Friday AM

GO CARDINALS!!!!

As I was saying before I had that burst of StL-itis...

A year ago I had  a self-imposed deadline of October 13th for my drop-dead tax returns because I had a commitment to travel to the Gulf coast to visit my friend Richard.  This year, there was no such conflict in my schedule, so not only has the pain been stretched to the 15th, but with the 15th on a Saturday, I get to enjoy the stress until  Monday the 17th.  Who says you don't get wiser as you get older?

My early mornings are usually peppered with short periods of watching CNBC's Squawk Box as a way to get primed for the business news of the day.  Like most of these newsy/financial/political targeted shows (and because CNBC is owned by Big O lover GE), some of the topics are given the side-by-side screens of opposing viewpoints shouting each other down.  But there is less of this on Squawk Box, so I don't have the TV on "Mute" as is my practice through most of the rest of the day when they do the combating viewpoints segments as standard fare.

Anyway, I'm sure that they have had this guy on before, although I have no recollection of listening to him.  His name is Roger McNamee and he is a very intelligent guy.  He's made a lot of money.  And has a very interesting history in technology, private equity, and music.  His current position is with a firm called Elevation Partners that works the consumer technology and entertainment media intersection.  One of his partners is the musician Bono of U2.

McNamee's comments this AM were very insightful about the use of smart phones, the software that runs them, and the future of where all this technology stuff will take the consumer.  He points out that the index search business (like the standard Google search) is now history, as "app" technology is how people will increasingly find things that they seek. (You've seen the commercials where the smart phones pull things out of "the cloud" as a couple moves down a street looking at restaurants and shops.)

He says that Apple makes more money, net, on an iPhone than a Droid sells for gross!  Is that possible?

I don't think that I mentioned here that another studio guest on Squawk Box earlier this week was a muni bond guy who I use for some of my clients.  Relatively small shop out of NYC.  I chat with him irregularly on the phone.  I sent him an email after his appearance, and he actually responded to me before the market opened.  Very cool, this communication stuff.

3 is headed into a birthday weekend.  (4 has already started her weekend since her Friday shift is done!)

More here later.  Make it a great TGIF.

BCOT