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.
One of the ways to turn the company around is a change in management, says Michael Pachter, an analyst from Wedbush Securities. Shares of the social media company took a hit Wednesday, a day after it delivered disappointing quarterly results.
Though the music streaming platform posted results in-line with expectations on revenue and paid subscribers, the company is still losing money, and revenue growth for the current quarter looks uninspiring. Spotify's shares fell about eight percent after the bell Wednesday.
The electric carmaker brought in more revenue than expected in the first quarter but posted a net loss of over $780 million. It said it would reverse that by the second half of the year, if it's able to meet its production goals.
The video sharing platform is deliberately staying away from original content because there's already "billions of dollars being invested in that," said CEO Anjali Sud. Instead, she added, Vimeo is focused on being a tool for creators.
Apple and Snap reported earnings with wildly different results. Apple beat expectations on earnings and revenue, bolstered by strong iPhone sales, international growth, and an increase in wearables. The iPhone X was Apple's best-selling phone last quarter, putting rumors to rest that it would discontinue the phone.
On the other hand, Snap had a pretty disappointing quarter, missing Wall Street estimates on revenue and user growth. The unpopular redesign to the Snapchat app likely contributed to slower than expected daily active user growth.
Facebook's F8 developer conference is underway in San Jose, California. Cheddar's Alex Heath sat down with Ime Archibong, Facebook's VP of Partnerships, at the conference to discuss how the company is changing its data practices in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
"We have a really strong conviction that VR is the most incredible social entertainment platform there could be," says Hugo Barra, Vice President of Virtual Reality at the social media giant. The new Oculus Go lets users watch movies, sports games, or concerts together, and even "hang out" and play board games, Barra tells Cheddar's Alex Heath.
Facebook said it will resume its process of reviewing third-party apps using new, tighter controls after the Cambridge Analytica scandal revealed holes in the social network's data privacy protocols.
Telecom giant Verizon has been angling to get a bigger slice of the digital content industry, because these days people are leap-frogging cable networks altogether and going straight to internet streaming, says Chris Carey, Chief Strategy Officer for Verizon Digital Media Services. "This year, and in the next three to four years, all the technology has been solved for, so essentially all of the television distribution services are no longer necessary," he tells Cheddar.
The film and TV studio known for the "Hunger Games" has invested heavily in acquiring game developers and esports franchises. "I think the hardest thing to do in media, and probably the most expensive thing to do, is to launch a globally successful video game," says Peter Levin, President of Interactive Ventures, a unit of the studio.
The platform recently surpassed five million home and apartment listings with plans to keep growing that space, says Gillian Tans, CEO of the unit.
