Tag Archives: technology

Netflix Backing Could Pump Up Google Cloud Vs. Amazon.com AWS

Could video streamer Netflix ( NFLX ) give Alphabet ’s ( GOOGL ) Google a boost in its cloud computing war vs. Amazon Web Services? Morgan Stanley speculates that may the case when Netflix pops up at Google’s cloud computing user conference slated for March 23-24. While Netflix is a customer of AWS, part of e-commerce giant Amazon.com ( AMZN ), it also uses Google’s IaaS (infrastructure-as-a-service) platform. “Non-Google guest speakers at the conference include Snapchat, Spotify . . . and Netflix,” Brian Nowak, an analyst at Morgan Stanley, wrote in a research report.  “ Snapchat and Spotify are current Google Cloud users. While Netflix is a large AWS client, we believe Netflix uses Google Cloud for back-up storage. “Any endorsement and/or further Google Cloud adoption from Netflix would (help) Google Cloud establish its credibility as a competitor to AWS.” AWS is the biggest cloud services provider — where customers rent computer servers and data storage systems via the Internet — followed by Microsoft ( MSFT ) and Google. Goldman Sachs recently speculated that Google could announce price cuts at the user conference, where the new boss of Google’s cloud business, Diane Greene, will make her debut. Greene is the founder and former CEO of VMware ( VMW ), whose virtualization software is a staple in cloud data centers. One question for Alphabet shareholders, says Nowak, is whether Google’s capital spending on cloud infrastructure — data centers packed with servers and communications gear — will increase. “We expect (industry) cloud-related data center spending to grow 18% in 2016, up from 15% in 2015, and Google is a key driver, contributing one-fifth of the acceleration,” Nowak wrote. Image provided by Shutterstock .

Justice Department Encryption Headaches Will Extend Beyond Apple

Facebook ( FB ), Alphabet ( GOOGL ) and Snapchat are bolstering their encryption technology to increase user privacy, as Apple ( AAPL ) fights the U.S. government over iPhone encryption. A report from the Guardian says Facebook’s instant messaging service, WhatsApp, plans to expand its secure messaging service so that voice calls are also encrypted. WhatsApp has 1 billion monthly users. Facebook is also considering beefing up security of its own Messenger tool, the Guardian report said. Messenger has about 800 million users. The report also said Alphabet is exploring extra uses for encryption technology currently under development for its Google email services, and that Snapchat is developing encryption services for its messaging platform as well. These projects were underway before Apple’s fight with the U.S. Department of Justice over iPhone encryption. That fight began on Feb. 16 when a federal judge in Southern California ordered Apple to provide “reasonable technical assistance” to the FBI to help unlock a password-protected iPhone belonging to Syed Farook, one of the killers in the San Bernardino, Calif., terrorist attack on Dec. 2. This battle — seen as a crucial test of privacy vs. security — is headed to federal court in Riverside, Calif., as it’s being debated aggressively in the court of public opinion. Revelations that Facebook, Alphabet and Snapchat are also planning to bolster their security could further antagonize authorities. Alphabet, Facebook, Snapchat, Amazon.com ( AMZN ) and Microsoft ( MSFT ) have all signed on to legal briefs supporting Apple in the iPhone encryption fight. While the Justice Department wages war with Apple, government officials are also debating how to resolve a prolonged standoff with WhatsApp, according to a New York Times report . The report said the Justice Department is discussing how to proceed in an investigation in which a federal judge had approved a wiretap, but investigators were stymied by WhatsApp’s encryption. In a separate but related matter, on March 1 federal police in Brazil arrested a Facebook executive after the company failed to turn over information from a WhatsApp messaging account that a judge had requested for a drug trafficking investigation.

CyberArk Software Stock Upgraded Amid Lingering Acquisition Chatter

Analysts backpedaled Monday from a collective theory in February that cybersecurity spending would slump in 2016, while  CyberArk Software ( CYBR ) garnered an upgrade on continued acquisition chatter. IBD’s 25-company Computer Software-Security industry group toppled 7.4% and 7.2% in back-to-back sessions last month after Tableau Software ( DATA ) and LinkedIn ( LNKD ) issued gloomy guidance. Since then, however, the group has rebounded 28%. “Based on conversations post-RSA, our security spending concerns have diminished,” Summit Research analyst Srini Nandury wrote in a research report Monday, referring to the annual RSA cybersecurity conference this month in San Francisco, which more than 40,000 people attended. CyberArk’s bread and butter — privileged account security — remains a top spending priority in 2016, Nandury wrote. He upgraded CyberArk stock to a buy and boosted his price target to 50 from 30. Nandury noted his upgrade is supported “with persistent chatter of CyberArk as a potential acquisition candidate, while limiting downside from current levels.” Last month, rumors arose that fellow Israeli firm Check Point Software Technology ( CHKP ) might be eyeing CyberArk. In afternoon trading on the stock market today , CyberArk stock was flat, near 38.50. The IBD security software group was also flat, hurt by a 16% plunge for  NQ Mobile ( NQ ) stock. NQ announced Monday that a subsidiary of China’s Tsinghua Holdings would not be able to proceed with a planned acquisition of NQ subsidiary FL Mobile. Spending Seen Moving To CyberArk Specialty Enterprises are shifting some spending from endpoints to privileged account spending, where CyberArk leads, Nandury wrote. Surveys show cybersecurity spending at the forefront of chief information officers’ minds driven by “state-sponsored breaches and hacker collectives.” “Chief information officers understand that once hackers penetrate the perimeter, they look to hack privileged accounts (super-user and administrative accounts) to get to the data,” he wrote. “Securing privileged accounts then takes on great importance.” Nandury sees CyberArk hitting its 30% sales growth target as it aggressively expands headcount. Sales and marketing spending is expected to remain in the 35%-40% range, he says. But days before Nandury’s upgrade, William Blair analyst Jonathan Ho cut his 2017 estimates on CyberArk to take a conservative investment viewpoint. However, Ho still rates CyberArk stock at outperform. For 2017, Ho sees $1.12 earnings per share ex items vs. earlier views for $1.37. He cut pro forma operating margin to 21.2% from 26.3%, and projects 27.3% billings growth vs. earlier expectations for 33.6% growth. CyberArk’s December-quarter results were impressive, considering their difficult comparison, Ho wrote in his report. He expects CyberArk to continue market share gains against CA Technologies ( CA ) and Dell. Like Nandury, he noted that CyberArk says it hasn’t seen a drop-off in demand. A January CIO survey by Piper Jaffray shows internal access management, which includes CyberArk’s crown-jewel-protecting core, as the fifth-most-important spending target for 2016. Endpoint, compliance and Web-access firewall led the survey in terms of spending priorities.