Monthly Archives: December 2009

Learning from free Classifieds

December 20, 2009 – 8:18 pm

TweetWhat can we learn from classifieds web sites? Are there some features, strategies that could apply to online news media? On Google.fr, one of the most searched terms is “Le bon coin” (the good spot). (1)  Leboncoin.fr, is a free classifieds site that ranks n°7 on the French market. It generates stunning monthly numbers: 4bn page [...]

Edited by Frédéric Filloux | Posted in advertising, online publishing | Tagged , | Comments (37)

Venture Capital Business Model

December 20, 2009 – 8:17 pm

Tweetby Jean-Louis Gassée As promised last week, let’s dig into a venture fund’s key numbers. Limited Partners, LP, institutions or individuals put money into the fund. We, the General Partners, GP, make and manage the investments and we split the profits with the LP as the sole compensation for our services. Over time, the split [...]

Edited by Jean-Louis Gassée | Posted in venture capital | Comments (9)

Not on the same page. Ever.

December 13, 2009 – 4:12 pm

TweetCould Google and Publishers one day understand each other? Frankly, I doubt it. Two weeks ago I was in Hyderabad for the dual assembly of the World Association of Newspapers and the World Editors Forums (1). There, Google-bashing was the life of the party. As I told in last week’s Monday Note (see The Misdirected [...]

Edited by Frédéric Filloux | Posted in online publishing | Tagged | Comments (14)

The Other French Paradox (2) – Jobs

December 13, 2009 – 4:11 pm

TweetTwo weeks ago, I discussed what I called The Other French Paradox, that is how French taxpayers and French companies are at a (curable) disadvantage in Silicon Valley. Last week, I “shared” (we’re in California) my own plans to deal with the twin problems: a venture fund whose profits reverse the flow of money back [...]

Edited by Jean-Louis Gassée | Posted in venture capital | Tagged | Comments (5)

The misdirected revolt of the dinosaurs

December 7, 2009 – 9:04 am

TweetThe junkies are rebelling against their dealer. The dope is the traffic, and the dealer is Google. For years, the search giant flooded the market with an ideology built on the early 2000′s, ill-fated, get all eyeballs you can, the rest (i.e. monetization) will take care of itself. Publishers have invested tons of money, energy [...]

Edited by Frédéric Filloux | Posted in online publishing | Tagged | Comments (26)

Resolving The French Other Paradox

December 7, 2009 – 9:00 am

TweetLast week, we looked at the two components of the “other” French Paradox. First, the Valley aura helps a tiny Palo Alto start-up sell its technology in France. But it doesn’t work the other way around: a Lyons high-tech company will get a polite reception but no orders from the likes of HP, Google or [...]

Edited by Jean-Louis Gassée | Posted in venture capital | Tagged | Comments (8)