Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos isn’t paying $250 million simply for the Washington Post, its website, and a handful of smaller publications. He’s also getting an…
Why Michael Dell wants to change the buyout voting rules so badly, in one chart
Update: This morning, Dell’s special committee said it won’t change how uncast shares are counted, although it is willing to alter some other terms of…
When tech companies release earnings, people like Mark Zuckerberg and Bill Gates can make or lose billions in a day
You think your tech portfolio has ups and downs ? Mark Zuckerberg made $5 billion last week, and Bill Gates lost $1.6 billion the week…
LEGALESE
Good luck figuring out Apple’s litigation risk
A US federal judge today found that Apple violated antitrust law by conspiring to raise the sale price of e-books before it entered that market.…
GAMING
Zynga has given its new CEO big incentives to sell the company
US social-gaming company Zynga hasn’t just given its new chief executive a pay package worth as much as $100 million over five years. It has…
Apathetic shareholders can be as much of a problem for companies as hostile ones
Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) is in a frustrating pickle. The US chipmaker wants to issue up to 16.5 million new shares so it can pay…
INDONESIA
This company successfully thwarted investors’ efforts to rein in executive pay
We recently told you about four companies ignoring their shareholders’ votes. One was Hecla Mining, a silver producer that held the polls open longer than…
SANCTIONS-BUSTED
Iran can’t shop at Costco any more
We’ve previously noted the scale of the business that continues with Iran despite US sanctions. But to stay on the right side of the law,…
INDONESIA
Why Wal-Mart’s $15 billion stock buyback may not be as great as it seems
When Wal-Mart Stores does a thing, it does it big. The stock buy-back it announced at its annual meeting today is no exception, at $15…
THE HIGH LIFE
Some companies pay executives extra to fly on their own private jets for vacation
Free travel on the company jet has long been a plum executive perk, particularly for top officers and board chairmen. But increasingly, the company plane…
Apple’s $1.1 billion worth of tax breaks it doesn’t expect to get away with
Apple was under scrutiny this week for allegedly dodging corporate income taxes on big chunks of its profits in recent years, much of it through…
INDONESIA
Here is how four companies are ignoring their shareholders’ votes
Forget majority rules. In US-style corporate elections, it’s rarely so simple. Investors can complain as loudly and clearly as they like, but corporate boards are…
