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The Hindu
26-04-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Alphabet climbs as AI bets drive ad strength, quelling market fears
Alphabet shares jumped about 4% on Friday, after a solid earnings report from the Google parent showed investors that its bold bets on AI were fueling growth in the core advertising business, soothing some concerns around competition and tariff-related pressures. Google's advertising revenue rose a better-than-expected 8.5% in the first quarter, in a welcome respite to investors who were worried that a decline in U.S. ad spending amid global trade tensions could significantly dent the digital ad market. Industry data from early April that showed a sharp pullback in U.S. digital ad spending from Temu and Shein - the biggest advertisers on Google Search in the U.S. - further fanned fears. Meanwhile, reports on cloud computing rivals Amazon and Microsoft scaling back on some data center projects had sparked fears that Big Tech might have been overly aggressive in its AI-related outlays, and rising economic uncertainty could be now forcing companies to rethink their plans. "Against the backdrop of negative sentiment and data checks, regulation woes, competition concerns and macro related fears, Alphabet reported a blow to bears, with... strong growth across all major segments," Deutsche Bank analyst Benjamin Black wrote. While Google noted that the Trump administration's recent trade policy changes would cause a "slight headwind" to its ads business this year, executives did not raise any alarm bells on a broad advertising slowdown. Google's report helped lift social media stocks higher on Friday, with Instagram-parent Meta Platforms up 2% and image-sharing platform Pinterest rising 1%. Snapchat-owner Snap climbed about 3%. After announcing a $70 billion share buyback plan, Alphabet also said AI Overviews - the summaries that appear above traditional hyperlinks to relevant webpages - now have 1.5 billion users per month, within about a year after its launch. "Google is in a race versus OpenAI, Perplexity and others to drive AI usage, and we continue to believe Google has data and distribution advantages and has closed the ... performance gap," brokerage BofA Global Research said. Alphabet's 12-month forward price-to-earnings ratio stands at 17.33, trailing Microsoft's 26.56 and Meta's 20.49. The stock has fallen about 16% this year, while Microsoft and Meta have lost some 8% and 9%, respectively. "Perhaps Dr. Google is just what this market needed — a healthy dose of strong fundamental performance," Bernstein analyst Mark Shmulik said.
CNA
25-04-2025
- Business
- CNA
Alphabet climbs as AI bets drive ad strength, quelling market fears
Alphabet shares jumped about 4 per cent on Friday, after a solid earnings report from the Google parent showed investors that its bold bets on AI were fueling growth in the core advertising business, soothing some concerns around competition and tariff-related pressures. Google's advertising revenue rose a better-than-expected 8.5 per cent in the first quarter, in a welcome respite to investors who were worried that a decline in U.S. ad spending amid global trade tensions could significantly dent the digital ad market. Industry data from early April that showed a sharp pullback in U.S. digital ad spending from Temu and Shein - the biggest advertisers on Google Search in the U.S. - further fanned fears. Meanwhile, reports on cloud computing rivals Amazon and Microsoft scaling back on some data center projects had sparked fears that Big Tech might have been overly aggressive in its AI-related outlays, and rising economic uncertainty could be now forcing companies to rethink their plans. "Against the backdrop of negative sentiment and data checks, regulation woes, competition concerns and macro related fears, Alphabet reported a blow to bears, with... strong growth across all major segments," Deutsche Bank analyst Benjamin Black wrote. While Google noted that the Trump administration's recent trade policy changes would cause a "slight headwind" to its ads business this year, executives did not raise any alarm bells on a broad advertising slowdown. Google's report helped lift social media stocks higher on Friday, with Instagram-parent Meta Platforms up 2 per cent and image-sharing platform Pinterest rising 1 per cent. Snapchat-owner Snap climbed about 3 per cent. After announcing a $70 billion share buyback plan, Alphabet also said AI Overviews - the summaries that appear above traditional hyperlinks to relevant webpages - now have 1.5 billion users per month, within about a year after its launch. "Google is in a race versus OpenAI, Perplexity and others to drive AI usage, and we continue to believe Google has data and distribution advantages and has closed the ... performance gap," brokerage BofA Global Research said. Alphabet's 12-month forward price-to-earnings ratio stands at 17.33, trailing Microsoft's 26.56 and Meta's 20.49. The stock has fallen about 16 per cent this year, while Microsoft and Meta have lost some 8 per cent and 9 per cent, respectively. "Perhaps Dr. Google is just what this market needed — a healthy dose of strong fundamental performance," Bernstein analyst Mark Shmulik said.
Malaysian Reserve
22-04-2025
- Business
- Malaysian Reserve
Meta, TikTok pan Australia ban as YouTube gets personal pass
META Platforms Inc., TikTok and Snap Inc. questioned the integrity of Australia's looming social media ban for under-16s after it emerged that Communications Minister Michelle Rowland made a personal pledge to YouTube's boss to exempt the platform before a consultation process on the carveout had begun. In a Dec. 9 letter to YouTube Chief Executive Officer Neal Mohan — a copy of which was obtained under freedom-of-information laws — Rowland said she was writing to 'reaffirm the commitment' that the government would exclude YouTube from the ban. Her assurance came days after the legislation passed Australia's parliament, but weeks before Rowland's own department sought feedback on the proposed exemption. The government's overarching effort is to protect young people from the harmful effects of social media and online content. Services like Meta's Instagram have been shown to have negative effects on mental health and TikTok's short videos are famously addictive. All these content providers have objected to the ban in the first instance, but have also questioned why Alphabet Inc.'s YouTube would be treated differently. TikTok called on Rowland to explain why she promised YouTube 'a free pass, before any consultation, including with experts, had even begun.' Her letter 'raises serious questions about the integrity of the government's plan,' ByteDance Ltd.-owned TikTok said Tuesday. It was clear in late November that YouTube would be excluded from Australia's social media crackdown. But Rowland's one-to-one communications with CEO Mohan has triggered fresh exasperation among YouTube's rivals that the most popular online platform among Australian kids has somehow escaped the tough new restrictions. Rowland's letter shows she planned to meet Mohan on Dec. 13, a few days after she wrote to him. 'We are disappointed in the process, which has been marked by a lack of transparency and open discourse,' Facebook-owner Meta said in a statement Tuesday. YouTube's exemption 'simply doesn't make sense.' Snapchat-owner Snap urged Rowland to reverse her position on YouTube. A Snap spokesperson said 'blanket assurances made to the CEO of YouTube that the company would be excluded raise some serious questions about the fairness of this process.' In a statement, a spokesperson for Rowland said she decided to exempt YouTube in November 'and there has been zero reconsideration or communication to suggest otherwise — despite misleading attempts by TikTok, Snapchat, and Facebook to imply that it was.' The under-16s ban, due to come into force at the end of this year, gives Australia's government flexibility to change the list of companies that must comply. –BLOOMBERG
Yahoo
20-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Underage Users at Meta, Snap Show Large Australian Breaches
(Bloomberg) -- Meta Platforms Inc., TikTok, Snapchat and other leading social media platforms probably have more than 1 million underage users in Australia, a regulatory report said, highlighting the scale of policy failure at the companies before the country enforces unprecedented user age limits this year. Trump to Halt NY Congestion Pricing by Terminating Approval Sorry, Kids: Disney's New York Headquarters Is for Grown-Ups Airbnb Billionaire Offers Pre-Fab Homes for LA Fire Victims Child Migrant Watchdog Gutted in DOGE Cuts Chicago Council Delays $830 Million Bond Vote Amid Scrutiny About 80% of children in Australia aged between 8 and 12 used at least one platform in 2024, research by the country's eSafety Commissioner released Thursday showed. The findings indicate social media companies are allowing about 1.3 million kids nationwide to flout their own rules barring under-13s from their platforms, the regulator said. The watchdog's research depicted a social media industry with few effective controls over who signs up to their services, despite the risks to children from harmful content and other users. The report suggests the platforms are largely ill-prepared for controversial legislation, due to take effect by December, that will raise the minimum age for social media users in Australia to 16 years. 'All of these companies have a long way to go,' eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said in an interview. 'Some of them are starting from a very low bar.' The legislation means the number of social media users deemed underage in Australia will suddenly balloon. There are more than 1 million users aged between 13 and 15 currently using the most popular platforms, according to the eSafety Commissioner. The regulator said it used its powers to make the platforms disclose the data. Australia's crackdown is part of a global effort to raise social-media age limits or tighten oversight of online content. Inman Grant said the discussions she's had with platforms, including Snap, about the upcoming law changes indicates they're worried that other countries will follow Australia's model. 'They are concerned about the first domino,' she said. A TikTok spokesperson said the safety of its users was the company's highest priority. Since 2023, TikTok has used age-detection tools to remove more than 1 million Australian users suspected of being under the age of 13, the spokesperson said. Representatives for Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, and Snapchat-owner Snap Inc. either had no immediate comment or didn't reply to voicemails and emails seeking a response to the eSafety Commissioner's report. Under the new Australian law, digital platforms will themselves be responsible for enforcing the higher age limit, with penalties of as much as A$50 million ($32 million) for breaches. The legislation requires platforms to take 'reasonable steps' to stop under-16s from signing up. YouTube and Discord are exempt from the ban. Inman Grant said what's considered a reasonable step hasn't yet been determined. But she said it will have to go beyond a simple self-declaration of age by the user. Options include determining age through facial analysis, online behavior or word choice, she said. She rejected claims by companies including Meta that Australia's new law overlooks the reality of age-assurance technology. 'It's not a matter of capability, resources or access to advanced technology,' she said. 'Frankly, it's been a form of willful blindness. They haven't been forced to implement more robust forms of age assurance.' 'Think about how some of these platforms can target you with deadly precision when it comes to advertising,' she said. To be sure, Inman Grant said it's inevitable that some under-16s will get around whatever new controls the platforms put in place, but the law will still offer more protection to vulnerable kids. 'The hope is that we can at least shield them from some of the more harmful and deceptive features,' she said. 'With the manipulative algorithms, the dark patterns and the rabbit holes, it's not really a fair fight, when you think about it.' (Adds response from TikTok in seventh paragraph.) Japan Perfected 7-Eleven. Why Can't the US Get It Right? How Med Spas Conquered America Before DeepSeek Blew Up, Chatbot Arena Announced Its Arrival The Startup That Stepped In When the Baby Formula Supply Chain Broke Elon Musk's DOGE Is a Force Americans Can't Afford to Ignore ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
