Breakout Performance

After Dismissing Mobile for the Last 2 Years, Facebook's Zuckerberg Gets Religion. Will It Matter?

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Mon, 28 May 2012 18:34:00 +0000

Mobile is going to be the biggest challenge ever faced by Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook. Here's why.

Read the full post in Forbes

Eric Jackson on Outlook for Google, Facebook

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Fri, 25 May 2012 16:22:00 +0000

May 25 (Bloomberg) -- Eric Jackson, founder of Ironfire Capital LLC, talks about the outlook for Facebook Inc. and Google Inc. Jackson speaks with Deirdre Bolton on Bloomberg Television's "In the Loop." (Source: Bloomberg)

How Big Will Alibaba Group Become?

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Thu, 24 May 2012 20:51:00 +0000

Meet Alibaba Group. It's soon to become bigger than either Tencent or Baidu. The biggest Chinese Internet company in the world.

Read the full post in Forbes

"Mobile Is Going To Crush Facebook"

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Thu, 24 May 2012 15:08:00 +0000

Is the shift from desktop to mobile happening even faster than expected?

Read the full Forbes post

Who's to Blame for Botched Facebook IPO?

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Tue, 22 May 2012 20:02:00 +0000

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- I was at CNBC in Englewood Cliffs, N.J. last Friday when Facebook(FB _) had its initial public offering.

The tension in the room among producers was palpable as the IPO was delayed for half an hour.

Then, suddenly, it opened. The stock quickly jumped to almost $45. There were whoops and clapping atCNBC. People were excited.

However, within 10 minutes, something strange happened. The stock started to fall. It was one long, continuous slide back down to $38, where the underwriters defended it for the rest of the day.

That day, on business TV, the Facebook blame game started. Whose fault was it?

I couldn't have imagined that outcome a few short hours before. I woke up around 6 a.m. that Friday. When I turned on "Squawk Box," there was a sense of excitement similar to the Superbowl for business media. Later that day, people focused on Nasdaq (NDAQ _)and its technical problems. Next, people started pointing fingers at Morgan Stanley (MS _) for retaining too much control over the offering.

Yet, Morgan Stanley was the lead bank behind the most successful social media in the last two years:LinkedIn (LNKD _).

In contrast to Facebook, which sold 421 million shares in the IPO, LinkedIn sold 7 million shares. Did Michael Grimes give bad advice to Facebook and good advice to LinkedIn?

Unlikely.

If Morgan Stanley wasn't the problem, who was? Facebook management, which is to say, Mark Zuckerberg

Read the full post in TheStreet

Here's How Wrong All the Facebook Predictions Were

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Tue, 22 May 2012 18:38:00 +0000

Facebook‘s (FB) busted IPO is so last week’s news now. We’ve now become so used to it, everyone’s taken to slagging it on Twitter and in the blogosphere.

It’s almost like we were all in on the joke of what a botched IPO it was going to be — except that’s not true at all.

In fact, we all thought the Facebook IPO was going to be a huge hit. We were dead wrong.

Read the full post in Forbes

GM Pokes Facebook in the Eye -- Why?

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:40:00 +0000

NEW YORK (Real Money) -- Tuesday's news that General Motors(GM _) is cutting ad spending on Facebook(FB _) was a huge shock to most casual investors. The concern among Facebook skeptics is whether GM is the canary in the coalmine leading other big ad spenders follow suit.

Read the full post in TheStreet.com here

10 Steps Yahoo! Must Take to Succeed

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Tue, 15 May 2012 17:22:00 +0000

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- With a new board in place with Dan Loeb, and an "interim" CEO who is well-liked internally and externally in Ross Levinsohn, Yahoo!(YHOO _) seems ready to start taking a number of steps to unlock value.

The laundry list basically breaks down into two parts: internal fixes and external ones.

Read the full post in TheStreet

Hedgies Like Yahoo!'s New Board and Interim CEO

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:12:00 +0000

Hedge fund ownership in Yahoo increased 4% yesterday to nearly 20%. They know there's a shareholder-friendly group in charge of the board finally.

Read the full post in Forbes

Does Jamie Dimon's Hubris Cause Him to Gloss Over Key Operational Details?

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Mon, 14 May 2012 19:16:00 +0000

What other things has Jamie Dimon missed over the years, besides the London Whale? Here's an interesting anecdote from Greg Zuckerman's book The Greatest Trade Ever.

Read the full post in Forbes

CNBC Video: Yahoo Investor: 'Shareholders Can Finally be Happy'

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Mon, 14 May 2012 18:42:00 +0000

My appearance from CNBC's Fast Money Halftime from earlier today on the ascension of Dan Loeb and Ross Levinsohn.

[Long YHOO]

Here's the 30 Second Zuckerberg Video That Should Terrify All Facebook Investors

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Mon, 14 May 2012 15:11:00 +0000

Read the full post on Forbes here.

In the meantime, here's the full video, below:

[Long YHOO]

The Boy Who's Going to Kill Facebook Is Playing Videogames in His Mom's Basement As I Write This

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Fri, 11 May 2012 14:51:00 +0000

The one constant in the world of Web and Mobile is change. Facebook may be the "king of social" today, but there will be a new "king of mobile" shortly. Here's why.

Read the full post in Forbes

Why Third Point is Good for Yahoo! Employees and Shareholders

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Wed, 09 May 2012 16:47:00 +0000

Many from Silicon Valley seem to view Third Point and Dan Loeb with suspicion. It's the opposite. He'll be the biggest ally to Yahoo! employees and shareholders in the next two years.

Read the full Forbes post

Apple's Team Is Underestimated

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Wed, 09 May 2012 15:15:00 +0000

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Apple(AAPL _) closed Tuesday under $570. A little earlier in the day, it touched below $550. In the days prior to its last earnings call in April, Apple shares hit a low of $555.

This recent swoon, after moving from $360 in November to an all-time high of $644, has brought out a chorus of Apple-worrywarts. They are saying this is just the start of a broader pullback. They're saying this is due to investors who are worried about carriers pulling their subsidies on future iPhones.

Any pullback in Apple shares also seems to bring out the concerns about whether the largest company by market capitalization can still keep growing.

The other day, I spoke with a good friend of mine who worried about Apple's stock that: "Steve's no longer there and their markets are brutally competitive."

Read the full post in TheStreet

John Hayes' Facebook-Yahoo! Conflict of Interest

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Wed, 09 May 2012 14:29:00 +0000

Amex's John Hayes serves on Yahoo!'s board but is pimping out Facebook in its new IPO Roadshow Video. He needs to pick a side.

Read the full post in Forbes

The Internal Situation at Yahoo! Is Spiraling Out of Control

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Mon, 07 May 2012 16:19:00 +0000

The Scott Thompson affair is quickly spiraling out of control at Yahoo! with employees already in or about to be in open revolt. Messy or not, he must go now.

Read the full post in Forbes

Facebook and Google Won't Fail in 5 Years Because of Lack of Money or Low IQ - But From Sociology and Human Nature

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Mon, 07 May 2012 15:15:00 +0000

Facebook and Google have the smartest people in the world working for them and billions in the bank - and that still might not be enough to save them from sociological forces and human nature.

Read the full post in Forbes

MediaTwits Podcast: The Future of Google and Facebook

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Mon, 07 May 2012 12:44:00 +0000

I was invited on The MediaTwits podcast last week by Mark Glaser and Rafat Ali to discuss my recent Forbes article on the future of Google and Facebook.

Here's the podcast.

My part starts around the 19:40 mark.

Why a Partial Yahoo-Alibaba Sale Must - And I Underscore Must - Not Get Done Too Quickly

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Sat, 05 May 2012 20:12:00 +0000

Scott Thompson might want to do a quick deal with Alibaba to deflect attention from his alleged mendacity, but Yahoo shareholders don't want a quick bad deal

Read the full Forbes post

Yahoo CEO Under Fire

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Fri, 04 May 2012 20:53:00 +0000

My appearance on CNBC earlier discussing Scott Thompson.

Long YHOO

Why Facebook Investors are "Hungry Fat Pigs" and Yahoo!'s Board is a "Bunch of Jokers"

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Fri, 04 May 2012 14:41:00 +0000

My hit from earlier today on Bloomberg TV.

[Long YHOO]

Time's Up for Scott Thompson - and the Rest of Yahoo!'s Board

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Fri, 04 May 2012 14:07:00 +0000

Pack your bags, Thompson and the rest of the Yahoo! board. Watch the door on your backside on the way out.

Read the full post on Forbes

Why I Love Yelp

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Wed, 02 May 2012 12:35:00 +0000

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Yelp(YELP _) will report earnings tonight. It will be its first earnings call since going public.

I am long the company for several reasons:

Read the full post on TheStreet.com

Here's Why Google and Facebook Might Completely Disappear in the Next 5 Years

noreply@blogger.com (Eric Jackson) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 15:57:00 +0000

We think of Google and Facebook as Web gorillas. They’ll be around forever. Yet, with the rate that the tech world is moving these days, there are good reasons to think both might be gone completely in 5 – 8 years. And there’s some academic theory to back up that view, along with casual observations from recent history.

Read the full Forbes post