Attract, Retain and Delight More Customers
Close more deals in less time, track your sales activities and access customer data from your mobile device. Grow your business with Zoho CRM.
Sign up now for a free 15-day trial.

The Persistence of the Facebook Smartphone Myth July 28, 2012 On Facebook's earnings call Thursday, Mark Zuckerberg seemed to deny that the company would be developing its own branded smartphone, presumably an effort to put to rest growing speculation -- mostly attributed to unnamed sources -- about a Facebook phone under development at HTC. Building a smartphone, said Zuckerberg on the call, "wouldn't really make much sense for us to do."

Amazon Investors Sanguine Despite Plummeting Profits July 27, 2012 Amazon reported late Thursday that its Q2 net income had dropped an astounding 96 percent, but the market didn't seem to mind. Its stock jumped nearly 8 percent in Friday trading -- never mind the fact that it posted a net income of $7 million compared to $191 million in the second quarter of 2011.

Facebook's Gloomy Quarter Blamed on Big Fat Mobile Problem July 27, 2012 Facebook on Thursday released its first quarterly earnings report since its monster IPO in May. During the period, Facebook reported revenues of $1.18 billion but couldn't turn a profit, losing $157 million, or eight cents a share. Investors weren't happy with what they saw. The company's stock price dove to $23.38 in after-market trading and slipped to a new 52-week low of $22.28 Friday morning.

Zynga Loses Points With Investors July 26, 2012 Zynga reported second-quarter earnings lower than expected Wednesday, sending its stock sinking as much as 40 percent Thursday morning. The maker of popular social games such as "FarmVille" and "Words With Friends" reported a net loss of more than $22.8 billion, or 3 cents per share. Facebook was partially to blame for its higher-than-expected losses, Zynga said.

Netflix Takes More Punishment July 26, 2012 Wall Street took Netflix at its word, and then some, when the company said in its earnings report that it probably would sign up fewer new subscribers this year than it had expected. That, coupled with a 91 percent year-over-year drop in net income, caused shares of the company to promptly drop by 25 percent on Wednesday.

Nintendo Places All Its Chips on Wii U July 26, 2012 Nintendo reported a loss that was less than expected Wednesday, as video game hardware sales continue to decline. Sales of the Wii gaming consoles were one of the Super Mario creator's weakest spots. The company sold 710,000 machines, compared with 1.56 million during the same period a year earlier.

Apple's Indestructible Super Suit Gets a Slight Tear July 25, 2012 Uh oh. Apple has done the seemingly impossible: It failed to meet analysts' expectations for its quarterly performance. Not that an investor would feel any sense of dismay by merely studying Apple's numbers. The company posted quarterly revenue of $35 billion and quarterly net profit of $8.8 billion. These results compare to revenue of $28.6 billion and net profit of $7.3 billion in the year-ago quarter.

AT&T Feeling the iPhone Squeeze From Verizon July 25, 2012 AT&T delivered a respectable set of numbers in its quarterly earnings report on Tuesday. At the same time, its report on Q2 activity revealed how much it still depends on Apple and its devices for its revenues. First, the numbers: For the quarter ended June 30, 2012, AT&T's consolidated revenues totaled $31.6 billion, up 0.3 percent versus the year-earlier quarter.

Apple's Balloon Loses a Little Air July 25, 2012 Apple announced quarterly earnings that were lower than expected Tuesday, causing shares to plunge in after-hours trading. Though analysts weren't projecting another record quarter for the Cupertino company, results still fell short of Street predictions. Profit rose 21 percent to $8.8 billion, or $9.32 per share, on a revenue of $35 billion.

Microsoft's Bad Quarter and 'Lost Decade' July 23, 2012 The times, they are a-changin', as the old song goes, and nowhere is that more evident today than in perceptions of our old friend Microsoft. In fact, after years of being viewed by many as an unconquerable leader in the world of desktop software, Microsoft's armor is apparently beginning to chip.

Google Gets It Right in Q2 July 20, 2012 The quarter ending June 30, 2012, was a solid three-month period for Google, despite the global economic turmoil and despite the costs associated with the Motorola acquisition, which closed in May. The company reported a 35 percent year-on-year increase in revenue to reach $12.2 billion. Net income reached $2.79 billion, compared with $2.51 billion in the same period in 2011.

aQuantive Fiasco Hands Microsoft Its First Fiscal Loss July 20, 2012 Microsoft reported its first loss in more than two decades Thursday as an accounting adjustment and low PC sales hurt the software maker's numbers. However, the company remained optimistic that consumer demand will regain momentum when various upcoming products hit the market later this year.

Wireless Gains Offset Weak Broadband Sales for Verizon's Q2 July 20, 2012 Verizon proved Wall Street right Thursday, just meeting expectations for its second fiscal quarter and bringing in a net income gain of 13 percent thanks to higher-than-expected wireless subscriptions. The wireless provider earned $1.83 billion, or 64 cents per share on the quarter, up from $1.61 billion, or 57 cents per share, from the same period a year ago.

Glimmer of Hope in Nokia's Dismal Q2 Report July 19, 2012 Mobile phone giant Nokia posted a loss of $1.74 billion on Wednesday in its second-quarter earnings report. Overall sales for the one-time dominant company were down 26 percent year over year, while smartphone sales were down by a third in the quarter. However, if there is a bright spot in this report it is that it could have been much worse.

Yahoo's Q2: Mayer Has Her Work Cut Out for Her July 18, 2012 Yahoo's Q2 earnings, which were publicly released Tuesday, underscore the challenges that new CEO Marissa Mayer will face as she takes over the struggling Internet company. Yahoo brought in $227 million in its second quarter, down from the $237 million it reported for the same time a year ago. Earnings per share were the same as last year at 18 cents.

A Little Apple Tablet Could Mean Big Trouble for Rivals July 18, 2012 The iPad mini rumor mill received another heavy helping of grist recently when The New York Times reported that it too has spoken with sources who say a 7-inch tablet is on the way from Cupertino. Presently, Apple's 9.7-inch iPad is the most popular tablet on the market, but it faces increased competition from smaller, more affordable devices.

With Proview in the Rearview, iPad Cruises Into China July 11, 2012 New data has been revealed about Apple's presence in China that firmly underscores the nation's importance to the iPad and Mac maker. China accounted for about 20 percent, or US$7.9 billion, of Apple's revenues for its latest fiscal quarter, more than three times that of the same time a year before.

Ouya Lures Investors With Cheap Console, Free Games, Open Source July 10, 2012 For the last decade, the battle for supremacy in the video game arena has been waged by three players -- Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo. These are companies with long track records, numerous successes, some setbacks and failures -- but most importantly, deep pockets and experience in the marketplace. However, an upstart called "Ouya" is looking to challenge the big three.

BB10 Pep Rally Fails to Lift RIM Investors' Spirits July 10, 2012 Following a 30-day period in which the company lost $2 billion in value, Research In Motion executives faced shareholders Tuesday at the company's annual meeting. On the positive side, CEO Thorsten Heins reportedly told shareholders RIM remains strong in some market segments. However, he admitted it's weak in the North American market and said he isn't satisfied with its performance over the past year.

Microsoft Blames $6.2B Write-Off on Weak Online Ad Division July 03, 2012 Based on the underperformance of its online services division, Microsoft announced Monday that it would be taking a write-down of $6.2 billion. The non-cash, non-tax-deductible income statement charge for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2012 is for the "impairment of goodwill" related primarily to its 2007 $6.3 billion acquisition of aQuantive, Microsoft said.