Meeker Has Come Online
Everything you need to know about investing and the Internet, in a highly-touted new report from Mary Meeker. Not lacking in eyebrow-raisers, her time has come in the limelight.
Mary Meeker, a heralded investor herself for growth fund, Bond Cap, has been tracking the development of all-things online since the early days. As an analyst for JP Morgan in 1995, she called it! Mary saw “a lot of upside” to an infant Internet at the time. The online space is her specialism, and her coverage has plenty to say about your tech picks.
So, let’s cut to the chase. The Internet is healthy, truly globe-spanning, with growth being the catchword. The expansion of the Internet is closely interwoven with that of old-guard platforms like Facebook and Google, who are entering a maturity phase in their life cycle. Stocks hinged on e-commerce can’t have many complaints, however. Online platforms now contribute 15% of total retail sales. Amazon investors, breathe!
Putting a smartphone in the hands of billions has been a game changer for the Internet. Meeker’s report quoting a 4% decline in shipments, does bode poorly, but then again, over half the world’s population is already online!
As investors, we try to clinch the winners. Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, and Google form an elite ‘FANG’ club, scooping up most of the profits. The net has become somewhat of a ‘winner takes all’ environment, with vast network and brand advantages held by a small few giants. But don’t give up yet! Your non-tech holdings may be at the center of an offline-to-online swing. There’s almost nothing you can’t do on your phone these days, with the world-wide web a battlefield for every company.
