FitBit is a pioneer in wearable technology. But the company has recently shifted its strategy amid competition from the Apple Watch, and as the wearable market has failed to really see mass adoption. Cheddar's Hope King and Brad Smith explore the company's performance using E*Trade's innovative platform.
Adult wearable technology users in the U.S. is expected to grow nearly 12 percent this year, according to eMarketer. In a survey conducted by Cheddar, 18 percent said they own a FitBit compared to 27 percent who've said they own an Apple Watch. 47 percent of those surveyed by Cheddar say they don't wear any wearable technology.
FitBit has had an up and down year, with shares ranging between $5 and $7 a share. Overall, shares are down 17 percent over the course of the past year. The company did introduce its first smartwatch in 2017, and is looking to directly compete against the Apple Watch at a similar price point. Shares also hit a 52-week high in December during the holiday shopping season.
FitBit reports fourth quarter earnings after the Closing Bell Monday. Analysts expect revenue of nearly $590 Million, and to break even in profit.
Facebook soared in extended trading on Wednesday after reporting fourth-quarter earnings and revenue that beat Wall Street forecasts. Facebook reported earnings per share of $2.38 on revenue of $16.91 billion. That topped analysts' expectations for $2.19 earnings per share on $16.4 billion in revenue, according to Thomson Reuters.
Visible wants to make signing up for a phone service as easy as calling a Lyft. The digital-only wireless carrier backed by Verizon offers unlimited text, talk, data, and hot-spot for $40 a month. CEO Miguel Quiroga, a telecom industry veteran, says that this is the phone service that consumers want.
As digital advertising is increasingly beholden to the Google/Facebook duopoly, Glamour is experimenting with what it sees as the future of the industry: a multi-faceted revenue model that uses a combination of traditional ads, metered or niche paywalls, events, audio and e-commerce, even as it kills off its one-time moneymaker, the monthly print edition. Samantha Barry, Glamour's editor-in-chief, told Cheddar in an interview Wednesday that she sees the 80-year-old iconic brand as a "service for women."
The ongoing feud between Apple and Facebook just heated up. Apple said on Wednesday that it revoked Facebook’s access to its Developer Enterprise Program, a move that kneecaps the social network and marks a steep escalation of tensions between the two tech giants.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2019.
Waze is rolling out its beacon technology in New York City to improve tunnel navigation and help drivers commute in and out of the Big Apple. "This allows us to basically locate the users inside the tunnels," said head of Waze Beacons Gil Disatnik in an interview on Cheddar Tuesday.
Apple spiked in extended trading on Tuesday after reporting earnings and revenue that pleased Wall Street. Apple reported earnings per share of $4.18 on revenue of $84.31 billion, just exceeding the expectations of analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters for earnings of $4.17 per share on $83.97 billion in revenue.
IBM is unleashing its 2019 Call for Code to university students in partnership with the Clinton Foundation. The two forces combined hope to enlist the help even more students worldwide to solve problems relating to natural disasters, like Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico."If you think about all the innovative technology that we have at IBM, we really are unleashing it to solve some of the major societal issues that we have, focused specifically here on natural disasters in 2018 and 2019," IBM Chief Digital Officer Bob Lord told Cheddar. "We are not going to stop natural disasters, but we can sure get prepared for them and respond to them more effectively than ever before, and I believe, through technology."
Apple is planning a subscription service that would function like Netflix for games, according to people familiar with the matter. The iPhone maker has also discussed partnering with developers as a publisher, which could signal ambitions to assume distribution and marketing costs for games.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2019.
