Inrix IPO on Its Way

Global positioning system (GPS)–enabled cars and phones are driving the growth of real-time traffic information systems. From 2006 through 2011, the real-time traffic information systems market grew 43% to $309 million. The market is projected to continue to report strong growth statistics over the next few years as well. Analysts at Strategy Analytics estimate that globally, the number of navigation systems receiving traffic data will grow to 37.6 million in 2018 from 8.5 million in 2010.

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Microsoft’s Troubles Persist

There seems to be no relief in sight for the PC market. IDC’s PC shipment report saw second quarter shipments continue to decline, with total units shipped falling 11% over the year to 75.63 million units. Within the U.S. conditions were better, with PC shipment falling 2% to 15.65 million units.

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Declining Mobile CPC Drags Google Down

According to eMarketer’s latest report, Google had a 52% share of mobile advertising revenues worldwide in 2012. Globally, mobile advertising revenues are projected to grow from $8.8 billion in FY12 to $15.82 billion this year. eMarketer expects Google’s lead in the market to continue to grow to 56% as the company’s mobile advertising revenues climb to $8.85 billion. Facebook is projected to remain the second-largest mobile advertising provider, with revenues growing from $0.47 billion to $2.04 billion, amounting to 13% of the market share. Pandora takes a surprising third position with $0.4 billion or 2.5% of the mobile advertising revenues worldwide projected this year.

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Yahoo, A Year After Marissa Mayer

According to eMarketer’s report on Internet ad revenues, digital ad spending worldwide is projected to grow from $104.04 billion last year to $116.82 billion for the current year. Google will remain the dominant leader in the market with 33.2% market share. Facebook is a distant second with 5% market share, followed by Yahoo (Nasdaq:YHOO), which is projected to command 3.1% of the market. Yahoo’s share has been declining over the past two years. In 2011, they had 3.95% of the market, which fell to 3.4% last year.
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Instructure in the IPO Pipeline

Within educational institutions there is an increased demand for learning management systems (LMSs), which help to integrate technological solutions with traditional methods to assist with classroom learning. Analysts peg the domestic LMS market to be worth $1 billion. Within the LMS, online courses are becoming a very popular segment. According to research by Ambient Insight, the number of post-secondary students in the U.S. taking online classes is estimated to grow 11% annually over the period 2010 through 2015 to 21.13 million. It is not just massive open online courses (MOOCs); today the Internet is being used as an effective teaching aid by both higher education providers and by K-12 schools.

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Analysts Estimate Twitter’s Valuation at $10 Billion

According to eMarketer’s report, Worldwide Social Network Users: 2013 Forecast and Comparative Estimates, nearly 25% of people worldwide will be members of a social network this year. The study estimates that last year nearly 1.47 billion people worldwide were connected to a social network. That number is projected to grow 18% this year to 1.73 billion. By 2017, 2.55 billion people, or 35% of the world’s population, is projected to be connected to a social network. Twitter is one of the top contenders, although Facebook leads the pack. Below is an interesting infographic from comScore’s report, 2013: US Digital Future in Focus, courtesy wearesocial.net. While Facebook is a clear leader with 83% share of time spent on social media sites by the Internet-enabled population of the U.S., Tumblr.com was a surprising second position holder as of December last year with a 5.7% share. Pinterest came a distant third with 1.9% of the market, followed by Twitter’s 1.7% market. Professional networking site Linkedin was the fifth largest site with a 1.4% market share.

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Redbus’ Ride to Success and Its Implications

India’s startup ecosystem is celebrating a recent success. Founded in 2006, online bus ticket seller Redbus is making big news due to its acquisition by Naspers for $137 million. We spoke with Redbus’ co-founder and CEO, Phanindra Sama, a couple of years ago about the bootstrapping phase of his venture. Here is a quick recap of Redbus’s successful ride so far.

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Flipkart’s E-retail Success in India

According to retail consultant Technopak Advisors, India’s online market is projected to grow to $70 billion by the year 2020.  Another researcher pegged the e-commerce market in the country to grow 50% this year from $1.2 billion in 2012 to $1.8 billion. The industry is prompting international giants like Amazon and eBay to experiment with their offerings in the market. As the Indian government still struggles to finalize the norms for foreign investment in retail, domestic players are making big strides in the market.

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Chinese Internet, Mobile, and Social: An Overview

According to a Gartner report, worldwide revenues from mobile advertising are projected to grow 400% over the period 2011 through 2016 to $24.5 billion. Gartner estimates the market to grow from $9.6 billion last year to $11.4 billion in 2013, driven by the economies of China and India as their growing middle classes become a more attractive advertising target for global and local brands. Another researcher, Informa, estimates that China will have more than 354 million smartphone subscribers by the end of this year, compared with the 219 million smartphone users in the U.S. China smartphones account for a comparatively lower 29% of total mobile phones in the country. In the U.S., smartphones account for 58% of the mobile phones. The increased use of smartphones in China will help drive the growth of mobile advertising there. Chinese internet giants are increasing their online offerings to take advantage of this mobile boom.

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AirBnB Valued at $2.5 Billion

Market reports pegged the vacation rental market for the U.S. and Europe at $85 billion in 2010. The market continues to grow, and according to recent reports last year, its value increased 10% over the year. Besides entire homes being rented out for vacations, there is also an increasing trend of individuals sharing rooms within their own homes as vacation rentals. Players like AirBnB are being named as forerunners in this emerging “sharing economy”  – a concept where people connect through online media to share services with each other.

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