Quibi & Neeva seen as potential takeover targets for Apple
As the pandemic batters small businesses and startups, Apple may already be looking for new companies to add to its talent pool.
With the coronavirus pandemic continuing, many small companies and startups may soon be ready to sell off their companies to the highest bidder. We can expect to see companies like Apple, Microsoft, Google, and Amazon acquiring companies who have been hit particularly hard by the turbulent economic situation surrounding the pandemic.
Acquisitions are hardly new to Apple, as the company is known for buying promising startups to recruit for new projects. DarkSky, a popular weather app, was purchased by Apple in March of this year. Fleetsmith, an enterprise device management company, was acquired in June.
It's difficult to tell what companies Apple is scouting, with most companies not announcing anything until the contracts are finalized. However, there is a wealth of small companies with big talent who may be willing to sell at the right price.
The Information's Amir Efrati sees Neeva, a subscription-based web search service, as a potential acquisition for Apple or another tech giant like Microsoft.
The CEO, Sridhar Ramaswamy, had spent 15 years at Google developing search advertising technologies. He hoped to create a search engine that could provide people with accurate results and didn't give preferential treatment to advertisers.
While the concept of a pay-to-use search engine may not be a concept everyone can back, the company is staffed by nearly a dozen former Google software engineers. By purchasing Neeva, Apple would have access to a wealth of talent for their own projects.
It isn't clear at present why Apple would do this. Google pays Apple billions of dollars per year for the privilege of being the default search engine for iPhone and iPad users.
Neeva isn't the only potential acquisition that The Information thinks Apple could make. Tom Dotan highlights Quibi, the short-format video streaming service launched in April, as a company Apple may be interested in.
Quibi is a mobile-oriented streaming video service offering short-form content to users in a bid to differentiate itself within a highly-crowded marketplace. Unfortunately, the service hasn't had the best retention rates. Last week, the company's three-month free trial period expired, and only 8% of subscribers chose to keep their subscription.
Quibi's founder, Jeffery Katzenberg, may try to cut his losses and sell the company. The Information is quick to point out that Katzenberg has a history with Apple -- he used to work at DreamWorks where he frequently met with Eddy Cue.
Of course, the short form service lends itself to other buyers as well. Snap Inc, the makers of Snapchat, may find Quibi's younger audience in line with that of their own.
It is unknown whether Apple will purchase either of these companies, though the company could see a return on their investment if the price was right. Both Neeva and Quibi have a wealth of talent working in their ranks, and Apple may be looking to bolster its own.
With the coronavirus pandemic continuing, many small companies and startups may soon be ready to sell off their companies to the highest bidder. We can expect to see companies like Apple, Microsoft, Google, and Amazon acquiring companies who have been hit particularly hard by the turbulent economic situation surrounding the pandemic.
Acquisitions are hardly new to Apple, as the company is known for buying promising startups to recruit for new projects. DarkSky, a popular weather app, was purchased by Apple in March of this year. Fleetsmith, an enterprise device management company, was acquired in June.
It's difficult to tell what companies Apple is scouting, with most companies not announcing anything until the contracts are finalized. However, there is a wealth of small companies with big talent who may be willing to sell at the right price.
The Information's Amir Efrati sees Neeva, a subscription-based web search service, as a potential acquisition for Apple or another tech giant like Microsoft.
The CEO, Sridhar Ramaswamy, had spent 15 years at Google developing search advertising technologies. He hoped to create a search engine that could provide people with accurate results and didn't give preferential treatment to advertisers.
While the concept of a pay-to-use search engine may not be a concept everyone can back, the company is staffed by nearly a dozen former Google software engineers. By purchasing Neeva, Apple would have access to a wealth of talent for their own projects.
It isn't clear at present why Apple would do this. Google pays Apple billions of dollars per year for the privilege of being the default search engine for iPhone and iPad users.
Neeva isn't the only potential acquisition that The Information thinks Apple could make. Tom Dotan highlights Quibi, the short-format video streaming service launched in April, as a company Apple may be interested in.
Quibi is a mobile-oriented streaming video service offering short-form content to users in a bid to differentiate itself within a highly-crowded marketplace. Unfortunately, the service hasn't had the best retention rates. Last week, the company's three-month free trial period expired, and only 8% of subscribers chose to keep their subscription.
Quibi's founder, Jeffery Katzenberg, may try to cut his losses and sell the company. The Information is quick to point out that Katzenberg has a history with Apple -- he used to work at DreamWorks where he frequently met with Eddy Cue.
Of course, the short form service lends itself to other buyers as well. Snap Inc, the makers of Snapchat, may find Quibi's younger audience in line with that of their own.
It is unknown whether Apple will purchase either of these companies, though the company could see a return on their investment if the price was right. Both Neeva and Quibi have a wealth of talent working in their ranks, and Apple may be looking to bolster its own.
Comments
- a few powerful music industry execs, some of whom have already bailed
- a headphone market whose cultural cachet is already sunsetting
- Beats Music — everyone overlooks this, but it was the whole point. Can you even imagine Apple Services without a streaming music platform? They didn't write that, they bought it.
Quibi has literally nothing but the name Jeffrey Katzenberg. No tech, no audience, just a guy with a rolodex.Neeva though… there are a lot of parallels between Apple's reliance on Google Search and their old reliance on Google Maps. And Google Search is getting worse all the time. I dunno if Neeva has the talent Apple needs to bring web search in-house, but…
Jeffrey Katzenberg is a bonafide Hollywood movie mogul.
He was the chairman of Disney between 1984 and 1994 at which point he co-founded DreamWorks SKG with the other two namesakes: Steven Spielberg and David Geffen (of Geffen Records, the music industry mogul). His estimated net worth is a little shy of $1 billion. Katzenberg's protegé at Disney was Michael Eisner who succeeded Katzenberg in the role of Disney chairman. Katzenberg's focus was animated features and he pushed DreamWorks Animation to be an all-digital house.
For twenty years, Katzenberg was the executive producer of many of Hollywood's biggest animated features. G-rated animated features dominate the box office revenue charts and typically haul in big bucks in merchandise. Which do you think sold better? The Forrest Gump lunch box or the Little Mermaid lunch box?
He might be the guy with the Rolodex but it's a pretty good Rolodex. Katzenberg is definitely on the Hollywood A-list. He hasn't played second fiddle to anyone for over 35 years.
Apple was buying the cachet of the executives. For $3 Billion. Because Dr Dre is way, way cooler than Tim Cook and Eddie Cue, certainly than they think of themselves, nerds that they are. It didn’t matter because Apple is so rich $3B is nothing, but they could have done it in house, and I doubt it would have cost $3B.
Besides the fact it made Apple Stores more appealing and gave them a cleaner look, Beats makes a bout 1 billion a year in profit. The headphones paid for the acquisition in about 4 years.
Katzenberg was third in command at Disney and worked under Eisner. Kaztenberg really wanted to be the number 2 guy but Frank Wells was firmly entrenched there until the latter's untimely death in a helicopter accident. Katzenberg did not receive a promotion (Wells' position was left unfilled) so Katzenberg quit Disney to start DreamWorks SKG with Spielberg and Geffen.
It was still a pretty gutsy move as Katzenberg was just 44 years old in 1994.
Let the VCs and the overpriced executive team reap what they brought to market
These kinds of takes are hilarious. By all measures it was an extremely successful acquisition.
I don't see Apple buying the service but possibly all the content to add to TV+.
And now drums.... for Google trolls!