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Sony considers splitting the company after proposed IPO
Sony executives are considering splitting the company's entertainment and electronics divisions, following billionaire Daniel Loeb's proposed initial public offering of its entertainment business. The entertainment arm includes all PlayStation properties, alongside Sony's film and music businesses. Loeb, with Third Point LLC, owns a 6 percent stake in Sony worth $1.1 billion, and is Sony's biggest investor. Sony CEO Kazuo Hirai confirmed that the top brass is considering Loeb's offer, but didn't say when it would come to a decision, Bloomberg reports. "It's only a start," Hirai said. "It's important that the board will discuss this and come to a decision that represents Sony's stance." Following Loeb's offer yesterday, Sony stock surged 9 percent.
Mobile Miscellany: week of October 1st, 2012
If you didn't get enough in mobile news during the week, not to worry, because we've opened the firehose for the truly hardcore. This past week, FCC Chairman Genachowski weighed in on what must be done to keep the spectrum crunch from becoming a crisis, pricing leaked for the Motorola RAZR HD LTE at Rogers and Japan got a version of the Xperia V to call its own. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of October 1st, 2012.
CCP secures $20 million in funding for DUST 514
With DUST 514's closed beta just around the corner and an anticipated 2012 release, folks are sure to be hearing more about the shooter that's a ground companion to EVE Online's space game. And to help get the word out, CCP has secured $20 million in funding in the form of convertible bonds raised from Icelandic institutional investors. Chief Marketing Officer David Reid noted funding will go toward marketing the game's launch. That doesn't mean players will see a one-time blitz of promotional advertising; Reid pointed out CCP is able to focus on a more long-term marketing campaign. The funds will also go toward preparing for an IPO. Although the company does not have immediate plans to go public, Reid states that the money allows the company to lay some of the preparatory groundwork so it would be ready if and when the time was right to actually go public.
Facebook allowed to triple size of its HQ, pays $10 million for the privilege
Swollen with cash following its IPO, Facebook is looking to expand its headquarters in Menlo Park. Its plan to triple its workforce there from 2,200 to 6,600 people was approved by local officials last night, removing the previous cap that allowed a maximum of 3,600 messy, resource-consuming humans. In lieu of the added burden on the city, Facebook will have to contribute $850,000 per year for ten years, plus a one-time payment of $1,000,000. The start of a surge towards greater products and profits, or the beginning of a complacent corporate decline? We'll let the stock market decide.
Zynga shares close at record low following lackluster Facebook IPO
Facebook went public yesterday, and its unexpectedly less-than-stellar performance on the trading floor has had powerful ramifications for its social soul sister Zynga, which finished the day's trading at a record low of $7.16 a share.It's possible that Facebook's unimpressive IPO, closing out Friday at $38.23 a share – four dollars less than its $42.05 opening price – caused Zynga's value to drop in tandem, as the two platforms are inexorably intertwined in the public mindset. It's also possible that Zynga share holders jumped ship in favor of that new Facebook hotness, no longer having to settle for social second best. Regardless, the severe downturn in value lead to two trading halts on Zynga shares over the course of the day; once after reaching $7.17 a share, and once again after a slight increase in market value. Despite this, share values eventually dropped to as little as $6.93 before finally settling at $7.16.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg says mobile apps the top focus, we say it's about time
Facebook has been making a lot of promises during a tour to drum up interest in its ever-nearing IPO, but the one gadget-heads have been wanting to hear the most, a commitment to its mobile apps, has been elusive -- until now. Everyone's favorite hooded CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, is telling investors in his home 'burg of the San Francisco Bay that mobile is front and center in his company's plans. We're hoping that means new app features, although Zuck is likely referring to money-making as well: shareholders are jittery knowing that Facebook makes most of its money on web ads that it's not running on smartphones and tablets. Paid titles in App Center will go a long way towards scratching that itch, mind you. As for us, we'll just be happy if Facebook takes less than a year and a half to produce a major tablet app.
Facebook updates S-1, adds Q1 earnings, revenue up 45% over last year
Facebook just filed an amended S-1 (that all important document that officially announces its public offering plans) with some new financial info. Now included in the charts and graphs is everything you wanted to know about Q1 of 2012 at Facebook (but were afraid to ask). The new SEC filing reveals that revenues are way up at the social network over last year (a whopping 45 percent higher than Q1 of 2011), but down slightly from last quarter (six percent), settling at a more than respectable $1.058 billion. Of the cash it took in, $872 million of it was ad revenue, which is down from Q4 of 2011 ($943 million) but up significantly from Q1 of last year ($731 million). Facebook was even able to slap a per-user amount on its 900 million active monthly members -- $1.21 -- that's the average revenue for each person with an account at the site. Of course, membership has continued to grow, with 532 million stopping by daily, up from 372 million just a year ago. As for that Instagram purchase, it looks like the widely reported $1 billion figure wasn't entirely accurate -- at least not when talking cold, hard cash. Only $300 million was turned over in immediately spendable currency, the rest of the deal involved 23 million shares of common stock. If you're a sucker for financials hit up the source link.
Facebook seeking $5 billion in IPO fundraising
Whoever said money can't buy friends? It certainly wasn't Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, whose company today filed for its initial public offering with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. According to the filing, Facebook seeks to raise $5 billion if and when the company goes public -- the filing is still pending approval from the SEC.Also revealed in the filing was news that the social platform's biggest game developer, Zynga, accounts for "approximately 12 percent" of Facebook's revenue. Zynga had its own IPO late last year, which sought to raise $1 billion in going public.That 12 percent is enough to have Zuckerberg and co. worried about going public, as the filing notes, "If the use of Zynga games on our Platform declines, if Zynga launches games on or migrates games to competing platforms, or if we fail to maintain good relations with Zynga, we may lose Zynga as a significant Platform developer and our financial results may be adversely affected." So, uh, here's hoping Google+ doesn't get into games, eh?... oh, right.
Zuckerberg outlines idealistic Facebook mission in IPO filing
IPO filings aren't just a great way to raise money, they're also a perfect place for young CEOs and idealistic internet companies to grandstand and proclaim their altruistic motives. Whether or not you buy what they're shoveling selling is something different. Google had "do no evil," now Facebook has it's own mission statement, though, it's admittedly quite scatter brained. Buried deep in the IPO filing is a letter from Mark Zuckerberg to investors in which he lays out Facebook's mission and role in improving the world. Zuck doesn't think his social network is about poking cute girls and tilling virtual fields, he "hope[s] to change how people relate to their governments and social institutions." And, lest you think every move is some calculated ploy to free you from the burden of cash or personal information, the billionaire CEO explains, "we don't build services to make money; we make money to build better services." For the complete letter head on after the break. Trust us, whether you trust and like Zuckerberg or not, it's an interesting read.
Facebook files $5 billion IPO, values the company at nearly $100 billion
The rumor, speculation and awkward Winklevii jokes can end (at least for now) as Facebook has officially filed for its public offering. Underwritten by Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs amongst others, the internet's most popular site seeks to trade under the stock symbol "FB" when it goes public later this year. The company is seeking to raise $5 billion, according to this early filing, amounting to a lofty (and still tentative) valuation north of $50 billion. If that turns out to be accurate, though, Zuck will be one (especially) rich man: with a nearly thirty percent share in the company, his net worth would balloon to almost $30 billion. The process of going public also provides a rare glimpse into internal stats previously kept private, with documents revealing the service has 845 million active users each month -- nearly half of which log in and actuate 2.7 billion likes and comments each day. The filing also sheds light on the company's balance sheet, with revenues of $777 million, $1.97 billion and $3.71 billion in 2009, 2010 and 2011, respectively. All told, it logged profits of $229 million and $606 million in those years -- earnings that were bested by the $1 billion it netted in 2011. The majority of its revenue comes from advertising, yet a sizable chunk (12 percent) of last year's figure comes courtesy of Zynga. All in all, that's enabled the company to stash away nearly $4 billion in cash -- a sizable nest egg for a company only eight years old. As for Zuck, his 2011 salary of $500,000 will be cut to $1 as of January 2013, but he'll be more than comfortable, thanks to that 28.4 percent stake in the company.
Zynga's paid $300 per new user in the past nine months, says analyst
Zynga has been struggling with its stock price since the IPO late last year, and Sterne Agee analyst Arvind Bhatia says there are more dark days ahead. When you compare Zynga's $120 million marketing budget to its recent rise in only 400,000 new players (about $300 a person), the numbers don't look good: "We know that, on average, these people are spending about $150 or so," says Bhatia, which suggests that Zynga is spending about $300 for every $150 in profit. "That math won't work for very long," obviously.Zynga's spending is indicative of a few trends in social gaming. First, the company has discovered it's very hard to earn new players. Many of Zynga's games are similar, and without really experimenting, it's going to be hard to generate uniques. Second, Zynga's earnings are based on "whales": A small percentage of players who spend big. You need to find a lot of unique free-to-play players to land a few whales, and Bhatia doesn't see Zynga doing that lately.So what's the solution? "Zynga will have to find their next FarmVille," says Bhatia. Until the company finds another phenomenally popular hit and the surge in new players that comes along with it (which is incredibly tough to do), Bhatia expects to see even more problems with Zynga and its stock.
Rovio not planning public stock offering in 2012
Finnish developer Rovio, creator of global mega-hit Angry Birds, isn't planning to go public this year. Reuters reports marketing chief Peter Vesterbacka confirmed the company, which has moved over 600 million copies of the avian slingshot game and has been valued at up to $9 billion, won't slam into New York or Hong Kong stock exchanges in 2012. "We are not in a rush. This year is way too early for an IPO, there are too many open things, and we are in a very early stage of the Angry Birds lifecycle," said Vesterbacka. "Hong Kong is very interesting, absolutely, but again it is totally dependent on how markets develop. Asia is where all the people are, and future growth." Analysts have been skeptical of Rovio's IPO, particularly since the company continues to only have one hit franchise.
Report: Rovio mulling Hong Kong IPO in 2013
Finnish school for agitated ornithological research mobile mogul Rovio may be looking to capitalize on its world-wide brand recognition and ridiculous, un-ending revenue stream by listing its stock on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2013, assuming the world still exists in 2013, that is. The financial liquidity inherent in Asia's increasingly prosperous business climate makes for an excellent pro-IPO opportunity, according to Finnish outlet Tekniikka & Talous. While no official announcements have been made as of yet, an IPO in Rovio's immediate future makes sense considering that the developer is currently valued between $2.6 and $9.1 billion and recently turned down $2.25 billion from Zynga.
Nexon raises $1.17 billion from IPO, stock subsequently drops
Korean online gaming giant Nexon has raised $1.17 billion from its initial public stock offering. The filing stated that Nexon has 1.2 billion registered players, 77 million of which were active as recently as September 2011. CFO Owen Mahoney says the company's expertise made it an attractive proposition for new shareholders. "We can really bring a lot to the table. We know how to tune a game so that people will play it for months on end," he explained. Nexon's IPO was the largest on the Tokyo Stock Exchange this year, and as a result the company is now valued somewhere between $7.69 billion and $8.97 billion according to GamesIndustry.biz. Even so, Nexon's stock price slipped by 3.9 percent on its first day of trading.
Zynga's IPO road show begins, expects to raise $1 billion
Zynga is doing extremely well, especially for a company that started by piggybacking on a social-networking site, Facebook, and making games about farming. Zynga is in the process of launching its IPO, and while it won't be worth as much as initially expected this summer -- dropping from an expected high of $20 billion to a current possible low of about $10 billion -- Zynga is positioned to be worth more than EA, currently valued at $7.7 billion, and to compete with Activision Blizzard, which is valued at $14 billion. Zynga plans to raise roughly $1 billion for its IPO and has begun a nine-day pitch process to convince investors that the company is truly worth it, with plans to sell shares for $8.50 to $10 each under the Nasdaq label, "ZNGA." Zynga's offerings would mark the largest for a U.S. Internet company since Google in 2004, but with Facebook expected to eclipse it in 2012. If you're an interested investor, surveyor or slideshow-lover, you can view Zynga's complete IPO presentation right here.
MapleStory breached, 13 million accounts exposed
The famously hacked Sony has a sympathetic shoulder this week, as Nexon recently discovered a massive breach that's exposed over 13 million MapleStory player accounts to cyber ne'er-do-wells. Discovered this past Thursday, the breach was solely limited to South Korea, as Nexon hosts separate countries on their own servers. This means that any South Korean MapleStory player's information is at risk, including user IDs, names, passwords, and residential registration numbers. This information could potentially be stolen and used for a variety of crimes. While there's been no word whether actual personal information has been stolen, Nexon nevertheless urged these 13+ million subscribers to change their passwords. The company has contacted the police to ask for a formal investigation. This comes at an unfortunate time for the company, as Nexon is poised to present its IPO on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in December.
Nexon's Japanese IPO aims at raising $1.3 billion
When Nexon is finally added to the Tokyo Stock Exchange in December, the company has to be planning a massive "We're in the money!" song-and-dance to celebrate. TechCrunch reports that this will be the biggest IPO in Japan in 2011, with a corporate goal of raising $1.3 billion (100 billion yen) from the listing. The Korean company recently moved its headquarters from Seoul to Tokyo, and is well-known for its popular MMOs such as MapleStory, Mabinogi, and Vindictus. Nexon has over 3,000 people in its employ across the world, and previously said that it is open to purchasing more companies in Japan after the IPO. The company commented on its post-IPO strategy in a brief statement: "As we pursue our strategic objectives, we regularly review our options for accelerating our growth. We have made no decisions or announcements about any specific financing or other plans and cannot comment on rumors." The IPO will be handled by Nomura Securities, Morgan Stanley, and Goldman Sachs. Nexon is hoping that the move will raise its market cap to $9 billion, which will make it the biggest online gaming company listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The company is currently worth $7.7 billion.
Trion Worlds may go public following RIFT's success
Want to own a piece of your favorite MMO studio? If you're a fan of Trion Worlds, then you may yet get your chance. The company announced that it is mulling over a decision to put the company on the market with an IPO. CEO Lars Buttler says that it's just a matter of time at this point: "As we build scale and become more profitable, [an IPO] is clearly on our horizon at some point. We've had a lot of bankers coming to us recently. We keep all of our options open at this point. We definitely have enough substance and enough skill to be a public company at the right time." Trion has been doing well for itself lately, as it's doubled its staff in 2011 and raised $100 million from investments since 2007. RIFT's success has helped to convince the company that an IPO is a solid move. "RIFT is vastly profitable. It is profitable every single week and every single month," Buttler said. RIFT isn't Trion's only project, as the company is working on End of Nations, Defiance, and the Red Door publishing platform.
Angry Birds studio head claims $1.2B valuation too low, 'maybe' going public next year
Angry Birds is way, way popular -- sure -- but it is so popular as to elevate its progenitor's valuation beyond that of its already sky-high $1.2 billion estimate? CEO Peter Vesterbacka seems to think so, telling Bloomberg, "We're happy with our valuation but we think it's probably a bit north of that," referring to the aforementioned insanely high number. Beyond astronomical sales of the hit fowl flinger, Vesterbacka's company has been pulling in additional revenue from merchandising. Millions of dollars every month, in fact, via the company's website -- apparently just the stuffed toys are selling "a million units a month," which doesn't account for Halloween costumes, movie licensing, clothing, and various other tchochkes. "We are very, very profitable. We're not a publicly traded company yet we can fund our own growth," Vesterbacka boasts in the interview, all the while attempting to bolster his company's value when it does go public. He doesn't offer an exact date, but says, "maybe a year from now" Rovio will be making its public stock offer. When we last asked market analysts back in March how Rovio would fare an IPO, we were answered with reservation. And despite another seven months of earnings under the company's belt, we'd wager Vesterbacka's valuation estimates are a bit more lofty than the reality of things. But hey, we're not running any multimillion dollar corporations.
Zynga's profit drops 95 percent in year-over-year Q2
Zynga's profit fell from $27.2 million in Q2 2010 to $1.3 million in Q2 2011, a 95 percent decrease, an IPO filing with the SEC revealed Wednesday. Zynga's profit measures how much money the company is truly retaining, while revenue measures how much it is making, before expenses. To that end, Zynga's revenue grew over 100 percent year-on-year, to $279.1 million; however, this growth is slowing, rising 15 percent from its March quarter, while March rose 24 percent from the previous quarter. Zynga's "bookings" measure revenue directly from ad sales and microtransactions before any adjustments, such as the 30 percent Facebook claims, and these were down for the first time in company history, dropping 4 percent to hit the super-low, rock-bottom, Ramen-every-night number of $274.7 million. So far it looks like someone took some extra vacations on their new yachts this quarter. Or not. Zynga attributes its profit loss to two things: It didn't release any new games until Empires and Allies in March 2011, and it focused more on internal growth, hiring and acquisitions this quarter. All of this stagnating growth and dipping profit-margins means only one thing -- Zynga's valuation was increased in this same analysis, rising from $13.98 billion to $14.05 billion. Because that's how money works.