this post was submitted on 28 Feb 2024
851 points (97.8% liked)

Technology

59677 readers
3257 users here now

This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.


Our Rules


  1. Follow the lemmy.world rules.
  2. Only tech related content.
  3. Be excellent to each another!
  4. Mod approved content bots can post up to 10 articles per day.
  5. Threads asking for personal tech support may be deleted.
  6. Politics threads may be removed.
  7. No memes allowed as posts, OK to post as comments.
  8. Only approved bots from the list below, to ask if your bot can be added please contact us.
  9. Check for duplicates before posting, duplicates may be removed

Approved Bots


founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] [email protected] 147 points 9 months ago (3 children)

There are 54 pages of risk factors, which, after reading many S-1 filings over the years, seems pretty long. One of the most notable is the sentence, “We have incurred substantial losses during our history and may never achieve profitability.”

Well that doesn't sound very promising for them.

[–] [email protected] 76 points 9 months ago (2 children)

may never achieve profitability.

I'm not an expert or anything, but that doesn't sound like a very good investment.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 9 months ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 11 points 9 months ago

I think that's Spez's plan

[–] [email protected] 2 points 9 months ago

My understanding is on these fillings you're supposed to give a full accounting of all the risks so investors can't sue you later. It's like going for surgery where they say you could die - not saying it's likely, but tries to get them off the hook.

[–] [email protected] 66 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago) (5 children)

Because spez insists on chasing the newest tech shiny - but only after it's peaked - NFTs, crypto, RPAN, etc. And although it may yet turn around for him and for reddit, notice that he only jumped onto the AI boom three months after last spring's series of AI announcements, showing that he's once again way behind the times.

Edit: one thing has always struck me since his interview last summer. spez said something like "reddit will continue to be profit-driven until the profits arrive". Like the arrival of profits was inevitable. Like he didn't need to do anything except wait. Just be patient and the profits will arrive in their own time, not like things have to be envisioned and planned and put in place to get profits, just ... they'll arrive. Some day.

It seems a remarkably lackadaisical attitude for a CEO to have.

[–] [email protected] 35 points 9 months ago

Didn't spez also say that Reddit was a side project that just got out of hand?

Being a tech nerd does not mean you have what it takes to lead a company to profitability.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 9 months ago

spez said something like “reddit will continue to be profit-driven until the profits arrive”. Like the arrival of profits was inevitable. Like he didn’t need to do anything except wait.

"It’s easy to sit there and say you’d like to have more money. And I guess that’s what I like about it. It’s easy... Just sitting there, rocking back and forth, wanting that money." Deep Thoughts with Jack Handey, Saturday Night Live

[–] [email protected] 8 points 9 months ago (1 children)

Probably doesn't help that Reddit has spent years cultivating some of the most advertiser unfriendly content available (out of the top 100 visited sites). I doubt anyone's chomping at the bit to advertise on pages like r/jailbait, r/piracy, and r/fatpeoplehate. Even if the worst of the worst have been banned the overall "culture" can't be erased as quickly

[–] LiveLM 3 points 9 months ago

r/jailbait

Oh ho ho, I've heard spez is quite familiar with this one

[–] [email protected] 3 points 9 months ago

Rpan was pretty cool. Saw a lot of talented musicians and cute cats.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 9 months ago

Not related to topic but that was my first wild lackadaisical on lemmy.

Worth it 💪🏻

[–] [email protected] 22 points 9 months ago (1 children)

This does not stop companies being successful in IPOs and giving share holders lucrative gains. Take Atlassian as an example of a company seen as successful but is not profitable.

Atlassian has not yet posted a full-year profit in its 20+ years

[–] [email protected] 17 points 9 months ago (1 children)

What does that mean? Who pays the shortfalls?

[–] [email protected] 13 points 9 months ago

I am not a CFO but I believe essentially by eating into cash reserves and accumulating debt. Also there is some wizardry when you work out operating profit / EBIT.

Earnings vs Debt

Someone more financially competent may want to offer a more accurate answer.