Obama’s Economic Policy

Here are some comments from Forbes readers on my last column. My response is below. Please feel free to chime in.

Amazon Amazes!

Amazon’s results are in … and they are impressive! Net income for the quarter doubled with a 41% rise in revenue in a slowing, hiccuping economy.

eBay’s Auction Woes

Business Week reports that eBay’s auctions business model is being increasingly overlooked for fixed price transactions. Ease of use is a primary driver. Another is the ubiquitous presence of comparison shopping engines.

Not Bullish on eBay

I said earlier upon Meg Whitman’s departure that eBay has a bounce back opportunity ahead. As their new CEO, John Donahoe, announced Q1 results today, they exceeded market expectations on all counts. Q1 revenues of $2.19 billion and EPS of $0.42 were higher than analysts’ views of $2.08 billion revenue with $0.39 EPS.

Shutterfly’s Strategy: A Conversation with CEO Jeff Housenbold (Part 4)

SM: Your vision was to move beyond the traditional print model, and rather be the center of a lifestyle. JH: I also saw us as building a personal publishing platform. Yes, we have consumers doing all the beautiful cards, books and calendars, but we also have lots of small businesses, charities, schools, non-profits, jewelry manufacturers,

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Shutterfly’s Strategy: A Conversation with CEO Jeff Housenbold (Part 2)

SM: What timeframe was this work with Raging Bull going on? JH: This was in the 1998 – 1999 timeframe. We then raised a $20M round with CNET, CMGI put in money and we started doing some television on CNet TV. We had a financial hour and hired some on-air talent. It was a really

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Amazon Pursues Growth At All Costs

In 2007, Amazon’s stock price appreciated by over 125%. How does it look in 2008? Amazon preserves leadership in its core retail business, while layering on a variety of “services”. Amazon posted Q407 results in line with the Street’s estimates. Revenues grew 42% y-o-y to $5.67 billion from $3.99 billion in the quarter a year

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Deal Radar 2008: Zappos Wants to be Amazon When it Grows Up

You have heard me talk about the verticalization of the web. Here’s a good example of a brand built on that premise. Zappos.com is the #1 online footwear retailer. Apart from retailing around 1,100 well known brands of shoes, boots, sandals, and athletic footwear, it also retails accessories including socks, wallets, belts, designer handbags, and

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