Standout Stories
Mobile services… “You are a developer and you’ve just spent two weeks writing this amazing app. What is your dream? Your dream is to get it in front of every iPhone user.” That was how Steve Jobs, then Apple’s boss, introduced an online shop for smartphone apps eight years ago. At first few paid it much heed, but it launched one of the fastest-growing software markets ever. Since then over 100 billion apps have been downloaded, generating $40 billion in revenues for developers and billions more in subscriptions and other fees.
At a conference on April 12 in San Francisco, Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s boss, is expected to make a similar announcement. He will probably unveil an online shop and coding tools for “chatbots.” These are text-based services which let users complete tasks such as checking news, organizing meetings, ordering food, or booking a flight by sending short messages. Bots are usually powered by artificial intelligence (hence the name, as in “robot”), but may also rely on humans. Many in the technology industry hope that Facebook’s event will mark the beginning of another fast-growing, multi-billion-dollar software economy. Are bots the new apps? Read article
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CFO podcast… Tom Conine, the Fairfield University finance professor, discusses the financial havoc that being in a slow-growth environment can cause, compromising everything from cash generation to credit lines, price-to-earnings ratio, shareholder return, and working capital.
Conine, also president of financial-training firm TRI Corp., suggests that economic growth, which hasn’t been gangbusters for years, could slow down even more. Listen here
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Finance Reports… Finance executives are always looking for ways to improve their financial reporting process. Efficiency and timeliness are top priorities. So what’s the best way to get fast and accurate reports? CFO offers the following articles to gauge how confident you are in your current processes, whether or not they are on pace with the fastest companies, and if they are value-generating. Read article
Headlines
U.S. Wholesale Stocks Fall 0.5% in February
While the inventory data indicate a slowdown in first-quarter economic growth, economists expect a pickup in the second quarter.
Mobile Services: Bots, the Next Frontier
The market for apps is maturing. Now one for text-based services, or chatbots, looks poised to take off.
LISTEN: Battling the Slow-Growth Blues [Podcast]
Tom Conine talks about the perils of a slow-growth economy.
How to Get Fast, Accurate, and Value-Generating Finance Reports
CFOs need their reports done quickly and efficiently. The following content will put your organization’s process effectiveness in perspective.
Junk Defaults to Rise to 4.6% in Next Year
Moody’s cites “deteriorating credit conditions especially in commodity sectors such as oil & gas and metals & mining.”
Venture Capital Has Best Quarter in 10 Years
VC firms raised $12 billion during the first quarter, suggesting investors are confident the IPO market will rebound.
Texas AG Accused Over Promotion of Tech Stock
The SEC says Ken Paxton hyped Servergy to investors without disclosing he had been paid for his promotional efforts.
Currency Volatility Costs Hit Record $33.9B
“Corporates are seeing more significant sustained negative impacts than at the height of the euro crisis,” FiREapps says.
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