Goldman Sachs 2013 Annual Report Download - page 14

Goldman Sachs 2013 Annual Report
Monetization of mobile
presents huge opportunities
for those who can crack
the code
Goldman Sachs team members supporting the Twitter IPO: Joseph Ghobrial,
Anthony Noto, Nick Giovanni, Christopher Lapointe, Ryan Nolan and Brian Dong,
Investment Banking Division
have become some
of the world’s largest and most impactful
businesses — they’re growing faster than
many of the companies that came before
them, and arrive at critical decision points more
quickly. In 2013, Goldman Sachs advised
some of the best-known technology companies
during watershed moments. In November,
we were the lead underwriter on Twitter’s
$2.1 billion IPO, the biggest tech debut of the
year. Incorporated only seven years ago, the
company now has 241 million active monthly
users who, among them, send more than a
billion tweets every two days.
TECHNOLOGY
Global sales
of smartphones and tablets
now outpace those of PCs and
laptops. According to the UN
International Telecommunication
Union, mobile subscriptions
will top the world’s population
sometime in 2014.
Companies are
racing to find ways to capitalize
on the growth of mobile
technology, whether in mobile
payments, mobile content,
location-based services or
the explosion of valuable
data generated by the use
of mobile devices.
“The question
is, who can best take advan-
tage?” says James Covello,
head of Technology, Media and
Tele communications Equity
Research at Goldman Sachs.
“Whether we’re talking about
consumer transactions or social
networking, which companies
will benefit the most from the
ubiquity of compute?”
View video
James Covello talks about mobile
technology and other themes at
goldmansachs.com/our-thinking/our-
conferences/technology-conference
TECHNOLOGY
COMPANIES ARE SETTING
AN UNPRECEDENTED
PACE FOR GROWTH,
FACING STRATEGIC
DECISION POINTS
QUICKLY
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NO
View video
Anthony Noto and George Lee explore rapid changes
in the technology sector and what to expect next.
Go to: goldmansachs.com/annual-report-2013/lee-noto
The ubiquity of online access has dramatically increased opportunities for
creating businesses, according to Anthony Noto, global co-head of our
Technology, Media and Telecommunications Group in the Investment Banking
Division, and George Lee, chairman of our Global Technology, Media and
Telecommunications Group and chief information officer for the Investment
Banking Division. This change has created a global system of “costless
distribution,” says Noto, allowing “a lot more capital to invest and reap the
rewards of a large, globally distributed user base.” The advance of mobile,
adds George Lee, hastens the trend by making that user base accessible
24/7. “Companies are now really focused on meeting the needs of consumers
who are walking around with very capable computers in their hands,” he
says. “In the next five to ten years, almost every human on earth will have
access to extraordinary amounts of computing power. That pervasiveness
of technology is driving change at an unprecedented level and pace.”
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