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The Five Biggest Issues for Technology Companies in 2021
After a year of startling growth, the tech industry faces a more vexing 2021. The pandemic helped bring the world’s tech giants such as Amazon.com Inc. and Microsoft Corp. to new heights in 2020. The shift to online shopping and remote working accelerated at a pace that would have been inconceivable without the coronavirus. But …
Tech Giants Face New Rules in Europe, Backed by Huge Fines
European officials want new powers to oversee internal workings at large technology companies such as Facebook Inc., FB -0.56% backed by threats of multibillion-dollar fines, as they seek to expand their role as global tech enforcers. The European Union’s executive arm proposed two bills Tuesday—one focused on illegal content, the other on anticompetitive behavior—that would …
‘Too Complex to Break Up’ Is the New ‘Too Big to Fail’
Days before, Facebook Inc. produced its own document contending that breaking it up would be a “nonstarter” for a number of reasons, including that the company’s constituent parts are already too complicated and interconnected for any of them—Instagram, WhatsApp, its ad business—to be spun off as individual companies or walled off as separate divisions. “After …
House Panel Says Big Tech Wields Monopoly Power
WASHINGTON—America’s biggest technology companies have leveraged their dominance to stamp out competition and stifle innovation, according to a Democratic-led House panel, which said Congress should consider forcing the tech giants to separate their dominant online platforms from other business lines. Republicans issued a separate response endorsing strong antitrust enforcement targeting the companies but didn’t endorse …
Microsoft and Other Tech Leaders to Own When the Massive Selling Stops (NASDAQ: MSFT)
We have been warning readers, long before the coronavirus issues came to the forefront, that the market was overbought and expensive. The spread of the deadly virus was just the proverbial black swan, or the tail-risk that was needed to push the sellers to the table, and why not? On March 9, the bull market …
Big Technology Stocks Dominate ESG Funds
Funds that market themselves as sustainable investments aren’t necessarily focused on companies that fight climate change, develop wind turbines or promote diverse boards. Instead, many of them look a lot like a portfolio of big technology stocks. The five most commonly held S&P 500 stocks in actively managed sustainable equity funds last fall were Microsoft …
States to Launch Google, Facebook Antitrust Probes
WASHINGTON—State attorneys general are formally launching separate antitrust probes into Facebook Inc. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google unit starting next week, according to people familiar with the matter, putting added pressure on tech giants already under federal scrutiny. The Google probe is expected to be announced at a news conference outside the U.S. Supreme Court on …
FTC Approves Roughly $5 Billion Facebook Settlement
The Federal Trade Commission voted this week to approve a roughly $5 billion settlement with Facebook Inc. over a long-running probe into the tech giant’s privacy missteps, according to people familiar with the matter. The 3-2 vote by FTC commissioners broke along party lines, with the Republican majority lining up to support the pact while …
Advertisers Are Wary of Breaking Up Google and Facebook
CANNES, France—Advertisers have griped about the power Google and Facebook Inc. FB 1.09% wield over the digital ad market. But they are generally wary of breaking up the tech giants, judging by the views of the attendees at the annual advertising festival held here on the French Riviera. The U.S. Justice Department is gearing up …
