Ed’s Daily Notes for Friday the 13th

Bloomberg: Intel Seen Threatened as Google Mulls Own Server Chips

Google versus Intel? I didn’t see this one coming:

Intel Corp. (INTC)’s dominance in semiconductors is already threatened by the market’s shift to mobile devices. Google Inc. is poised to make matters worse.

Google is considering designing its own server processors using technology from ARM Holdings Plc (ARM), said a person with knowledge of the matter. That potentially signifies at least a partial move away from Intel, which controls more than 95 percent of the market for chips in servers that use personal-computer processors.

The endeavor would be a challenging and costly one for Google, a software-driven company that makes money from selling Internet ads and other online services. Yet, just showing willingness to shift away from Intel might help pricing for Google (GOOG) and prompt other Internet companies, like Facebook Inc. and Amazon.com Inc., to do the same, said Patrick Wang, a New York-based analyst at Evercore Partners Inc.

“Google could be doing this for price negotiations,” Wang said. “They don’t have to do it — they just have to talk about it.”

By using its own designs, Google could better manage the interactions between hardware and software, said the person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private. Google, among the largest buyers of server processors, has made no decision and plans could change, said the person.

Even if this is just a negotiating ploy by Google, it is still bad news for Intel. If Intel has to cut margins to sell to Google, that is bad for Intel. If Google goes and does design their own chips, that is bad for Intel.

As for Google, I am not worried. They don’t strike me as a “cut off your nose to spite your face” company. If it is cheaper and more efficient for them to design their own chips, then they should.

Reuters (via Yahoo Finance): Microsoft considers Qualcomm executive as CEO candidate

The latest in the Microsoft CEO search:

Microsoft Corp is considering Qualcomm Inc Chief Operating Officer Steve Mollenkopf as a candidate for its new chief executive officer, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday, as it reaches the final stages of a four-month search process.

I have no clue about this latest candidate, other than Qualcomm is a good company. I just hope Microsoft doesn’t find another Steve Ballmer.

Seeking Alpha: Why The Alibaba IPO Delay Is Great News For Yahoo Investors

The link above is a good article on what the Alibaba IPO means to Yahoo. Much of it is speculative, but there are some good-to-know stats in there too.