2019年7月26日

Google and Facebook react to Australian government crackdown — and their lobby group is worried about 'unintended consequences'

DIGI — the lobby group representing the political interests of Google, Facebook, Twitter and other big digital platforms in Australia — has officially responded to the federal government’s release of 23 recommendations for reform which could have major implications for its members’ business models. The industry body is worried about “unintended consequences” if the recommendations of the competition and consumer watchdog, the ACCC, are implemented.

“We urge the Australian Government to assess the ACCC’s recommendations against an innovation test, closely examining how they will impact Australia’s digital industry at large and Australia’s global standing as a place to invest in technology,” said DIGI managing director Sunita Bose.

Bose seemed to suggest the report has strayed from its original purpose, pointing out that “the terms of reference of the inquiry were to look at the impact of digital platforms on competition in the media and advertising services market, with the incredibly important goal of protecting the future of journalism”. “The final report examines important topics in relation to Australia’s changing media and advertising industry and we have engaged closely with the ACCC throughout the process,” the spokesperson said. “We are fully committed to engaging in the consultation process around this report, while continuing to deliver the benefits of technology to the millions of Australians who use our services,” he said.

It is important to get the rules for digital news distribution right, as they could impact the 16 million Australians who use our services to connect, share, and build community, as well as the hundreds of thousands of small businesses that use our free tools to grow, thrive, and create jobs.

Atlassian cracks US$1 billion in revenue for the first time – but still turned a profit of under US$1 million

Atlassian has announced its results of the 2018-19 financial year, revealing it passed the US$1 billion revenue mark for the first time. Co-founder Scott Farquhar said in a statement that the 2019 fiscal year was “another outstanding year for Atlassian”, noting that the software unicorn bypassed 150,000 customers during that time – tripling its initial 50,000 target.

But while the statement made a big show of the revenue figures, the profit numbers were a little more obscured, to be found a little deeper in the earnings documents. The documents indicate the company earned $999,842 in gross profits, up from $708,288 this time in 2017-18 financial year. Atlassian noted other achievements it made during the 2019 fiscal year, including its acquisition of list-making application Trello and incident management platform Opsgenie, as well as the number of purchases on the Atlassian Marketplace totalling more than US$3 million.

Fellow co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes said Atlassian is a cloud-first company, with more than 125,000 of its customers using its cloud products. “In fiscal 2020, we will continue to invest in our cloud business to serve the needs of the ‘Fortune 500,000’ and drive our long-term growth,” he said in a statement.

This investment in the cloud is one of three areas Atlassian is focusing on in the 2020 fiscal year. The other two factors include migrating its on-premises customers to the cloud and having more competitive pricing – with some free products being considered. Atlassian’s long-term goal is to have more than 100 million active users of its products and services. 

“Achieving a mission this big will take time, commitment, and a long-term focus. We’re ready,” the company said in its shareholder letter.

Apple and Microsoft are both investing in SoftBank's newest $108 billion mega-fund for startups

SoftBank has closed $US108 billion for its second Vision Fund – a mega-sized fund that the Japanese giant intends to invest in startups. Confirming previous reports, the Japanese telecom giant’s Vision Fund II counts Apple, Foxconn, and Microsoft as backers from the tech industry, in addition to several international banking partners.

SoftBank’s first Vision Fund backed some of the biggest names in tech, including Uber, Slack, and soon-to-be-public WeWork. Japanese billionaire Masayoshi Son personally led the $US100 billion first fund since its launch in 2017. According to the release, Mizuho Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui, MUFG Bank, Dai-ichi, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust, SMBC Nikko, Daiwa, National Investment Corporation of National Bank of Kazakhstan, and Standard Chartered Bank are among the banking partners expected to back this new fund.

SoftBank itself will also commit $US38 billion to the second fund, less than the expected $US40 billion that was previously expected. Goldman Sachs and Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, a sovereign wealth fund, were both backers of SoftBank’s first Vision Fund, but were not listed as confirmed backers for Vision Fund II. However, the release only includes companies that have signed on to the fund, and does not exclude others from joining the fund at a later date.