Microsoft Promotes Two Senior Execs After Huge Ad Sales Lay-Offs (MSFT) | ||
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Microsoft Advertising has promoted two of its senior executives, a move that comes days after the division laid off scores of sales people as it looks to streamline the business to push it towards profitability. To summarize: the division is restructuring to revolve around more senior members of staff who are focused on selling advertising solutions across its entire portfolio — which includes MSN, Bing, Xbox, Skype, Outlook and Windows 8 — rather than having big separate sales teams for the different verticals. The elimination of the sales roles was first reported by Business Insider last week. The cuts affect Microsoft Advertising's global sales team in the US, UK, and other global offices and form part of largest sweep of job cuts in Microsoft's history announced this summer. Business Insider has seen an email sent on Friday to senior advertising agency CEOs (read the full version below) from Microsoft Advertising corporate vice president of advertising and online Frank Holland. In it he says recent changes have been made so the division is “best able to align to the needs of our customer, our company and the industry.” The email announces that Bruno Fiorentini Junior has become the new head of Microsoft Advertising’s global agencies and accounts team, with immediate effect. Prior to that he was Microsoft Advertising’s senior director of strategy for the global accounts and agencies team. Microsoft Advertising has also promoted Stephen Kim to lead the Microsoft Advertising worldwide marketing organization. He will report directly into Holland and will be responsible for driving worldwide trade marketing and consumer audience marketing for Microsoft Advertising. He was previously general manager of Microsoft Advertising’s global creative solutions team. Those promotions are in addition to the news last month that ad veteran and Publicis Group executive Bob Bejan was joining the organization to become its North America sales and marketing boss. The email makes no mention of the layoffs, which the Wall Street Journal numbered at “several dozen,” according to its sources. Microsoft would not confirm to Business Insider how deep the cuts go within the division. Holland says in the email that the company is making a “fundamental shift” in how it serves its top global agencies and accounts in response to feedback asking for “simpler engagement with an empowered account team instead of a matrix of teams representing disparate product interests.” “First, we are empowering our local field organizations to drive your business holistically. Additionally, we are investing in a senior global agency team to collaborate with you around global agreements in leveraging Microsoft media, data, and technology assets that drive clear differentiation for both you and us in the media landscape,” the email reads. The closure of Microsoft Advertising has been expected for some time. The most recent promotions and appointments suggest the division is still something of a priority for Microsoft, even if the business is now a lot slimmer. Microsoft is trying to reduce its total headcount by 18,000. The cuts have also affected staff responsible for Microsoft's content portal, MSN. The platform was recently given a redesign and relaunched on October 1, and the site now acts more like an aggregator rather than focusing on original content. A source told Business Insider recent lay-offs have included the majority of people who worked on monetizing the MSN platform, as well as a large chunk of MSN's editorial staff, around 150 roles. Full email from Microsoft Advertising vice president of advertising and online Frank Holland to agency partners: On top of Bob’s announcement a few weeks ago, I am reaching out to share exciting leadership and operational changes we are implementing to ensure Microsoft Advertising is best able to align to the needs of our customers, our company, and the industry. First, I am pleased to share that, effective immediately, Bruno Fiorentini Junior is the new head of Microsoft Advertising’s Global Agencies and Accounts team. Bruno started in digital advertising 10 years ago and has a broad global background. Bruno joined our organization in 2010 to lead our Australia, Asia Pacific and India businesses. Prior to Microsoft, he was the COO for Yahoo! Australia and the General Manager for Yahoo! Brazil, Chile and Argentina. He most recently led the strategy for our Global Sales team so he is deeply familiar with the business and the industry. He is from Brazil and is fluent in four languages. Bruno is a rising star in our organization and we are excited to have his passion, brains and experience become part of the new Microsoft Global Agencies Team. Stephen Kim, whom you know well, has accepted to lead the Microsoft Advertising Worldwide Marketing organization under me. In his new role, Stephen will drive worldwide trade marketing and consumer audience marketing for Microsoft Advertising. Stephen’s storytelling passion, deep industry background and experience working in close partnership with agencies, brands and publishers make him a great choice for this role. I also want to share important operational changes we are making to accomplish two key objectives: simplification and customer relationships. You, along with other partners, have told us you desire simpler engagement with an empowered account team instead of a matrix of teams representing disparate product interests. Additionally, our customers want us to become a true global marketing partner that can represent the entire Microsoft portfolio of solutions beyond media. In response to this feedback, we are making a fundamental shift in how we service our top global agencies and accounts. First, we are empowering our local field organizations to drive your business holistically. Additionally, we are investing in a senior Global Agency Team to collaborate with you around global agreements leveraging Microsoft media, data, and technology assets that drive clear differentiation for both you and us in the media landscape. My sales leaders will be following up directly with your teams regarding additional support specifics and areas/priorities where we are specifically focused during the transition. I have copied my team here and invite you to reach out to any of us if you have questions or concerns. As a key partner, I wanted to be the first to share this news with you. I could not be prouder or more confident in the leaders of our organization and in the direction of our business. Advertising has never been more critical at Microsoft as it is key to help our company realize its vision: that every person on the planet has access to consumer services that empowers them to do more and achieve more. SEE ALSO: Microsoft Fires Global Advertising Sales Team Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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A Startup That Raised $10 Million For Charging Gadgets Through Sound Has Sparked A Giant Debate In Silicon Valley | ||
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Last week, a startup called uBeam, working on way to let you charge your iPhone without plugging anything into a power outlet received a $10 million investment from Upfront Ventures. It had already recieved about $1.7 million from a bunch of famous angels. uBeam is the latest moonshot startup darling in the Valley, founded by 25-year-old Meredith Perry. Angel investors include Google’s Marissa Mayer and Zappos co-founder Tony Hsieh. Perry is working on something unprecedented. She is creating a device that will convert electricity into ultrasound, meaning sound waves not audible to the human ear, beam them into a charging device that will convert them back into electricity to power your mobile devices. The device will require a charger (which can be attached to a wall) and a receiver put on each device you want to charge. You are free to roam about the room with your device, even as it charges. But a physicist, named "Danny" has posted a blog called "How putting $10M into UBeam illustrates everything that is wrong with tech investing today." He argues that the physics of uBeam at best won't work and at worst, will be unsafe for your family, especially your pets: Except, here’s the problem. IT’S AN IMPOSSIBLE IDEA. Having donemy share of ultrasound physics AND wireless charging work in the past, the first thing that struck me about the idea was that, to transmit any appreciable amount of energy through sound waves, those waves would likely burn you, or at least deafen you, and any other small animals in the vicinity. This is why charging is currently done inside copper wires surrounded by plastic - so you don’t get hurt! Other folks in the tech industry, also physicists, are already disputing Danny's post. "There's almost nothing right about his physics. It's mind-boggling," one of them tweeted. The whole thing has sparked a big discussion on Hacker News, Tumblr and elsewhere on if venture capitalists really have the technical chops to recognize true scientific breakthroughs from ideas that are fundamentally flawed. When VC Mark Suster wrote about the $10 million investment on Medium, he called it "the most ambitious project I’ve seen since I became a VC." (He joined the firm in 2007 after selling the startup he co-founded, Koral, to Salesforce.com.) uBeam was the "largest A-round check" Suster ever wrote, he said. So he lined up experts to help him investigate the company and its tech before investing. He wrote: Did the physics actually work? Check The proof will be in the product. uBeam says it has a few patents. Perry has created a prototype that the Valley has been buzzing about for years. Perry showed it around the TechCrunch Disrupt New York conference in 2012. The year before, she gave a demo at the AllThingsD conference. Those demos gained her the attention of the famous angels, which helped land that $10 million investment. By the way, uBeam isn't the only one trying to safely capture electricity from the air and use it power our mobile products. A company called WiTricity, for instance, is also working on that, with Intel. WiTricity is not using sound but magnetic fields to transfer energy. The company claims that this form of wireless electricity "is safe for operation around people and animals." We'll leave it to the scientists to figure out how to make all of this – or any of it – work. But it does seem like one day, battery life will not be an issue. Our devices will somehow sip all the electricity they need directly from the air. SEE ALSO: 'Blended Reality' Is The Next Tech Buzzword And HP's Plans For It Are Really Spectacular Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Here Come US Auto Sales... (F, GM, TM, HMC, TSLA) | ||
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The world's big automakers announce their October US auto sales stats throughout the day. Analysts estimate the annualized pace of sales improved to 16.4 million unit, up from 16.34 million in September. "The data have been very volatile lately, but are still up on a year-on-year basis, highlighting the materialization of pent-up autos demand," Bank of America Merrill Lynch economists said. "We still think there’s room to go, and continued easing in credit access could support vehicle sales ahead." Here's a tally of some of the reports that are out:
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The Russians Tore Down A Memorial To Steve Jobs After Tim Cook Said He Was Proud To Be Gay | ||
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Residents of Saint Petersburg have reportedly torn down a giant interactive iPhone memorial that commemorated the death of Apple founder Steve Jobs after the company's current CEO, Tim Cook, came out as gay on Thursday. Business FM Radio reports that the company that originally funded the memorial, ZEFS, decided to tear it down after Cook said he was proud to be gay. Homophobia is rife in Russia, and many LGBT people living in the country have been subjected to harassment and violence. The six-foot tall memorial was erected in 2013 to celebrate Steve Jobs' life. It featured a large screen that showcased moments from Jobs' life, as well as scrolling quotations from his speeches and a QR code on the back that would take people who scanned it to a website.
Speaking in a press release sent to Russian media outlets, ZEFS chairman Maxim Dolgopolov explained that the memorial was torn down for two reasons: Tim Cook coming out as gay and Edward Snowden's revelations about NSA spying. (Snowden's documents suggest Apple products were used by the NSA to conduct surveillance.) He didn't rule out reinstalling the memorial, however, but said that it would only return if it could be modified to instruct Russian citizens to use products from companies other than Apple. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Microsoft Promotes Two Senior Execs After Huge Ad Sales Lay-Offs (MSFT) | ||
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Microsoft Advertising has promoted two of its senior executives, a move that comes days after the division laid off scores of sales people as it looks to streamline the business to push it towards profitability. To summarize: the division is restructuring to revolve around more senior members of staff who are focused on selling advertising solutions across its entire portfolio — which includes MSN, Bing, Xbox, Skype, Outlook and Windows 8 — rather than having big separate sales teams for the different verticals. The elimination of the sales roles was first reported by Business Insider last week. The cuts affect Microsoft Advertising's global sales team in the US, UK, and other global offices and form part of largest sweep of job cuts in Microsoft's history announced this summer. Business Insider has seen an email sent on Friday to senior advertising agency CEOs (read the full version below) from Microsoft Advertising corporate vice president of advertising and online Frank Holland. In it he says recent changes have been made so the division is “best able to align to the needs of our customer, our company and the industry.” The email announces that Bruno Fiorentini Junior has become the new head of Microsoft Advertising’s global agencies and accounts team, with immediate effect. Prior to that he was Microsoft Advertising’s senior director of strategy for the global accounts and agencies team. Microsoft Advertising has also promoted Stephen Kim to lead the Microsoft Advertising worldwide marketing organization. He will report directly into Holland and will be responsible for driving worldwide trade marketing and consumer audience marketing for Microsoft Advertising. He was previously general manager of Microsoft Advertising’s global creative solutions team. Those promotions are in addition to the news last month that ad veteran and Publicis Group executive Bob Bejan was joining the organization to become its North America sales and marketing boss. The email makes no mention of the layoffs, which the Wall Street Journal numbered at “several dozen,” according to its sources. Microsoft would not confirm to Business Insider how deep the cuts go within the division. Holland says in the email that the company is making a “fundamental shift” in how it serves its top global agencies and accounts in response to feedback asking for “simpler engagement with an empowered account team instead of a matrix of teams representing disparate product interests.” “First, we are empowering our local field organizations to drive your business holistically. Additionally, we are investing in a senior global agency team to collaborate with you around global agreements in leveraging Microsoft media, data, and technology assets that drive clear differentiation for both you and us in the media landscape,” the email reads. The closure of Microsoft Advertising has been expected for some time. The most recent promotions and appointments suggest the division is still something of a priority for Microsoft, even if the business is now a lot slimmer. Microsoft is trying to reduce its total headcount by 18,000. The cuts have also affected staff responsible for Microsoft's content portal, MSN. The platform was recently given a redesign and relaunched on October 1, and the site now acts more like an aggregator rather than focusing on original content. A source told Business Insider recent lay-offs have included the majority of people who worked on monetizing the MSN platform, as well as a large chunk of MSN's editorial staff, around 150 roles in total. Full email from Microsoft Advertising vice president of advertising and online Frank Holland to agency partners: On top of Bob’s announcement a few weeks ago, I am reaching out to share exciting leadership and operational changes we are implementing to ensure Microsoft Advertising is best able to align to the needs of our customers, our company, and the industry. First, I am pleased to share that, effective immediately, Bruno Fiorentini Junior is the new head of Microsoft Advertising’s Global Agencies and Accounts team. Bruno started in digital advertising 10 years ago and has a broad global background. Bruno joined our organization in 2010 to lead our Australia, Asia Pacific and India businesses. Prior to Microsoft, he was the COO for Yahoo! Australia and the General Manager for Yahoo! Brazil, Chile and Argentina. He most recently led the strategy for our Global Sales team so he is deeply familiar with the business and the industry. He is from Brazil and is fluent in four languages. Bruno is a rising star in our organization and we are excited to have his passion, brains and experience become part of the new Microsoft Global Agencies Team. Stephen Kim, whom you know well, has accepted to lead the Microsoft Advertising Worldwide Marketing organization under me. In his new role, Stephen will drive worldwide trade marketing and consumer audience marketing for Microsoft Advertising. Stephen’s storytelling passion, deep industry background and experience working in close partnership with agencies, brands and publishers make him a great choice for this role. I also want to share important operational changes we are making to accomplish two key objectives: simplification and customer relationships. You, along with other partners, have told us you desire simpler engagement with an empowered account team instead of a matrix of teams representing disparate product interests. Additionally, our customers want us to become a true global marketing partner that can represent the entire Microsoft portfolio of solutions beyond media. In response to this feedback, we are making a fundamental shift in how we service our top global agencies and accounts. First, we are empowering our local field organizations to drive your business holistically. Additionally, we are investing in a senior Global Agency Team to collaborate with you around global agreements leveraging Microsoft media, data, and technology assets that drive clear differentiation for both you and us in the media landscape. My sales leaders will be following up directly with your teams regarding additional support specifics and areas/priorities where we are specifically focused during the transition. I have copied my team here and invite you to reach out to any of us if you have questions or concerns. As a key partner, I wanted to be the first to share this news with you. I could not be prouder or more confident in the leaders of our organization and in the direction of our business. Advertising has never been more critical at Microsoft as it is key to help our company realize its vision: that every person on the planet has access to consumer services that empowers them to do more and achieve more. SEE ALSO: Microsoft Fires Global Advertising Sales Team Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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A New Far-Left Party That's Taking Spain By Storm Could Throw Europe Into Turmoil | ||
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Following in the wake of Greece's Syriza, another far-left party has taken a polling lead in Europe. This time, it is Spain's Podemos, a party founded in March this year, which wants to repeal the Treaty of Lisbon, push for renationalisation and higher government spending. The party has surged in recent months: it gained 8% of the vote in European parliament elections held this May, and is beating every other party in polls. In the latest set, 27.7% of Spaniards said they would vote for Podemos, beating both the established social democrat party and the governing conservatives. BNP Paribas analyst Victor Echerevarria outlined the party's platform: The rise of Podemos changes the political landscape in Spain: Its party platform includes calls for increased public control of key sectors of the economy (such as energy, or even the pharmaceutical and food sectors), a restructuring of Spain’s public debt and the reversal of the labour reforms of recent years. The issue is not just for Spain. Nationalisation and a massive loosening of fiscal spending are subject to stringent EU rules that the party clearly does not care for: if Podemos got into government and tried to implement their platform, it would provoke outrage in the European establishment and could trigger copycat moves in other countries. Spain would have to break rules in the European fiscal compact that it already signed up to. Even if it cannot form part of a government, a strong Podemos result at the next election would make forming a stable government in Spain far more difficult. Nicholas Spiro at Sprio Sovereign Strategy says that markets have fundamentally misjudged Spain, and that they could get a shock: One of the reasons why markets have taken a more sanguine view of Spain is that the country's political system always seemed more stable - particularly vis-à-vis Italy... This perception was always a superficial one and is now positively flawed. Political risk in Spain has been rising sharply of late. While investors have focused on the standoff between Barcelona and Madrid, they should be paying more attention to the surge in support for Podemos... Markets would be well advised to reassess their views of Spain which, we believe, have been far too rosy. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Here's Your Complete Preview Of This Week's Big Economic Events | ||
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The Federal Reserve finally put an end to its quantitative easing program on Wednesday in a move that had been widely anticipated for a very long time. Meanwhile, the stock market roared back to record highs. This week brings us a lot of important economic data including the jobs report, auto sales tallies, and manufacturing PMIs. The US will also be holding its midterm elections on Tuesday, which should clear out some more uncertainty for investors. Or it might not. "If we have a really uncertain situation, where the Senate is divided and candidates are threatening recounts, that's really not good," said Newedge's Robbert van Batenburg to Reuters. Here's your Monday Scouting Report: Top Stories
Economic Calendar
Market Commentary Wall Street's equity strategists are more or less telling clients "I toldja so" in the wake of the S&P 500's incredible rebound from October 15 lows. Like we said above, the focus has shifted to the midterm elections. Deutsche Bank's David Bianco argues that the most important policy issue for the stock market is how the US taxes foreign corporate profits. From Bianco's October 9 note: "Most large US multinationals are exasperated by a high US corporate tax rate and especially by taxes imposed on foreign profits when repatriated. The S&P earns 40% of its profits abroad, up from 15% in mid 1990s. US companies cannot compete effectively abroad if they must pay taxes that companies headquartered elsewhere don’t. The slew of inversions, which Treasury recently rushed to impede, is evidence that US politicians don’t understand global businesses. Executives, while plenty patriotic, have a duty to put the company’s future first. Current US corporate tax rules impede globalization and thus growth everywhere. Visibility on a fix is key post election. The US doesn’t build walls to keep in and it shouldn’t tax like a global empire." As far as stock market returns are concerned, there are obviously always a lot of variables to consider. But generally speaking, the stock markets inclination is to go up. "Since World War II, post-midterm election returns have averaged 17.5%, so time appears to be on our side for returns from October 2014 to October 2015," S&P Capital IQ's Sam Stovall said. For more insight about the middle market, visit mid-marketpulse.com. SEE ALSO: Wall Street's Brightest Minds Reveal The Most Important Charts In The World Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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10 Things You Need To Know Before The Opening Bell (DIA, SPY, SPX, QQQ) | ||
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Good morning! Here are 10 of the biggest stories you need to know before US markets open. Angela Merkel Hit Out At David Cameron. The German chancellor has signaled to the British prime minister that renegotiation of the European Union's freedom of movement is not on the table. Eurozone Manufacturers Report Weak Growth. The euro area's four biggest economies had a purchasing managers' index (PMI) score of 50.6 for October, slightly higher than September's figure but barely above the neutral 50 mark. HSBC Is Bracing For A Major Forex Fine. The bank is the third in the past week to report that it is putting aside hundreds of millions for potential fines linked to an FX probe, following Barclays and RBS. Ryanair Isn't Gloomy About Europe's Grim Economy. After reporting a boost in profits, Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary told analysts and reporters that a bleak picture for Europe could mean more demand for his budget airline. US PMI Data Is Coming. Markit's October manufacturing PMI is out at 9:45 a.m. ET, followed by the ISM manufacturing PMI and September's construction spending figures at 10 a.m. ET. Economists are expecting a 0.7% boost to builders. Growth In China's Service Sector Dropped To A 9-Month Low. The official non-manufacturing PMI fell to 53.8 in October from September's 54.0, which was the weakest reading since January, the National Bureau of Statistics said. Russia Is Doubling Down On Its Disastrous Ukraine Adventure. The Russian government has officially recognized elections in the rebel-held Donetsk and Luhansk regions in eastern Ukraine despite UN warnings that they violate the peace agreement in the country. European Markets Opened Down. France's CAC 40 is down 0.41%, Germany's DAX is down 0.34%, and the UK's FTSE 100 is down 0.32%. The Nikkei was closed for a public holiday, and the Hang Seng closed down 0.34%. Toyota Is Beating China's Slowing Economy. Toyota and its two Chinese joint ventures sold about 104,700 vehicles in China in October, up 27.1 percent from a year earlier. Japanese Minister Wants More Stimulus. Japanese Economy Minister Akira Amari said on Monday that the government should deploy fresh fiscal stimulus to prop up the economy if third-quarter gross domestic data turns out weak. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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