Google – the name evokes several associations. An internetsearch giant, one of the most innovative companies globally, bringing to market disruptive products and taking “moon shots” at things such as driverless cars and internet-beaming balloons.
However, of late, a few other things are becoming associated with the company – slowing growth and thus falling share prices, anti-competitive lawsuits, the exit of key executives and management shake-ups.
The company is fighting bitter legal battles with regulators in places such as Europe and China. Senior executives such as chief business officer, Nikesh Arora, and senior vice president, Vic Gundotra, have left the company in the last few months.
To address some of these issues, the chief executive, Larry Page, has reduced his involvement in the day-to-day running of the company to focus on major innovations.
A key reason behind these negative developments is that Google’s core business – Internet search and the associated advertising revenue it drives – is slowing. Search ads account for about 65 per cent of Google’s revenue and the growth in this segment is at its lowest in more than six years.
The reason is straight forward – people are increasingly moving their searches away from Google and on to their social networks or ecommerce sites. Instead of looking for a good nearby restaurant on Google, people just ask friends on Facebook (or Twitter) and get credible advice from friends whom they know and trust.
Similarly, while looking to buy something, users are now searching directly for their chosen items on shopping sites such as Amazon.com (in the developed markets) or Souq.com (here in the UAE for example).
Basically, search is becoming localised and also turning more social – it is also increasingly happening over mobile phones. This phenomenon is collectively known as SoLoMo – Social Local Mobile.
And the impact of SoLoMo is driving ad revenue away from Google and to the likes of Facebook, as the social network is increasingly used for things that are relevant to advertisers – search and recommendations.
To further cash in on this trend, Facebook is progressively enhancing its mobile services. Within the past year, the company has launched “premium video ads” that play automatically when users scroll through, as well as the post-view “call-to-action” buttons that allow advertisers to better track the effectiveness of their ads.
Just last month, Facebook fired another salvo at Google, by allowing users to search through old posts with keywords – much like Google. Facebook could in the future launch targeted contextual ads based on posts that the users searched for.
This might just open up new possibilities for Facebook in terms of ad monetisation. Google on the other hand is working hard to fortify itself against these market changes.
It owns the Android mobile operating system (OS), with over 80 per cent of the global market share.
Further, popular Google apps such as Maps and Navigation generate significant data about users’ locations and apps such as Chrome Now, Gmail and Inbox offer insights about user’s behaviour patterns. This knowledge arms Google with a lethal arsenal to cash in on the SoLoMo trend.
What Google still lacks is a solid ‘So’ – a social arm. Its social networking service, G+, launched in 2011 and billed as the Facebook killer, never really took off. In fact, an average G+ user now spends less than four minutes on the service every month.
Compare this to the over 7.5 hours spent on Facebook, and the gulf is there for all to see.
However, users of G+, even if they do not use the service much, allows Google to map their profiles against its other products such as YouTube and Gmail and thus create a far better profile for advertisers than Facebook can. Google is banking upon this data, to help it ride the SoLoMo wave.
Further, not wanting to be heavily reliant on search, Google is experimenting with new ways to make money.
One such example had been the November 2014 soft launch of YouTube Music Key – an ad-free, paid subscription service allowing users to stream high quality music and music videos.
Although the service is currently invitation-only and available only in select developed markets, its full scale global roll out is planned some time this year.
YouTube, in fact, is at the core of a Google fight back, especially in the markets outside of the US, which account for 80 per cent of all YouTube traffic.
Here, the Middle East region is of prime importance to both Google and Facebook.
In 2012, the region ranked second, after the US, in terms of the number of daily YouTube views. In fact, Saudi Arabia then had the highest YouTube viewership in the world with over 90 million videos viewed daily.
As Google fights Facebook in the US and lawsuits in Europe and China, it is the Middle East, and Latin America that will prove the key battle grounds in the race of advertising dollars and thus internet supremacy.
On a separate note, another big move that Google has been making is in the artificial intelligence (AI) and automation space. Prominent among the 35 companies it acquired were the home automation specialists Nest Labs (acquired for US$3.2 billion) and Dropcam (for $555 million), the solar drones and satellite maker Titan Aerospace (for an undisclosed sum) as well as DeepMind Technologies (for $400m), which also is working on AI.
Although Google has not revealed in detail how all these companies would be integrated into its fold it has shone some light on where it sees its future.
Abhinav Purohit is a UAE-based strategy consultant specialising in the telecoms and ICT industries.
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'Worse than a prison sentence'
Marie Byrne, a counsellor who volunteers at the UAE government's mental health crisis helpline, said the ordeal the crew had been through would take time to overcome.
“It was worse than a prison sentence, where at least someone can deal with a set amount of time incarcerated," she said.
“They were living in perpetual mystery as to how their futures would pan out, and what that would be.
“Because of coronavirus, the world is very different now to the one they left, that will also have an impact.
“It will not fully register until they are on dry land. Some have not seen their young children grow up while others will have to rebuild relationships.
“It will be a challenge mentally, and to find other work to support their families as they have been out of circulation for so long. Hopefully they will get the care they need when they get home.”
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021
Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.
“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.
“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.
“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.
“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”
Australia tour of Pakistan
March 4-8: First Test, Rawalpindi
March 12-16: Second Test, Karachi
March 21-25: Third Test, Lahore
March 29: First ODI, Rawalpindi
March 31: Second ODI, Rawalpindi
April 2: Third ODI, Rawalpindi
April 5: T20I, Rawalpindi
Australia tour of Pakistan
March 4-8: First Test, Rawalpindi
March 12-16: Second Test, Karachi
March 21-25: Third Test, Lahore
March 29: First ODI, Rawalpindi
March 31: Second ODI, Rawalpindi
April 2: Third ODI, Rawalpindi
April 5: T20I, Rawalpindi
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Teaching your child to save
Pre-school (three - five years)
You can’t yet talk about investing or borrowing, but introduce a “classic” money bank and start putting gifts and allowances away. When the child wants a specific toy, have them save for it and help them track their progress.
Early childhood (six - eight years)
Replace the money bank with three jars labelled ‘saving’, ‘spending’ and ‘sharing’. Have the child divide their allowance into the three jars each week and explain their choices in splitting their pocket money. A guide could be 25 per cent saving, 50 per cent spending, 25 per cent for charity and gift-giving.
Middle childhood (nine - 11 years)
Open a bank savings account and help your child establish a budget and set a savings goal. Introduce the notion of ‘paying yourself first’ by putting away savings as soon as your allowance is paid.
Young teens (12 - 14 years)
Change your child’s allowance from weekly to monthly and help them pinpoint long-range goals such as a trip, so they can start longer-term saving and find new ways to increase their saving.
Teenage (15 - 18 years)
Discuss mutual expectations about university costs and identify what they can help fund and set goals. Don’t pay for everything, so they can experience the pride of contributing.
Young adulthood (19 - 22 years)
Discuss post-graduation plans and future life goals, quantify expenses such as first apartment, work wardrobe, holidays and help them continue to save towards these goals.
* JP Morgan Private Bank
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Fifa Club World Cup:
When: December 6-16
Where: Games to take place at Zayed Sports City in Abu Dhabi and Hazza bin Zayed Stadium in Al Ain
Defending champions: Real Madrid
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Profile of VoucherSkout
Date of launch: November 2016
Founder: David Tobias
Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers
Sector: Technology
Size: 18 employees
Stage: Embarking on a Series A round to raise $5 million in the first quarter of 2019 with a 20 per cent stake
Investors: Seed round was self-funded with “millions of dollars”
INDIA SQUADS
India squad for third Test against Sri Lanka
Virat Kohli (capt), Murali Vijay, Lokesh Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Vijay Shankar
India squad for ODI series against Sri Lanka
Rohit Sharma (capt), Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Siddarth Kaul
