Thursday Nov.14, 2019

Google gets a banking job

_Google meets Citibank_

Hey Snackers,

Emma Watson calls herself "self-partnered." Not single. We're calling Merriam-Webster's 2019 "Word of the Year" early.

The Dow drove up Wednesday thanks to a huge/distracting opening day for Disney+. The rest of the market is wondering why US/China trade negotiations are suddenly held up.

Explore

Google plans to launch checking accounts, but it doesn't want to be a bank

Codename: "Cache"... It's money. And it's tech. That's what Google stealthily calls its checking account project, which will launch next year with Citibank's help. Alphabet's financey move follows Apple (its new credit card is powered by Goldman Sachs) and Facebook (it just unveiled Facebook Pay while also working on a global cryptocurrency). But here's Google's plan:

Contact-less: You'd pay via Google Pay. If you're nostalgic for a physical card, you'll stick with your old school bank.
Fees?: Unclear. Google didn't mention if it'll charge the fees you hate paying.

Follow the money... Even if Google doesn't charge fees, it could make money off this. It's said it won't sell your spending data, but didn't say it won't eyeball your spending habits... then target you with better ads (which Google can charge more for). Half of Americans use debit cards daily, so picture this:

If you splurged for the fancy premium Ikon ski pass, Google could target you with ads for an Arc'teryx parka ($$$$).
If you stuck with the lower-priced budget Ikon ski pass, Google could target you with ads for that Columbia jacket ($$).

Silicon Valley wants to be your bank, but doesn't want to become a bank... Banks are regulated. Hardcore. Alphabet and Apple aren't interested, so they're letting actual banks handle the backend while they look good up front. It's like those Bathtub Fitter commercials. Big Tech doesn't get the business benefits of being a bank, but it's more embedded in your daily life through your payments.

Split

Nike breaks up with Amazon, deciding everything should happen at Nike.com

(Gasp). Wait. (Gasp)... Amazon doesn't take rejection well. But it just got dumped by Nike. It's ending the 2-year relationship and moving out because it doesn't want to sell its gear on Amazon.com anymore.

We smelled this ghosting before it happened... Nike CEO Mark Parker was replaced by eBay's former CEO last month — and he's already flexed his ecommerce muscles by going directly to consumers online instead of via Amazon. That move could lose the love of Prime members and their "ship 2-day-free or it's not me" policy. But here are 3 big benefits to owning your own online shopping:

You get customers' email addresses. Then you can pepper their inbox's promotions tab daily with reminders that you exist and sell things.
You don't get middlemen. Cut out the platforms that may take a cut of every sale of your goods on their sites.
You control the customer experience. Nike.com is a sleek, ripped website. Amazon.com isn't. Better looks leave customers happier and willing to pay higher prices.

The real winner here is Shopify... If you buy something online, there's a good chance it's powered by Amazon or Shopify. Shopify lets retailers control the front-end website, while it handles the back-end logistics. Nike may or may not become a Shopify customer — but if other big brands ditch Amazon, Shopify wins.

Shopify stock rose 2.9% Wednesday.
Amazon's fell 1.4%.

What else we’re Snackin’

Trailer: Disney added 10M subscribers to Disney+ on its 1st day of streaming — and now Disney's market value is twice as much as Netflix's
Sequel: Netflix didn't want to be outdone during Disney+ week, so it inked a multi-year content deal with Nickelodeon
Venti: Starbucks opens its largest Roastery in the world tomorrow: 5 floors of Wonka-esque coffee-ness in Chicago
Down: Canada Goose is focused on "extreme weather outerwear" for the Upper East Side's pseudo-arctic chills, but shares dropped 11% on word Hong Kong protests affected its sales
IPA'd: AB-InBev treats itself to buying up the rest of Craft Brew Alliance (makers of Kona beer and other go-to micros that are now awkwardly part of the Budweiser family)
Arriving: DoorDash snags another $100M in funding to hit a fresh $13B valuation in the Delivery Wars

Thursday

Earnings from Walmart, Viacom, and NVIDIA
Fed Chairman Jay Powell gives an update on the central bank to Congress

Disclosure: Authors of this Snacks own shares of Amazon

ID: 1011956

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Quite a few news outlets are reporting that Apple thinks it’s only going to sell 400,000 to 450,000 Vision Pros in 2024, compared a “market consensus” of 700,000 to 800,000. They’re all citing a note from Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

Obviously there’s no question that Apple’s $3,500 face computer will have a limited audience and could be a huge flop, but this also doesn’t seem like accurate news.

The issue is that 1) this 400,000 number isn’t new. Back in July of 2023, the Financial Times reported that Apple planned to make fewer than 400,000 units in 2024, reducing its initial projections of 1M units, citing two people close to Apple and, the Chinese contract manufacturer assembling the device. 2) It's unclear who was estimating 700,000-800,000 Vision Pros in the first place, but it appears that it was Ming-Chi Kuo himself?