Month: July 2015

Ferrari set to file for IPO

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Via: Source

Even if you can’t quite afford one of the legendary Italian supercars, you may soon still be able to own a piece of Ferrari itself. No, there’s not some new supercar-crowdfunding/crowdsharing app (dibs that idea) set to debut, but in fact, the legendary automaker is set to become a publicly traded company for the first time in their illustrious history. Let’s take a look at some of the facts on Ferrari ahead of the IPO.

The question investors ponder with Ferrari is simply, is this a good investment? Or is this simply an investment everyone is going to WANT to make. Or does that fact that everyone is going to likely want in on the Ferrari action make it a good play in itself? Indeed, there is a lot to consider.

Ferrari is a relatively unique automaker. They produce at an incredibly low volume compared to many other automakers (shipping just under 8,000 cars last year, as compared to over 36,000 shipped by Maserati), which makes their main customer base of serious collectors, enthusiasts, and actual performance and race car drivers incredibly loyal. But of course, low output can also put a limit on profits, although the company has always performed more than solidly in the past.

This IPO deal is interesting for another reason as well. It is mainly being done to decouple Ferrari from FCA, which currently owns 90% of the company, the other 10% being owned by Piero Ferrari, son of the company’s founder. After the deal, roughly 80% of equity will be in the hands of shareholders. What do you think? Is Ferrari a good long-term stock pick? Or would you be better off simply saving up for one of the gorgeous vehicles?

FINALLY a real-life hoverboard is set to debut

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As one astute comedian recently observed on Twitter, “They should go back and remake Back to the Future except instead of having hoverboards in 2015, everyone’s just offended by everything.”

That iconic movie sees Marty McFly travel ahead to 2015 (or was that Back to the Future 2?), where he uses, amongst other awesome things we don’t have yet, a hoverboard. But it appears that fact has finally caught up to fiction, and a real-life hoverboard will be arriving soon. Developing by Lexus, not too much is known about the device as of this writing. But, a new teaser video dropped online ahead of the products August 5th launch, which we have here for you below.

1stDibs is a website with an awesome name; even cooler purpose

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Via: Source

Filling in a digital space unfulfilled by eBay, Amazon, or any other online marketplace, website 1stDibs was created all the way back in 2001 to serve a different purpose; replicate the finest art gallery or auction house experience all online. Connecting art dealers with clients seeking their wares all across the globe seemed like an obscure mission a decade ago, but now, 1stDibs is uniquely, and excellently positioned to almost exclusively serve a huge market. How exactly did they do it?

Via: Sparkcapital.com

Indeed, as was previously mentioned, the company started all the way back in 2001; and from the get-go, the site sought to replicate the legendary Parisian Marche aux Puces; open air markets filled with art of all kinds. And now, close to 15 years later, the company has evolved into the leading online market place for fine art, furniture, jewelry, and other treasures; all listed by some of the best-known, and most reputable dealers in the world.

The company, now guided by CEO David Rosenblatt, removed dozens of pain points that kept both art dealers and collectors from having access to collections around the world, whether they are on the buying, or selling side. It is an area with a lot of demand, and not a lot of direct competition for 1stDibs, making them an incredibly interesting company to keep an eye on.

Colin Cowherd latest controversial figure to leave ESPN

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Via: Source

It’s been an up and down year for the Worldwide Leader in Sports, as a number of trends, and industry movements, seem to have created a tough set of circumstances for the now close to 40 year old company. And the latest symptom of these interesting and evolving times at ESPN is the departure of Colin Cowherd, the controversial but popular radio host who helps anchor their national morning lineup.

Radio host Colin Cowherd formerly of ESPN

Joining the likes of Bill Simmons and Keith Olbermann amongst the recently departed ESPN ranks, Cowherd finally was let go last week after a series of controversial remarks about Dominican people, which he did not apologize for. He was set to leave to company a week later after contract negotiations failed to produce a new deal between Cowherd and the company anyway, but the entire situation comes as somewhat of a surprise to fans of his 12 year run at the company.

But what do all these departures mean for ESPN? The company has undoubtedly led the way in cable sports coverage for the past few decades, a market area which has become increasingly valuable as almost everything beyond live sports is consumed along viewers own schedules; on demand, or via streaming online. Cable cutting is proving to be an issue for ESPN as people rely less and less on traditional cable packages, and more competition means more landing places for on-air ESPN personalities, even if in these cases, they only made Cowherd an offer to stay, and not the other two journalists.

Very principled (and strong) cyclist moves car out of bike lane

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In a video that is quickly going viral, an absolutely massive dude single-handedly moves a car out of the bike lane, and then subsequently continues on down the road. Could the guy have just pedaled around the car? Absolutely. But did he definitely prove a point (and delight a decently large crowd in the process) by simply lifting the entire thing out of the path before he continued on his way.

Google to decouple a number of features from Google+

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It goes pretty much without saying at this point that Google+ hasn’t quite evolved into what Google had probably hoped it would have when they launched the site back in 2011. And now, a little more than four years after the initial launch date (there was an invite-only structure for a number of months before), it appears that the company might be making some moves to scale back that operation.

Via Social Media Biz

As reported by Tech Crunch, a number of functionalities and features are being disconnected from the site. In a few months, you’ll no longer need a Google+ profile to comment on Youtube videos (congratulations, trolls), and Google Photos is being phased out of the site as well.

Google+ will continue on though, with a closer focus on “becoming a place where people engage around their shared interests, with the content and people who inspire them,” as according to Google VP of Streams, Photos, and Sharing, Bradley Horowitz. This likely means a renewed focus on Google+ Collections and Hangouts.

Twitter Founder Jack Dorsey’s other company, Square, to file for IPO

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Via: Source

The man has had somewhat of a magic touch these past few years, as recently returned Twitter interim CEO Jack Dorsey is in line for another pay day courtesy of his mobile payments device and app, Square.

Via Business Insider

As of this writing, not much in known about the offering, as it was filed confidentially. This leaves investors guessing as to the exact value of the company, and how many shares will be available.

However, the mobile payments company, which provides business owners with a straight forward, customer-friendly system to accept credit and debit cards via a smart phone and tablet app, and card-swiping tool (as seen in the picture), processed over $30 billion in payments last year. So if and when it does become publicly traded, investors will certainly be clamoring for a piece of the action.

Recounting the time Blockbuster passed up buying Netflix for $50 million

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Via: Source

They say hindsight is 20/20, but this is a true case study in a tragically missed opportunity.

Those of us old enough to remember actually going to a video rental store, like a Blockbuster, usually remember it quite nostalgically, and even fondly. But of course, as we all know, the far more convenient video-on-demand method, as well as Netflix and other subscription services, have now all but completely replaced brick-and-mortar video rental stores (Red Box seems to be doing fine though?).

Nature reclaiming an empty store. (Via Reddit)

But it appears that Blockbuster had a chance to avoid its present fate; as it could have acquired Netflix all the way back in 2000, for only $50 million. To put that in perspective, Netflix is now worth between $28 and $30 BILLION, depending on who you ask, and where the market sits that day. Good God. If you’re having a bad day, we genuinely hope this revelation makes you feel at least a little bit better. Because, yikes.

As recounted in a story originally appearing on Business Insider, the two CEOs, John Antioco (now formerly) of Blockbuster, and Reed Hastings of Netflix, came together all the way back in 2000 and attempted to negotiate the deal. Why Mr. Hastings was looking to sell at that point is not noted, but whenever there is a $50 million dollar pay day attached to a deal, can you really blame a guy for trying to make it? Of course, now that Netflix is worth literally multiple billions of dollars more than that, it looks like a dumb move, but back in 2000, the internet was much less prevalent, and cable TV was much more powerful.

In 2000, Blockbuster viewed Netflix as a small, niche company; which indeed they were. And perhaps, even a merger might not have been enough to keep Blockbuster afloat in the face of rapid technological changes, but it certainly could have helped. What do you think? Was this an oversight by Blockbuster back in the day? Or was the world so different that you can’t even really blame them for not seeing what Netflix would become?

Root Beer Beer has finally arrived, law suits from concerned parents sure to follow soon

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Via: Source

Making a root beer float with a solid 5.9% alcohol rating had never crossed our minds before. Until recently, that is.

And that thought crossed our minds precisely because a product that we also never would have thought up (but wish we had) now finally exists: root beer beer. That second beer isn’t a typo, dear reader, this beer actually tastes exactly like a really good root beer (not some diet A & W crap), and packs in about 6% percent alcohol. Indeed, using a combination of spices, and likely some sort of gypsy magic, a brewery in Illinois has created a lager that tastes exactly like root beer.

That’s the stuff.

‘Not Your Father’s Root Beer’, made by Illinois based Small Town Brewery, is officially taking the country by storm. It’s such a hit in fact, that the company totaled over $7 million in sales last year, putting them in the top 30 for craft breweries in terms of revenue. And anecdotally at least, we can honestly say that stores are having a hard time keeping this stuff on the shelves.

Definitely keep an eye out for this stuff next time you’re picking up a six pack, even if they are so sugary you can only drink like, 3, tops.