A Cold Front Coming for Ad Tech Industry

Luma Partners, one of the most influential investment banks, specializing in the digital media industry, conducted a comprehensive analysis of more than 2,000 ad tech companies, and came up with a not so optimistic conclusion.  Only about 150 of these companies are ready for a liquidity event.  This means that mass consolidation will continue to increase as well as volatility of stock prices for start-up ad companies as this uncertainty looms.

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The Older the Wiser

Some of the oldest tech companies – Microsoft, Oracle & Cisco – have all reached multiyear highs in stock price.  Each company has different factors attributing to this response, but what they do have in common is they are responding to new threats by coming up with strategies to counter them.  All of these companies have established brand equity, something that start-ups haven’t yet, and so customers are attracted to new technology, but put their trust into companies that have been around the block a few times. 

Check out the graphs accompanying this here 

Microsoft Making an Impression

After the chief executive of Microsoft, Sataya Nadella, answered a question about diversity in the wrong context, giving the wrong impression, he was immediately disappointed with himself for coming off in a negative way to the audience of the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing in October 2014.  He immediately got to work, determined to make Microsoft a role model for diversity in the tech industry, and make his mistake a learning opportunity.  Microsoft has expanded training for all employees to foster an inclusive culture and to ensure accountability. 

Check out what some of the other tech. companies are tackling this issue here