Articles by Todd Bishop

Former Activision-Blizzard CFO resigns from Smartsheet board after internal backlash

by Todd Bishop on August 22, 2022August 22, 2022 at 5:10 pm

Dennis Durkin, former Activision Blizzard chief financial officer, resigned from the board of Smartsheet, the Bellevue, Wash.-based collaboration and work management technology company, citing unspecified personal reasons, less than a… Read More

Podcast

Understanding Amazon: Secrets of the company’s success, and where it’s headed next

by Todd Bishop on August 20, 2022August 20, 2022 at 10:48 am

Amazon is one of the most extraordinary business stories of our time. Many people in the tech industry have a general understanding of this story, picking up bits and pieces… Read More

How Microsoft’s AI convinced me to switch to Edge, and where the browser still falls short

by Todd Bishop on August 19, 2022August 19, 2022 at 12:31 pm

I finally broke down and switched to Microsoft’s Edge browser this week on my Windows PC, after many years of using Google Chrome. No, it wasn’t the incessant and annoying… Read More

‘Gold standard’ or unconstitutional? Facebook and Wash. state AG spar over political ad disclosure law

by Todd Bishop on August 17, 2022August 17, 2022 at 1:41 pm

Facebook parent company Meta and Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson agree on this: the state’s campaign advertising disclosure law is exceptional. But is that good or bad — and more… Read More

SEC sues Dragonchain, alleging that $16.5M in crypto sales were illegal securities offerings

by Todd Bishop on August 16, 2022August 17, 2022 at 1:42 pm

Dragonchain, a cryptocurrency company based in Bellevue, Wash., was sued Tuesday by the Securities and Exchange Commission on allegations that it engaged in the illegal sale of unregistered securities through… Read More

Video

Amazon moves physical retail tech teams into cloud division, looking to accelerate third-party adoption

by Todd Bishop on August 15, 2022August 15, 2022 at 5:38 pm

Amazon is shifting tech teams for its physical stores from its consumer division to its Amazon Web Services cloud division, aiming to further expand the use of the company’s in-store… Read More

‘Metaverse’ is in, ‘mixed reality’ out: Reading the tech tea leaves in Microsoft’s new words

by Todd Bishop on August 15, 2022August 15, 2022 at 9:23 am

Microsoft’s future just got a major edit. The metaverse, hybrid work, flexibility, trust, and technology’s role in the global economy are some of the new additions in the latest version… Read More

Podcast

What we learned from the life of early Amazon investor and Seattle business leader Tom Alberg

by Todd Bishop on August 13, 2022August 13, 2022 at 9:52 am

Seattle-based investor and business leader Tom Alberg, who died last week at the age of 82, was a key figure in the e-commerce and wireless industries, and in the Seattle… Read More

Amazon sues six alleged fake review sites — we chatted with one that didn’t believe suit was real

by Todd Bishop on August 12, 2022August 12, 2022 at 12:48 pm

Amazon has been targeting alleged sellers of fake product reviews for the past seven years, starting with the first suit of its kind in 2015. A new wave of suits… Read More

How Amazon’s mandate against media leaks helped to seal its $3.9B deal to acquire One Medical

by Todd Bishop on August 11, 2022August 12, 2022 at 9:10 pm

A new regulatory filing details Amazon’s behind-the-scenes talks for One Medical, leading up to the Seattle tech giant’s agreement to acquire the primary care company for $3.9 billion, announced by… Read More

Microsoft’s belt-tightening is the latest sign of the economic times

by Todd Bishop on August 10, 2022August 10, 2022 at 11:52 am

“As we manage through this period, we will continue to invest in future growth while maintaining intense focus on operational excellence and execution discipline.” — Amy Hood, Microsoft chief financial… Read More

Remembering Tom Alberg: How an understated investor had an outsized impact on Seattle tech

by Todd Bishop on August 8, 2022August 8, 2022 at 12:05 pm

Tom Alberg will be remembered publicly for everything he did to help create and shape the Seattle region’s tech industry, and for his early investment in Amazon, seeing the potential… Read More

Video

Tom Alberg, 1940-2022: Early Amazon investor was a champion of Pacific Northwest tech

by Lisa Stiffler & Todd Bishop on August 6, 2022August 6, 2022 at 2:30 pm

Tom Alberg, a Seattle business and civic leader who played an instrumental role in the creation of industries ranging from e-commerce to wireless communications, died peacefully at his home on… Read More

Podcast

The state of the tech economy: Takeaways from Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Meta and Alphabet

by Todd Bishop on August 6, 2022August 6, 2022 at 10:16 am

This week on the GeekWire Podcast, we play highlights and offer our thoughts on the recent earnings calls of Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Meta and Alphabet, seeking to better understand what’s… Read More

As Amazon vacuums up iRobot, critics call on regulators to pull the plug on Big Tech deals

by Todd Bishop on August 5, 2022August 5, 2022 at 12:24 pm

Amazon’s proposed acquisition of Roomba maker iRobot for $1.7 billion could push its annual spending on acquisitions to a new high, when combined with its purchase of MGM for $8.45… Read More

Taking off: Expedia Group sees travel rebound, accelerates shift to unified tech platform

by Todd Bishop on August 4, 2022August 10, 2022 at 1:43 pm

Seattle-based online travel giant Expedia Group posted better-than-expected results for the second quarter, saying demand for travel was strong despite the uncertain economy and the lingering effects of COVID-19 around… Read More

Mysterious company files patent suits vs. Seattle and Sacramento over parking payment technology

by Todd Bishop on August 4, 2022August 4, 2022 at 12:03 pm

A company registered to a virtual mailbox in Seattle’s University District, which four months ago acquired a trio of parking technology patents that predate the iPhone, is using one as… Read More

With Google’s Mandiant deal pending, Microsoft looks to get ahead in security threat intelligence

by Todd Bishop on August 2, 2022August 2, 2022 at 10:48 am

Microsoft announced two new security threat intelligence products Tuesday morning, the latest moves in a broader effort to help businesses proactively sniff out and prevent cyberattacks. Built in part on… Read More

Podcast

The pioneering spirit and joyful life of late ‘Cranium’ creator Richard Tait, in his own words

by Todd Bishop on July 30, 2022July 30, 2022 at 12:33 pm

Growing up as a child in Scotland, one of Richard Tait’s heroes was entrepreneur Richard Branson. After Tait co-founded board game company Cranium in Seattle, he was on a mission… Read More

New filing: Microsoft added record 40,000 employees in past year, up 22%, before job cuts

by Todd Bishop on July 29, 2022July 29, 2022 at 10:51 am

Hiring and acquisitions boosted employment to record levels at Microsoft as of the end of the company’s recent fiscal year, a new regulatory filing shows. Microsoft had 221,000 employees as… Read More

Amazon’s 1st-party online sales drop to 42% of business as 3rd-party units hit new high

by Todd Bishop on July 28, 2022July 28, 2022 at 5:24 pm

Amazon wants to expand long-term into areas such as a healthcare, self-driving taxis, and home robots, but two data points from its latest results reveal a more fundamental transformation already… Read More

Amazon sheds record 99k employees after overstaffing warehouses, will slow office hiring

by Todd Bishop on July 28, 2022July 29, 2022 at 10:35 am

Amazon’s direct workforce declined by 99,000 employees from the first to the second quarter, to 1.52 million people, the largest sequential drop in its history, after overstaffing its warehouses to… Read More

Full text: Microsoft’s multi-cloud vision would keep Amazon from running away with federal deals

by Todd Bishop on July 28, 2022July 28, 2022 at 11:00 am

A draft document circulated by Microsoft calls for the use of multiple cloud vendors as “the de facto standard for US Government Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) and Platform as… Read More

Profits decline in Microsoft’s Windows division for first time since height of pandemic

by Todd Bishop on July 27, 2022July 27, 2022 at 11:33 am

Profits fell more than 5% in the Microsoft division that includes the company’s Windows business, the first decline in nearly three years, as the PC sales surge brought on by… Read More

Microsoft earnings come up short, hit by global economic trends and cutbacks

by Todd Bishop on July 26, 2022July 26, 2022 at 5:03 pm

Microsoft just reported its financial results for the three months ended June 30, 2022, the fourth quarter of its 2022 fiscal year. Both revenue and profits came in below Wall… Read More

Tech Moves: Amazon promotes two execs to SVP; Providence exec named Teladoc COO; and more

by Charlotte Schubert & Todd Bishop on July 26, 2022July 27, 2022 at 1:09 pm

— Amazon has promoted two executives to senior vice president: James Hamilton, a distinguished engineer at the company; and Drew Herdener, who leads worldwide communications. Both were previously vice presidents… Read More

Big earnings week ahead: Microsoft’s numbers to serve as barometer of the uncertain economy

by Todd Bishop on July 25, 2022July 25, 2022 at 10:10 am

Will Microsoft’s guidance for its Azure cloud business exceed 40% growth? That’s one way Wall Street will be using Microsoft’s quarterly report Tuesday afternoon to gauge not just the company’s… Read More

Podcast

Articles by Todd Bishop

Top Stories from Todd Bishop

Understanding Amazon: Secrets of the company’s success, and where it’s headed next

Latest from Todd Bishop

Former Activision-Blizzard CFO resigns from Smartsheet board after internal backlash

Understanding Amazon: Secrets of the company’s success, and where it’s headed next

How Microsoft’s AI convinced me to switch to Edge, and where the browser still falls short

‘Gold standard’ or unconstitutional? Facebook and Wash. state AG spar over political ad disclosure law

SEC sues Dragonchain, alleging that $16.5M in crypto sales were illegal securities offerings

Amazon moves physical retail tech teams into cloud division, looking to accelerate third-party adoption

‘Metaverse’ is in, ‘mixed reality’ out: Reading the tech tea leaves in Microsoft’s new words

What we learned from the life of early Amazon investor and Seattle business leader Tom Alberg

Amazon sues six alleged fake review sites — we chatted with one that didn’t believe suit was real

How Amazon’s mandate against media leaks helped to seal its $3.9B deal to acquire One Medical

Microsoft’s belt-tightening is the latest sign of the economic times

Remembering Tom Alberg: How an understated investor had an outsized impact on Seattle tech

Tom Alberg, 1940-2022: Early Amazon investor was a champion of Pacific Northwest tech

The state of the tech economy: Takeaways from Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Meta and Alphabet

As Amazon vacuums up iRobot, critics call on regulators to pull the plug on Big Tech deals

Taking off: Expedia Group sees travel rebound, accelerates shift to unified tech platform

Mysterious company files patent suits vs. Seattle and Sacramento over parking payment technology

With Google’s Mandiant deal pending, Microsoft looks to get ahead in security threat intelligence

The pioneering spirit and joyful life of late ‘Cranium’ creator Richard Tait, in his own words

New filing: Microsoft added record 40,000 employees in past year, up 22%, before job cuts

Amazon’s 1st-party online sales drop to 42% of business as 3rd-party units hit new high

Amazon sheds record 99k employees after overstaffing warehouses, will slow office hiring

Full text: Microsoft’s multi-cloud vision would keep Amazon from running away with federal deals

Profits decline in Microsoft’s Windows division for first time since height of pandemic

Microsoft earnings come up short, hit by global economic trends and cutbacks

Tech Moves: Amazon promotes two execs to SVP; Providence exec named Teladoc COO; and more

Big earnings week ahead: Microsoft’s numbers to serve as barometer of the uncertain economy

From White House to Amazon and Airbnb: Jay Carney on the intersection of tech and politics

T-Mobile reaches $350M settlement in 2021 cyberattack and data breach impacting 76M people

Jay Carney checks out of Amazon, lands at Airbnb: Inside ex-White House press secretary’s tech career