Facebook收購WhatsApp買對了嗎?
????Facebook公司斥資190億美元收購了移動通訊平臺WhatsApp,讓人大跌眼鏡。僅僅是過去的9個月中,WhatsApp的用戶數就從2億飆升到了4.5億。今天一早,我受邀到消費者新聞與財經電視頻道(CNBC)點評了這宗交易。簡言之,CNBC的主持人們想知道,這項交易是否明智? ????坦率地說,現在就下判斷還為時過早。乍看上去,這筆交易確實金額過高;但我不會只憑這一點,就質疑馬克?扎克伯格的決定。要知道當初收購Instagram時,人們也覺得數額過大。 ????現在很清楚的一點事,這筆交易值得許多競爭對手警惕。谷歌公司(Google)就是其中一家,它花了一年多的時間,希望收購WhatsApp,最后卻未能如愿。再比如WhatsApp在簡訊應用行業中的競爭對手,如Kik、Snapchat和微信(WeChat)等,它們因此失去了一個重量級的買家,現在只能奮力爭奪業界第二的位置。再比如電信服務商,它們之前靠短信服務賺得盆滿缽滿,但現在WhatsApp實際上已經在免費提供短信服務。此外,蘋果公司(Apple)也是一樣。當然,前提是蘋果的股東們現在終于醒悟過來了,雖然他們擁有能夠擊敗Facebook的資源,但面對巨大的新機遇,他們已然錯失了良機。(財富中文網) ????譯者:朱毓芬/汪皓 ???? |
????Earlier today I appeared on CNBC to discuss Facebook's (FB) stunning $19 billion purchase of WhatsApp, the mobile messaging platform that has grown from 200 million users to over 450 million users in just the past nine months. In short, the hosts wanted to know if it was a smart or dumb deal. ????In all honesty, it's WAY too early to say. But I wouldn't bet against Mark Zuckerberg just because this deal feels oversized at first blush. Remember, so did Instagram. ????What does seem clear, however, is that this deal should seriously concern some other players. Like Google (GOOG), which spent more than a year (unsuccessfully) trying to buy WhatsApp. Or rival messaging apps like Kik, Snapchat and WeChat -- all of which just lost a major suitor, and now may need to battle it out to be number two. Or current wireless carriers, who make a fortune off of SMS (the functionality that WhatsApp virtually gives away for free). Or Apple (AAPL), if only because some of its shareholders may now feel that it has totally missed the boat on a giant new opportunity, despite having the resources to have bested Facebook. |
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