latest video from buffett on the power of innovation

[luck]

interesting take on amazon.  a few smart value investors i know seem to be short amazon.  definitely, a company i wouldn't short at this point.  sounds like buffett thinks highly of bezos as well.

 

http://www.pymnts.com/briefing-room/commerce-3-0/the-innovation-project-2013/warren-buffett-video/

[Guest]

thanks for the video. I believe Berkshire funded some of AMZN's bonds several years ago, too.

[Grenville]

thanks for the video. I believe Berkshire funded some of AMZN's bonds several years ago, too.

 

Didn't know that, so I did some digging and here are some articles in regards to the bond purchase and a letter Buffett wrote to Bezos praising him for expensing stock options. It looks like the bonds were bought at Geico.

 

"Buffett praises Amazon, then buys its debt"

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2003-04-12/business/0304120174_1_junk-bonds-warren-buffett-berkshire-hathaway

 

"Warren Buffett Puts His Money Where His Mouth Is"

http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2003-04-08/business/0304070608_1_berkshire-hathaway-warren-buffett-amazon-com

[Charlie]

another good excerpt from the video  :)

 

People tend to "focus too much on what the government's done, and to give them either credit or blame," Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway-BRKB, said in a recent interview conducted by the chief executive officer of Business Wire, the Berkshire subsidiary that distributes press releases. "The real credit belongs to our system." The U.S. economy "is coming back because of the natural juices of capitalism and not because of government," Buffett said. "We have a wonderful system that eventually is self-cleansing and always moves forward." "We went from a wooded land to an incredible, absolute abundance of riches" because the U.S. has had a system that can "unleash human potential," he said. "Never bet against what humans can accomplish if they're operating in the right soil. And we have the right soil."