Philly Enterprise Highlights 1/4 thru 1/7: Who might Apple buy if they do anything, DuckDuckGo searches hit 9 billion in '18

Here's what CNBC's Alex Sherman heard when he asked some bankers what Apple might do (something big) to restart growth: Salesforce or Disney were the prime suggestions. Salesforce intrigues me; I don't think Apple can build an enterprise software business organically.

Someone suggested to me a while ago that Apple should buy the better parts of IBM, which left me wondering what the better parts are. But strengthening its Cloud presence is perhaps what Apple needs to do more than anything.

Other highlights of the weekend:

PolyOne acquires Hatfield, PA-based fiber and composites manufacturer for $120 million - big in fiber optics.

TiVo Tweaks Interim CEO Package As Future Remains in Flux: TiVo has a number of people in the area, mostly from its acquisition of Rovi.

Why pharma companies merge? To get bigger?

DuckDuckGo broke 9 billion searches in 2018, and it’s growing (Maybe Apple should buy them).

PolyOne acquires Hatfield, PA-based fiber and composites manufacturer for $120 million. https://t.co/P62g5xzKGI

— Tom Paine (@phillytechnews) January 7, 2019

⚡️ “Eagles fans sent Cody Parkey money after his playoff missed kick”https://t.co/EoDqtelao6

— Tom Paine (@phillytechnews) January 7, 2019

Apple has a message for Amazon and Google and it's plastered on the side of a hotel https://t.co/M9NMkAyfQw

— Tom Paine (@phillytechnews) January 7, 2019

Why pharma companies merge https://t.co/NC5KLbSq8w

— Tom Paine (@phillytechnews) January 6, 2019

Here's what Wall Street bankers think Apple should buy, if Tim Cook decides to go deal hunting https://t.co/qZq2IjY4ua

— Tom Paine (@phillytechnews) January 6, 2019

Apple’s probably not going to buy something game-changing. But if they did, here is what a handful of bankers suggested to me: https://t.co/f9fdJpMgZ0

— Alex Sherman (@sherman4949) January 6, 2019

TiVo Tweaks Interim CEO Package As Future Remains in Flux | Light Reading https://t.co/lXdPU9kIXs via @Light_Reading

— Tom Paine (@phillytechnews) January 5, 2019

Comcast, AT&T Raise Prices to Counter Cord-Cutting, Costs https://t.co/84hl7kWca5

— Tom Paine (@phillytechnews) January 5, 2019

New: eLocal Acquires Felix and CityGrid to Further Expand Performance-Based Advertising Platform (Press Release) . https://t.co/fEnUPQe6RL

— Tom Paine (@phillytechnews) January 5, 2019

Over the coming year, Amazon and Walmart will be refining their logistics machines to solve the last-mile problem for customers. https://t.co/1uFsLis6cu

— Digiday (@Digiday) January 5, 2019

Jefferson Makes Room For Modernism With New Preservation Program | Hidden City Philadelphia: https://t.co/M24AC8KXKW

— Tom Paine (@phillytechnews) January 5, 2019

Charter releases Spectrum TV app for Apple TV with support for Apple TV's zero sign-on, the first US cable operator to support the feature (Chance Miller/9to5Mac) https://t.co/FeG7oOCSDN #mustreadblogs #feedly

— Tom Paine (@phillytechnews) January 5, 2019

Barry Myers Leaves AccuWeather as His Wait to Head NOAA Lingers https://t.co/ek9OSzv0pW

— Bloomberg (@business) January 4, 2019

DuckDuckGo broke 9 billion searches in 2018, and it’s growing https://t.co/rfxVRnkgkS #nichepubs #feedly

— Tom Paine (@phillytechnews) January 4, 2019

Alphabet’s Verily raises $1 billion to make health care smarter https://t.co/tuEtx3tSnu via @VentureBeat

— Tom Paine (@phillytechnews) January 3, 2019