AFP, San Francisco :
A Google empire built on search shifted attention on Thursday to high-speed Internet networks, 360-degree video broadcasting and “other bets” as parent company Alphabet logged disappointing earnings.
Alphabet said net income hit $4.2 billion in the first three months of this year, but shares sank more than five percent to $714 in after-market trades that followed release of the report.
The earnings per share fell 46 cents short of analysts’ expectations.
Revenue in the quarter rose to nearly $20.3 billion compared to $17.26 billion in the same period a year earlier.
The results “represent a tremendous start to the year,” said Alphabet chief financial officer Ruth Porat.
“We’re thoughtfully pursuing big bets and building exciting new technologies, in Google and our Other Bets, that position us well for long-term growth.”
In the financial report, Alphabet separates its money-making search engine Google from “other bets,” a category that covers the California-based company’s investments in diversifying into areas such as self-driving cars, high-speed Internet and smart homes.
Revenue from Other Bets more than doubled in the recently ended quarter to $166 million, but an overall loss of $802 million was booked, according to the earnings report.
The earnings came a day after the European Union opened a new antitrust battle with Google, charging the US tech giant with abusing the dominance of its Android mobile phone operating system.
The charges, a year after Brussels took on Google over its search engine, come as a huge blow to one of the company’s most strategic businesses and could change the face of the global smartphone sector.
EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said Google had used practices such as making manufacturers pre-install its market-leading search engine as the default in phones.
A Google empire built on search shifted attention on Thursday to high-speed Internet networks, 360-degree video broadcasting and “other bets” as parent company Alphabet logged disappointing earnings.
Alphabet said net income hit $4.2 billion in the first three months of this year, but shares sank more than five percent to $714 in after-market trades that followed release of the report.
The earnings per share fell 46 cents short of analysts’ expectations.
Revenue in the quarter rose to nearly $20.3 billion compared to $17.26 billion in the same period a year earlier.
The results “represent a tremendous start to the year,” said Alphabet chief financial officer Ruth Porat.
“We’re thoughtfully pursuing big bets and building exciting new technologies, in Google and our Other Bets, that position us well for long-term growth.”
In the financial report, Alphabet separates its money-making search engine Google from “other bets,” a category that covers the California-based company’s investments in diversifying into areas such as self-driving cars, high-speed Internet and smart homes.
Revenue from Other Bets more than doubled in the recently ended quarter to $166 million, but an overall loss of $802 million was booked, according to the earnings report.
The earnings came a day after the European Union opened a new antitrust battle with Google, charging the US tech giant with abusing the dominance of its Android mobile phone operating system.
The charges, a year after Brussels took on Google over its search engine, come as a huge blow to one of the company’s most strategic businesses and could change the face of the global smartphone sector.
EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said Google had used practices such as making manufacturers pre-install its market-leading search engine as the default in phones.
