at Salary Negotiations
Here Comes the Facebook IPO, Right On Schedule
The Wall Street Journal reports that Facebook’s IPO will drop between April and June of 2012. The company could potentially raise $10 billion with a valuation north of $100 billion, depending on market conditions. The IPO time frame shouldn’t surprise anybody, though. I reported back in January that Facebook’s IPO would most likely drop in… Continue reading Here Comes the Facebook IPO, Right On Schedule
The Tracks.by Founders Take Lil Wayne Out Skating (and I’m Jealous)
As some of you may know, I’m an advisor to Tracks.by, a startup founded by my longtime friends Matt Schlicht and Mazy Kazerooni. They’re building an awesome social platform for artists to launch their content and reach millions of fans. One of the biggest artists using their platform is Lil Wayne (you can see Tracks.by… Continue reading The Tracks.by Founders Take Lil Wayne Out Skating (and I’m Jealous)
Groupon Is Now Worth Less Than $10 Billion
It just won’t stop dropping. Groupon, which at one point traded for more than $26 a share, has dropped to $15.24 and continues to drop in after-hours trading. That’s nearly 25% down from its $20 IPO strike price. At $26, Groupon was worth around $18 billion. At $20, it was worth $12.7 billion. And at… Continue reading Groupon Is Now Worth Less Than $10 Billion
Understanding Mark Pincus and Zynga’s Intense Data-Driven Culture
The New York Times published a great article this weekend on the “tough culture” within Zynga, the creator of FarmVille, CityVille and dozens of other social games. I’m not surprised by the report — more than a few employees have told me that Zynga isn’t exactly the easiest or happiest place to work. From Evelyn… Continue reading Understanding Mark Pincus and Zynga’s Intense Data-Driven Culture
#DaBears! W/@katetheshark & @patrickklepek
Taken at O.co Coliseum
It’s a Christmas Tree made out of shopping carts!
The Google+ Thanksgiving Day Ad
So Google aired an ad for Google+ today during the Packers-Detroit game. (side note: will someone please beat the Packers already?) The G+ ad is part of a long line of TV ads Google has been running, mostly for Chrome and web-based products like YouTube. The structure of the ad is unique, though. It doesn’t… Continue reading The Google+ Thanksgiving Day Ad
The Spectacular Rise and Fall of Groupon(‘s Stock Price)
The day before the Groupon IPO, a friend not in the tech industry asked me what I thought about the IPO. “Do you foresee the company’s stock going up a lot?” he asked me. I had a four word response: “Down. Bad stock. Toxic.” By the looks of it, my market prediction has come true.… Continue reading The Spectacular Rise and Fall of Groupon(‘s Stock Price)