Speaking of Zillow, Mike Delprete, of Adventures in Real Estate Tech compare Zillow recent financials with other listing portals around the world.
Observations on Zillow’s 2016 results and the U.S. market
“With 2016 revenues of $846 million and EBITDA of $37.9 million, Zillow has an EBITDA margin of 4.5% (far less than its reported 17% using Adjusted EBITDA numbers). As you can see below, that margin is well-below international peers.”
Interesting perspective.
Feb. 9 Securities and Exchange Commission filing
“In December 2016, the Court granted a motion for partial summary judgment that dismissed VHT’s claims with respect to the Company’s listing site. A federal jury trial began on January 23, 2017, and on February 9, 2017, the jury returned a verdict finding that the Company had infringed VHT’s copyrights in images displayed or saved to the Digs site. The jury awarded VHT $79,875 in actual damages and $8.24 million in statutory damages.”
$8.24M to VHT. Ouch. They don’t have much luck with lawsuits do they?
But they aren’t going down without a fight.
Zillow Group plans to appeal $8M photo copyright verdict
““We have persistently maintained our belief that this suit was without merit,” Zillow Group spokeswoman Amanda Woolley said in a statement to Inman. “While we are pleased that the majority of original claims were dismissed in this case, we regret that the jury did not find for us completely on those that remained, and will vigorously pursue all options to overturn their verdict.”
I’ve been a bit remiss to mention that Shelley Fowler has recently taken a position at RE Technology.
Looked who joined RE Technology!
“Shelley has worked in our industry for over 40 years! She’s worked full time within the MLS and REALTOR® Industry since 1977 when she started with PRC/Interealty – one of the nation’s first MLS system providers. There, she held executive positions throughout the western United States…
Shelley will be responsible for furthering RE Technology’s partnerships and relationships with MLSs and associations.”
This morning I also read that Kevin McQueen has joined Swanepoel T3 Group.
Swanepoel T3 Group Adds New MLS Consulting Division
““Kevin is a proven and respected leader in the MLS space and will significantly enhance our efforts to help the hundreds of MLS organizations in need of intelligent research and quality advice,” said Swanepoel T3 Group CEO Stefan Swanepoel. “With MLS consolidation being the second most important trend of 2017, exploring all your options including legal mergers and partnerships as an MLS organization is vitally important,” Swanepoel said.”
Congrats to both RE Technology and Swanepoel T3 Group. Great to see these two talented veterans to continue making a difference in our industry.
Rebecca Jensen is busy. She is the President and CEO of Midwest Real Estate Data LLC (MRED), the real estate data distributor for the greater Chicago area. She also serves on the boards of Broker Public Portal (BPP), a national consumer-facing property search experience powered by MLS data, and the Council of Multiple Listing Services (CMLS), the trade association dedicated to strengthening the MLS industry.
Jensen began her career working the tech support line for what is now UtahRealEstate.com (She even supported Lightning for a short time.) She rose through the ranks by creating her own positions in the small company, eventually serving as CEO at the age of 29. Under her leadership, the company developed a new in-house MLS platform, including an integrated public-facing website and mobile apps.
Jensen also served a full term of six years on the board of the Real Estate Standards Organization (RESO), acting as Board Chair from 2011 to 2015. During her tenure, the organization went from being a project within the NAR to a standalone nonprofit with support across the industry. On this episode of the podcast, she shares her journey from tech support to CEO. Click and listen to find out what drives Jensen, her take on the role of organizations like RESO, COVE and CMLS, and the direction of the MLS industry.
– How implementing best practices from other fields can enhance your business
Jensen applied principles of Agile product development to identify priorities
– How “creating the opportunity to say no” helped Jensen land her gig at MRED
– The restructuring of RESO during Jensen’s tenure on the board
– Jensen’s aspirations regarding the direction of CMLS
Cultivate think tank atmosphere to generate ideas
Add policy creation arm to implement solutions
– What drives Jensen to achieve
– The promise of big data in real estate tech
Jensen is intrigued by a remine product that correlates data to drive better business decisions
– Jensen’s take on the future of MLS and real estate tech
Integrated software and business entities
Streamlined electronic transactions
– The non-traditional partnership between BPP and Homesnap
You can subscribe to Listing Bits on iTunes.
Connect with Rebecca Jensen:
I told you this far from over…
REcolorado with Withdrawal from CCM Data Share Agreement
“Today REcolorado sent IRES a formal 30-day notice that we will withdraw from the CCM Data Share agreement and no longer share data with IRES, effective March 2, 2017.
The CCM Agreement was put in place in 2003 to allow Colorado’s three Front Range MLSs to share data. Last year, Pikes Peak withdrew from the agreement, indicating the CCM Agreement has outgrown its original intended purpose, to be a resource for the occasional listing or sale falling outside the MLS’s primary jurisdiction.”
You get the feeling that there’s a whiteboard somewhere in Greenwood Village where these moves are already mapped out.
My sources are saying yes. I first heard of Lucie leaving CoreLogic at Inman Connect NYC. At the time she was very vague about her plans. I thought the departure was significant, since she was part of the original Tarasoft Matrix team. Which makes me wonder if there is anyone left from that original team still working at CoreLogic. Brian de Schepper now works at Zillow Group.
Remine is getting a lot of buzz lately. Here’s what their website says…
“Remine is the next wave in real estate innovation
Remine’s intuitive interface visualizes public record, consumer data and transactional information to bring Big Data to life. By connecting this information exclusively through the MLS we provide one integrated platform that allows agents to turn new opportunities into revenue.”
Sounds a lot like TLCengine.
Developing….
