Should eBay sell Skype?

2371004 — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 14:56:00 GMT

Rumours have been swirling around the eBay-camp as CEO John Donahoe recently hinted that the company is willing, if not ready, to sell its lucrative Skype business.

Donahoe, speaking to analysts about eBay's drastic Q4 profits, said Skype was a "great standalone business", which is apparently enough to get industry-insiders buzzing and giddy these days.

However, he also admitted that "synergies" between Skype and the rest of the eBay portfolio were slim, which could plausibly mean: sell, sell, sell.

Despite the slim-synergy, Skype is clearly a winner, and could attract some decent bids, although eBay might have perhaps been a little too enthusiastic when pulling out its wallet for the online-telephone service in 2005, paying $2.6bn.

Some analysts predict Skype could fetch as much as $1bn, which could provide a much needed boost to the suffering internet company, which reported a 30% drop in net profits in the fourth quarter 2008, $367m to $531m.

Dismal, especially after eBay's usual triumphant Christmas season.

On the other hand, Skype continues to impress, with over 400m users around the world (I myself one of them) and recent reports of a 26% rise in revenue.

Just because it can afford anything and everything, Google's name has been associated as a possible interested party, along with major telecom networks Verizon and AT&T.

Should eBay sell? I don't think so, Donahoe admitted Skype wasn't much getting in the way of the eBay business, which is hurting. He should focus on fixing eBay first (cough, PayPal) as it should surely weather the ugly storm that is braced to decimate the digital industry over the next two years, Skype could very well be its water-wings.

Say it ain't so - digital jobs go

2371004 — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 14:55:00 GMT

It's nearly Friday, in what has been a dark, unsettling week for those working in the digital industry as hundreds of jobs have been lost.Things are going to get bad.

This pernickety credit crunch has loomed into an axe wielding guillotine man precariously holding the edge over our pale, brittle digital correspondent necks.

Most recently, property search website Rightmove has made 20% of its staff redundant, trimming more than 60 jobs on plummeting house prices and the simple rarity of a sale.

Earlier today, Amazon announced that shares had plunged 14%. Amazon is seen as a Bellwhether for the online retail industry and if it catches a cold so do others. This is borne out with talk in Brand Republic's forum's with comment about other online retailers cutting jobs.

The gloomy news from Amazon was preceded this month by major job cuts at other internet giants like Yahoo! and eBay, who are laying off thousands of staff.

Following 160 staff cuts at Associated Newspapers as it merged its sales and digital sales teams. News International and Global Radio, Channel 4 axed its third-party digital sales house, putting 10 jobs at risk.

Even the ruefully optimistic Silicon Valley is feeling the hurt.

I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings.

Some good news however. Bigwig PR agency Weber Shandwick isn't going to let all the doom and gloom get it down, and because everyone loves a maverick, WS CEO Harris Diamond had some pretty maverick-y things to say, especially about WPP's recent call to freeze recruitment.

Condemning the decision, Diamond said: "I've always believed in using a rifle rather than a shotgun" adding "In this business there are always places you can grow. You still have the ability to make compelling propositions to clients. We don't want to send out a message saying we're not interested."

As for the rest of us? I can't help but feel an edge of uncertainty in the air, but I'm not ready to batter down the hatches with a bottle of Kentucky bourbon and a years supply of Pot Noodle just yet.

A few casualties aside, I'm sure the digital world will weather the storm. To the dismay of my digital editors I can only offer the sunny sanguinity: whatever doesn't kill us can only make us stronger. Right?

Search results matching tags 'digital' and 'ebay'

Should eBay sell Skype?

Say it ain't so - digital jobs go