For the Record

Lessons learnt about blogging from 2007

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 22:21:00 +0000

23 days into the New Year, here are five lessons I learnt from my attempt to blog last year. And of course, some resolutions for this year.

1. Blogging takes time.
With a full-time job as a tech and business reporter it has been tough to find the time to blog. I have been pretty sporadic in my postings, and haven't updated my blog since October. I have felt pretty guilty about that but it is tough to bring myself to go home and type up more words on my blog after doing pretty much that all day at work.

2. Blogging needs a focus.
A clear beat--consumer electronics, video games and IT security--has helped me stay focused on what I do at work. With my blog, I write whatever I find interesting for the day. It's fun but is also distracting and eventually has contributed to my sliding off the blogging bandwagon.

3. Blogging makes me opinionated.
Careful to keep my personal opinions about what I cover at work, I find myself being very opinionated about what I blog. This is just a matter-of-fact observation, still one that has been a revelation to me since I try so hard to keep my feelings about an issue out of the story at work.

4. Blogging is tough.
For reasons 1 and 2 stated above.

5. Blogging has made me many connections.
The few people who read my blog or stumbled on it have been great to talk to and I have connected with some old sources and friends.

So my resolution for this year: Obviously do more of it!

Weekly Bylines Roundup

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 21:47:00 +0000

Here's what I have been up to this week.

EA's 'Madden' Game Scores Big
9/13/2007
It sells almost 2 million copies in less than a month.

Palm Shareholders OK Private Equity Deal
9/12/2007
The agreement also allows for $400 million in debt financing.

O.J. Simpson Got $50,000 for Take-Two Game
9/12/2007
A renewal clause would have netted the controversial ex-football star another payout. More

Get the Jump on Game Stocks With Virtual Market
9/12/2007
A new virtual stock market could give you an early look at the video game sector's next big hit.

Loss Narrows at Take-Two Interactive
9/10/2007
The company beats lowered expectations.

I am heading to Wharton!

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 16:52:00 +0000

I got a scholarship from SAJA (South Asian Journalists Association) to attend the Wharton Business Seminar for Journalists. This year the seminar will cover topics including financial statements analysis, fundamentals of accounting and executive compensation among other things.

The seminar will be taught by professors from Wharton and it will be at the School. I am so excited about this!

WTF!!??!!

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Fri, 31 Aug 2007 20:07:00 +0000

Not to move away from the business/tech focus of my blog, but this story in the New York Times caught my attention today.

Apparently, there's a section of society that's getting very upset by guys who wear their pants low enough to expose some underwear. That style is deemed fashionable by some people, and while I think it doesn't look particularly good, the effort to legislate against it seems excessive.

"Starting in Louisiana, an intensifying push by lawmakers has determined pants worn low enough to expose underwear poses a threat to the public, and they have enacted indecency ordinances to stop it."

The story also has one of the most direct and funniest ledes I have read:

JAMARCUS MARSHALL, a 17-year-old high school sophomore in Mansfield, La., believes that no one should be able to tell him how low to wear his jeans. “It’s up to the person who’s wearing the pants,” he said.

Don't lawmakers truly have more pressing problems to worry about than trying to mandate where exactly pants are allowed to sit on a person's frame?

Weekly Bylines Roundup

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Fri, 31 Aug 2007 20:01:00 +0000

The week before Labor Day is the among the quietest in terms of news. Here's a list of my stories this week.

Midway Games Looks for John Woo Hit
8/28/2007
Its new video game, developed with the acclaimed action director, is set for release next week.

TiVo Widens Loss
8/29/2007
A writedown pushes the company to a large loss in the second quarter.

Take-Two Tones Down 'Manhunt 2'
8/24/2007
A more muted version of the game gets the coveted M rating and a place on popular consoles.

I plan to make my weekly bylines roundup a regular feature on my blog. It will help me keep track of the stories I do.

LinkedIn Needs to Reinvent Itself

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 21:32:00 +0000

Since my post yesterday I found more discussion about LinkedIn. New York Times' David Pogue has a post questioning the point of LinkedIn.

This blog says LinkedIn has no value unless you are a professional recruiter or someone looking for a job.

I agree. LinkedIn is a great tool for recruiters and I think it's great if as a user I am trying to find a job or at least get more information on people who would be potentially interviewing me for a job. The problem is most people change jobs once every two years or even later. So that practically makes their LinkedIn profile dormant till then.

Considering how LinkedIn is becoming more of a recruiting tool than a business networking tool, maybe LinkedIn should consider going down that road. The company could integrate better with job sites. Maybe it could buy Simply Hired, a jobs aggregation site that I think is fantastic.

Maybe Monster.com could consider acquiring LinkedIn. I think it would be a great fit for Monster.com though as a LinkedIn in user I would probably hate it. I have been burned by too many spam-like recruitment mails from Monster.com.

Yahoo Hot Jobs could be another potential acquirer. LinkedIn could help Yahoo! get a targeted social networking site to compete with Facebook while, LinkedIn could gain from the integration with jobs.

Either way, LinkedIn's best bet going forward is to reinvent itself with a stronger sense of purpose. A business networking tool is just too broad to cut it anymore.

Facebook Vs. LinkedIn

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Tue, 28 Aug 2007 20:56:00 +0000

Facebook mania is currently sweeping the Valley right now. There's not a day when most of the tech blogs I am reading have something about Facebook.

I have been on LinkedIn much longer than Facebook. I started out using LinkedIn as my professional networking tool and FaceBook as a way to keep in touch with my friends from school.

But in the last few weeks I have found myself almost exclusively checking my Facebook page. To me, it has become much more exciting and useful than LinkedIn and here's why:

--LinkedIn feels like Web 1.0 and by that I mean a fairly static website with not enough interactivity between the user and the site. When I log into my LinkedIn page all I see is one kind of notification: Someone on my contact list has added a new connections. Every once in a while I will see questions posed by users but that's about it. No updates about their status, what they are upto, what they might be working on etc. That makes LinkedIn very boring. Most of my LinkedIn page is static, so it that of my friends. People don't change jobs for years and so I see no reason to visit their pages after a while. I am begining to find the whole introduction process to get linked with another person also very cumbersome. LinkedIn forces me bring up an email client to send emails to friends on that list. In Facebook I can do it all on the site itself.

--Lack of applications on LinkedIn.
Facebook has turned itself into a platform that allows developers to create new applications for the site. And I, like most of Facebook's users, have been having fun with that. I can applications like cities I have visited or play scrable or embed video--all of which keeps me interested and involved with the site.
On LinkedIn other than ask a question there's not much for me to see or do.

--Boring and predictable.
Surprise me LinkedIn! LinkedIn could do a few fun things once in a while to keep users interested. For instance, it could hand out five InMail introductions randomly every few months.That would get me excited and I could spend hours on the site looking for the five people I want to spend my precious InMail introductions on. I am sure the marketing team at LinkedIn can think of fun ideas like this.

LinkedIn has positioned itself as a business networking tool but business networking is about connecting with people and building relationships with them. I feel I am able to build those relationships when I get a sense of what the people looks like, what his or her passions here and get a better idea of the person behind the web profile. That's what Facebook gives me.

Facebook is no longer about just college students. Heck, the CEO and CFO of my company are on it!

LinkedIn has stopped innovating. It needs to bring some exciting new features in or I am completely moving to Facebook.

More on Weekly World News

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Tue, 28 Aug 2007 18:56:00 +0000

This time a former Weekly World News reporter says it all on Salon.

From the article: You could never shake the suspicion that some folks actually believed that "February Sues for More Days" and that there was a "Hide-and-Seek Player Found After 34 Years," or that a "New Study Reveals Stitch in Time Only Saves Eight" -- and that was part of the paper's charm, of course. Nobody, not even the editors, knew how many readers put stock in their stories. But the fact that the advertisers consisted almost entirely of psychics, lucky-charm purveyors and astrologers -- and not a single car manufacturer (or even vacuum cleaner salesman) -- indicated that there were indeed consumers who believed the front-page claim that the News was "The World's Only Reliable Newspaper."

I wonder if there's a way to get archived issues of the paper. Maybe some publishing house could release a 'Complete Collection of WWN' book. I will be among the first to buy a copy.

Portfolio Magazine

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Tue, 28 Aug 2007 01:10:00 +0000

Costco was selling the second issue of Portfolio magazine for 30% off the cover price. I had to pick up a copy. My review of the magazine and the website should be up by the end of the week on this blog.

CNBC's Women Anchors

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 20:34:00 +0000

It is amazing how much ink is spilled in speculating about who among CNBC's women anchors is the prettiest.

There's always been much discussion about Maria Bartiromo aka 'Money Honey' . Now comes an article from the Washington Post about Erin Burnett aka 'Money Honey 2.0'.

Why do I not see articles is similar vein about Dylan Ratigan (one of CNBC's male anchors)?

Then again, Washington Post is guilty of writing the Hillary Clinton cleavage story. Hmm... do I see a pattern here with the Post? Is it trying to become the US Weekly for intellectuals?

The Weekly World News is Folding

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 21:38:00 +0000

From the Washington Post:

The most creative newspaper in American history, the Weekly World News broke the story that Elvis faked his death and was living in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It also broke the story that the lost continent of Atlantis was found near Buffalo. And the story that Hillary Clinton was having a love affair with P'lod, an alien with a foot-long tongue. And countless other incredible scoops.

This reminds me of the scene from Men in Black where Tommy Lee Jones tells Will Smith that the real information on what's happening is not to be found in the Times or Post but in the supermarket tabloids.

I think the Weekly World News will be missed by some.

Meanwhile, I encourage the rest of you to read the whole article. I can guarantee you will never laugh again so much.

Hillary Clinton's Cleavage

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 17:08:00 +0000

Am I the only one offended by this Washington Post story about Hillary Clinton's "cleavage"?

From the Post story:

She was talking on the Senate floor about the burdensome cost of higher education. She was wearing a rose-colored blazer over a black top. The neckline sat low on her chest and had a subtle V-shape. The cleavage registered after only a quick glance. No scrunch-faced scrutiny was necessary. There wasn't an unseemly amount of cleavage showing, but there it was. Undeniable.

This is incredible. It's not like Clinton is wearing something that could be considered slinky. It is as prim and proper as it gets.

Is the Post realizing for the first time that Hillary Clinton is a woman and like all women she does have breasts and there's no getting away from that?

And I find it unbeleivable that even when you are a Senator running for President, there are journalists out there looking to see if you can see a "hint" of cleavage. Gosh!

The story is by one of my favorite Post writers, fashion and style correspondent, Robin Givhan. But this is a total mis-step.

Stop The Ka-Ching!

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 23:47:00 +0000

CNBC is driving me nuts with the use of "Ka-Ching". Clearly their favorite word, it features in their On the Money show every day! Ka-Ching for Apple, Ka-Ching for Facebook, Ka-Ching for Research in Motion. ..

Please, please find some other way to say 'money'. Ka-Ching is cute. Ka-Ching is adorable. Ka-Ching is fun. But saying Ka-Ching everyday for some story or the other needs to stop!

May I suggest alternatives? "Set the registers ringing" or "More Money" or even "Cha-Ching." But please enough with the "Ka-Ching."

We have three monitors at the office running CNBC all day. Maybe that's what is really bothering me.

Ask The Pilot

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 23:12:00 +0000

One of my favorite columns on the Internet is Ask The Pilot in Salon, which deal with myriad traveler related issues.

Today they talk about the "world's worst airport." Their choice: Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport, in Dakar, Senegal.

There is nowhere to sit, no seats. Which really is all right because the worst thing you can do is cease moving. The approximately 5-to-1 scoundrel-to-passenger ratio ensures you'll never remain unmolested for more than a few seconds. The moment you stop, somebody is hovering over your shoulder, mumbling incoherently. Brush him away, and he is instantly replaced by a man asking if you'd like to buy a plastic watch or a counterfeit phone card.

Cyrus, who has been to Senegal recently, agrees.

I have added Senegal to my list to places I want to travel to in this lifetime.

TheFind.com

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 21:33:00 +0000

After reading the news today that comparison shopping engine, TheFind.com bagged $15 million in series C funding I decided to check the site out.

I remember meeting Siva Kumar, the CEO of TheFind.com at a party last year. Siva and I were scheduled to have a greater discussion at the Red Herring office but I moved to TheStreet.com before we could make it happen.

I wish now that I had a chance to chat with him. I loved the site today when I tried it out. I use Google product search regularly but it is so bad I have almost given up on it. It amazes me that Google, which can do a pretty good job with web search, can't handle vertical search at all.

On TheFind.com I first searched for "quilt covers" and "gym bag", both products I am looking to buy. The results were great, neatly categorized by brand, price, and with excellent pictures.

Google's product search results for the same terms is terrible.

Meanwhile, Like.com, a "visual search" engine is going from bad to worse. I can never seem to find anything I want on it and I think it is just not an effective product.

It's an interesting comparison between TheFind.com and Like.com. The former is a low-profile company with a very exciting and effective technology while the latter was at one point a big Silicon Valley blogger favorite that I think just doesn't deliver the goods.

Google better watch out. In TheFind.com it has some real competition.

Fake Steve Cracks Me Up

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 23:00:00 +0000

In just about a year, the Fake Steve blog has become one of the must-reads in Silicon Valley. I love the blog--it is funny, biting, self deprecating and most of the times it says the truth as it is.

Guessing the identity of Fake Steve has become a past time for many tech reporters I know. Yesterday, I read this hilarious, and a masterpiece of an interview that Fake Steve granted to an Indian web site.

It is so funny--I just love it.

A must read if you want a good laugh. It's even better if you understand if you understand some of the inside jokes that Fake Steve has made.

Here's the interview.

Next On My Reading List

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 02:44:00 +0000

The House of Mondavi: The Rise and Fall of an American Wine Dynasty. Even someone not very familiar with wines probably recognizes the Mondavi brand and I have bought a few bottles myself (though I wasn't very impressed with it).

I saw the reviews of this book and it didn't compel me to add it to my reading list. But this back story about author, Julia Flynn Siler, and how the book finally happened has me excited.

Seven months after signing a book contract, Julia Flynn Siler found herself wondering about the viability of a nonfiction business book in which the author could not convince a single principal player in a legendary story to sit down for an interview.

I can't wait to read the book now. But first I need to finish James Stewart's Disney Wars.

The Lines Between Old and New Media are Blurring

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 22:07:00 +0000

Jim Louderback, the editor-in-chief of PC Magazine (which I think is as tech "old media" as it can get) will be the new CEO of Revision 3, reports my former colleague Liz Gannes at NewTeeVee.

At the same time, Veronica Belmont, who does video for CNET and who has made some recent appearances on CNET will be going to Jason Calacanis' Mahalo, says NewTeeVee.

With the lines between old and new media blurring, I wonder how long the blogosphere will hold on this demarcation of media.

Meanwhile, I am wondering is the use of a blogging software platform such as Wordpress or Typepad the only distinguishing characteristic of the blogosphere?

Corporate Doublespeak (Or When Companies Lie)

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 01:09:00 +0000

I sometimes wonder if I am being excessively critical or cynical when companies issue statements or answer questions.

But in the last few days I have seen some blatant examples of corporate "doubespeak". First, Sony and the PlayStation 3 price cut.

When fliers from Circuit City's upcoming sales ad surfaced on the Internet Thursday, they showed a $100 price-cut on the PS3. I reached out to a Sony spokesperson who said the company doesn't want to comment on "unsubstantiated claims."

The next day, Sony President Ryoji Chubachi told Reuters in an interview that Sony has no plans to cut price of the console "at present."

Sorry, if I am being dense, but I would think that means Sony is not planning a price-cut at least in the next few days, if not weeks.

Turns out "at present" is literally that. For three days later, Sony announced the price cut.

I am not sure what kind of credibility the company has if its senior executives lie outright to the media. Mr. Chubachi doesn't need to talk to the press if he isn't aware of what the management is really thinking or what its moves will be. But I am positive his interviews with Reuters was with the blessing of other Sony higher-ups.

The right thing for Sony to have done here is accept that there was a leak and immediately announce the price cut. Sure they would have had to advance their intended announcement by four days but that's a small price to pay.

My next example: Microsoft. For months and months Microsoft denied it had a problem with the Xbox 360. In February when I reached out to the company about increasing reports of hardware failure with the Xbox 360, Microsoft PR dismissed my concern. Their response? The failure rate was within "normal range" for electronic devices.

So why did Microsoft say Thursday it will take a charge of $1.05 billion to $1.15 billion in additional warranties for the Xbox 360? Microsoft admitted it was receiving a lot of complaints about the console's problems from its users.

There's a chance that Microsoft didn't know the complete extent of the problems in February when I reached out to them but I find that hard to believe. I think Microsoft knew it had an issue but didn't want to admit it. They wanted to see if it would go away quietly.

When it didn't, or maybe got worse, they spun the story as one where the company was concerned about the users and so offering extended warrantly.

Not surprisingly, Microsoft gets so much flak from the media.

That brings me to the question of the day: When being less than truthful is not okay in personal life, how do executives go to work and think it is fine to do so? Don't professional standards come from an individual's personal ethics? Or do you need a split personality to survive in the corporate world?

To me it is shocking that a company's senior management would not place integrity and credibility on top of its must-have professional values.

Sigh.

Back After A Break

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 00:27:00 +0000

It's been a few weeks since I updated my blog. I am back now after a vacation from Hawaii. I should be posting more often and regularly in the days ahead.

Loving Widgets

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 21:35:00 +0000

I recently got a new laptop with Vista and discovered widgets or gadgets as they are called in Vista.

I have four gadgets in my Windows sidebar that I can't live without now: the clock, a sticky notes, a RSS feed box and a personal pictures slideshow.

Excited after some weeks of using the gadgets I tried adding a few to my blog (and promptly removed some of them). Yahoo!, I found, has a widgets channel, which is great except that when you try to download one widget you get a whole Yahoo! widget taskbar on your desktop. The Yahoo! taskbar itself is annoying since I didn't want it (I am looking to get just one widget!). It was difficult to move around on the desktop and I ended up uninstalling it along with widgets I had downloaded from the channel.

Anyway, I found on the Yahoo! Widgets channel that most widgets are variations of the four kinds that I already have on my desktop.

Meanwhile, Engagdet has Niall Kennedy write a column called Enwidget. So far it has a grand total of two posts.

Is the widget fad over?

More Mainstream Media Bashing

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 19:37:00 +0000

Roger Ehrenberg, who has an excellent blog that I read regularly, has a post today about what he sees as the reasons for the "decay of mainstream media."

I left this longish comment in Roger's blog responding to some of the reasons that Roger has listed about "why mainstream media (MSM) sucks."

Roger>>>A giant portion of what's created is not original, either the ideas or the commentary around them.

I think it is unfair to say that a large portion of what MSM creates is not original. I would say percentage of original content in MSM is much larger than blogs. Most of the blogs I read are either linking to MSM content and adding some context/analysis. MSM drives original reporting and I seriously doubt the blogosphere would be so riled up or have much to comment about if the MSM didn’t do the original reporting in the first place. What blogs do very well is add perspective/analysis but lets not forget that very few bloggers are on the phone everyday or talking to other people with the intention of finding new information.

>>>>It is hard to separate the good from the garbage, as such a high percentage of MSM content is, in fact, garbage.

The same can be said of any content. A lot of blogs are garbage but there are a few very good ones out there. A lot of software programs are garbage but there are a few very good ones out there. A lot of movies are crap but a few good ones keep up the joy of watching movies. I am not sure if MSM is any different.

>>>>The medium is not designed to have a conversation, an exchange of ideas that is dynamic and has life and can help readers achieve greater understanding.

I think MSM, at least online MSM is changing there and introducing comments/communities etc. Tech sites like CNET have very vibrant communities, the big MSM papers from the NYT to the Post offers a place for comments. Sure, the pace of change has been slower than it should be and it could be more interactive but I don’t think MSM has completely closed itself out.

>>>>It is not by the people, for the people. It is by a small group of individuals for a small group of individuals. And that is ok - but then don't call yourself "mainstream" and purport to be serving a higher purpose. Mainstream is now the blogosphere.

That seems quite contradictory to what we are seeing and hearing about the blogosphere. The blogosphere works best because it targets niche interests very well. MSM works well to serve the largest common denominator—maybe that’s why it is called “mainstream.”

The reason MSM is under so much pressure has more to do with the delivery models than with the media itself. The online arms of most MSM organizations (even those under pressure) are flourishing, while the print business is fighting to hold its own. I see this not as a problem with the content itself but more as an issue of how the reader’s consumption habits are changing. Software companies face a similar distribution challenge. Packaged retail software is giving up to online subscription services. Does this mean the software itself is bad or not working for the customers? Not really. It is just that they want access to the product in a different, simpler way.

I think mainstream media bashing could be fun but serves no other purpose. What could work better is a discussion on what the blogosphere does better and what MSM does better and how the two can learn and work with each other. I don’t think this is an either-or situation. There’s no clear lines drawn between the two. MSM and the blogosphere feed off each other and this debate about which one is superior is best retired.

Behind the Veil in Saudi Arabia

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 17:50:00 +0000

Los Angeles Times' bureau chief, Megan Stack, has written this amazing piece about her experience as a woman living and working in Saudia Arabia, a country where the sexes are completely segregated.

The first-person story is so powerfully written that I could feel her every emotion as I read the story--the rage, helplessness, frustration, and bewilderment.

The part that resonated with me the most was this:

The same U.S. government that heightened public outrage against the Taliban by decrying the mistreatment of Afghan women prizes the oil-slicked Saudi friendship and even offers wan praise for Saudi elections in which women are banned from voting. All U.S. fast-food franchises operating here, not just Starbucks, make women stand in separate lines. U.S.-owned hotels don't let women check in without a letter from a company vouching for her ability to pay; women checking into hotels alone have long been regarded as prostitutes.

I understand that corporations don't want to get involved with the cultural nuances of every country. But making women stand in separate lines is outrageous.

Don't American businesses have some responsibility to not be a part of something if it doesn't feel right to them? Or can everything be just explained away by saying: It's nothing personal, it's just business.

In the quest for profits, where do you then draw the line?

Palm Defends Its Deal

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 21:06:00 +0000

Palm sold 25% of its stake to Elevation Partners on Monday and did a cash distribution of $8.50-a share.

The deal itself was a little unusual because it had a private equity firm buying just a quarter of the company, while Palm paid out a huge sum (a total of $940 million) to its shareholders.

I spoke with Ed Colligan, CEO of Palm, and Roger McNamee, one of the founders of Elevation Partners yesterday. After my discussion with them, I thought the deal was a great move on part of Palm.

Here's my story from TheStreet.com explaining why:

Palm may have just bought its freedom.

The smartphone company, in selling a 25% stake to private-equity firm Elevation Partners on Monday, got the one thing that its core management has fought hard for over the years: the ability to be an independent player and control its destiny.

The $325 million deal will also buy Palm the two executives it hopes can help revitalize its business -- Jon Rubinstein, former senior VP of hardware engineering and head of the iPod division at Apple , and Fred Anderson, Apple's former CFO.
...

Now, with happy shareholders, potential predatory moves thwarted and some of the sharpest minds in Silicon Valley on board, Palm believes things can only get better.

Read more here.

A Different Way to Play the Wii

noreply@blogger.com (Priya Ganapati) — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 23:00:00 +0000

Nintendo has created a huge hit in the Wii. Clearly, the company's investors are very happy with its performance. But there are other ways to play the video game cycle. Chip makers like Analog Devices, Qimonda or Broadcom, whose components power the Wii, are some other interesting bets to make for those who would want to capitalize on the Wii's success.

From my article in TheStreet.com:

Chip Stocks Win With Wii

Inside the box were names such as Analog Devices and ST Microelectronics, both of which supply the sensors in the console's remote that enable and interactive feeling when playing the game; Broadcom, whose Wi-Fi chips connect the Wii remote (wirelessly) to the screen; and memory chipmaker Qimonda.
...
The Wii could eventually account for 40% to 45% of all hardware sales for this generation, Nintendo executives have said. That could translate into 40 million to 50 million units sold throughout the life of this console cycle, says Roger Ehrenberg, president of financial intelligence firm Monitor 110. Ehrenberg, who follows the games sector closely, does not own stocks in any of the gaming or chip companies mentioned in the story.

"As sales of the Wii kick in, I am sure these other companies will benefit either in terms of a near-term bump in EPS and/or an intermediate-term increase in market cap," says Ehrenberg.