Ebay, PayPal, Hewlett-Packard – Breaking Up Is Hard.
EventHorizon1984
8 October 2014
“Breaking Up Is Hard To Do”
Neil Sedaka, Howard Greenfield, 1962
Convention wisdom about the 2015 split of eBay INC, says the separate parts will be quickly sold off. Might not happen quickly.
In The Wall Street Journal article, “Dealpolitik: EBay, PayPal Takeover Talk May Be Premature”, Ronald Barusch makes this interesting point.
“eBay probably has massive gains on its PayPal shares that would trigger huge taxes if the deal didn’t qualify as a tax-free spin-off.
The short version being:
“The bottom line is that those expecting a quick deal following the spin-off may be jumping the gun.”
Of course with eBay INC CEO John Donahoe leading the separation plans, there is no guarantee that a monetarily smart long-term plan will be made. I.E. shareholders could be stuck with a huge tax bill, while John Donahoe skates.
“A monkey could drive this train.”
Margaret “Meg” Whitman, during her tenure as eBay INC CEO.
“Monkey sees, monkey does.”
Alexander Boot and Shoe Company, 1892
On the heals of John Donahoe splitting eBay INC, Margaret “Meg” Whitman is leading the charge to split Hewlett-Packard. However not into “Hewlett” and “Packard.”
Hewlett-Packard to split into two public companies, lay off 5,000
October 6, 2014
Supantha Mukherjee and Edward Chan
“Hewlett-Packard Co said it would split into two listed companies, separating its computer and printer businesses from its faster-growing corporate hardware and services” … “HP said its shareholders would own a stake in both businesses through a tax-free transaction next year.” … “Whitman, who will be CEO of HP Enterprise, the business that will sell computer servers and networking gear and data storage to businesses.”
Perhaps the ‘monkey see, monkey do’ reference is not entirely fair.
Meg Whitman is planning “a tax-free transaction” and will be CEO of one of the split companies. John Donahoe has not mentioned “tax-free” and will not be CEO of either the new eBay or PayPal.
Plus:
- 2 January 2014 to 8 October 2014, Hewlett-Packard stock has surged, $27.98 to $35.92.
- 2 January 2014 to 8 October 2014, eBay INC remains stagnant, $53.94 to $54.51.
Meanwhile, at the close of market. 8 October 2014:
- Alibaba – $88.30
- Amazon – $322.70
- American Express – $87.41
- MasterCard – $74.06
- Visa – $212.36
“I didn’t think eBay was right for me.”
John Donahoe, 17 June 2013
Indeed.
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Addendum 9 October 2014
No one here has received anything directly from eBay INC, about their separation into “eBay” and “PayPal”.
Whereas days after the public announcement, Hewlett-Packard sent this Today:
We’re no fan of Meg Whitman, but Hewlett-Packard does keep it’s customers informed.
eBay INC, ‘not so much.’
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“No sequel for you.”
Jack Slater, Last Action Hero (1993)
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Event Horizon Log 
Electronic Arts Lies About Star Wars Battlefront II Sales? $7 Million Not $9 Million.
Published 31 January 2018 Business , Commentary , Fantasy and Science Fiction , Games Leave a CommentTags: 7 million units, 9 million units, Andrew Wilson, Bank of America, Battlefront 2, Battlefront 2 sales, Battlefront II, Battlefront II sales, Battlefront sales, Blake Jorgensen, EA, Earnings Call, Electronic Arts, fiscal 2018, Fortune, GamesIndustry, GameSpot, Justin Post, loot crate, Merrill Lynch, microtransactions, PC Gamer, Polygon, Pretty Good Gaming, Rolling Stone, Sarah E. Needleman, Sarah Needleman, Star Wars, Star Wars Battlefront 2, Star Wars Battlefront II, The Wall Street Journal, Variety, Venture Beat, VentureBeat, Wall Street Journal, YongYea
Electronic Arts Lies About Star Wars Battlefront II Sales? $7 Million Not $9 Million.
EventHorizon1984
31 January 2018
“we ultimately made the decision to pull in-game purchases out of the game prior to launch“
Andrew Wilson, CEO Electronic Arts, January 30 2018
“chairman of Disney’s consumer products and interactive media division personally called EA to express Disney executives’ unhappiness about how the outrage “reflected on their marquee property,” the Wall Street Journal reports“
Brian Crecente, Rolling Stone, November 20 2017
During the January 30 2018 5:00 PM ET EA (Electronic Arts) “third quarter fiscal 2018 earnings call”
EA reported Star Wars Battlefront II sales of 7 million units (8 million minus 1 million). Venues such as GamesIndustry, Pretty Good Gaming, YongYea, dutifully reported 7 million units sold. As presented directly by EA.
But a curious thing happened. Before the Earnings Call, “Blake Jorgensen, the company’s financial chief” talked to the The Wall Street Journal.
Blake Jorgensen apparently told the Wall Street Journal reporter Sarah E. Needleman, “EA sold 9M units instead of the conservative 10M it had projected for the holiday quarter.” Ms. Needleman, of New York, New York, posted the scoop at 16:05 ET. That’s 4:05 PM ET.
Like parrots, multiple publications began quoting the “9 million” figure. For example:
A day later the public perception is Electronic Arts sold “9 million copies” and not the reported to EA investors 7 million.
Good public relations job Blake Jorgensen?
Well …
“We think unit sales could come in below EA’s earlier FY18 outlook for around 14 million units.“
Bank of America Merrill Lynch analyst Justin Post, November 17 2017
Yesterday EA said they hit 7 million out of an expected 8 million. Or 87.5% of their goal. That does sound better than their buried 2017 estimate of 14 million sales. That’s reaching only 50% of their goal.
Time for updating resumes?
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“Net bookings for the quarter were $1.971 billion, down $99 million on the prior year, which benefitted from a strong Battlefield 1 launch. Net bookings for the quarter were $29 million below our guidance, driven by lower-than-expected sales of Star Wars Battlefront II.”
Electronic Arts, January 30 2018.
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