Regulators are looking for antitrust violations. We find out what prerequisites this situation has, and what opinion is formed in the community in response to what is happening.
A photo - — unsplash
From the point of view of the US authorities, Facebook, Google and Amazon can be called monopolies to one degree or another. This is a social network where all friends sit. An online store where you can order any goods. And a search service with answers to all questions. However, these companies have long avoided major litigation in this regard. In general, there are currently no significant mechanisms that would limit transactions like buying Instagram or WhatsApp.
But attitudes towards the technology business are beginning to change. US regulators and government organizations are increasingly tightening the screws on large IT companies.
What's going on
Earlier this week, authorities announced an antitrust investigation into Facebook, Apple, Google and Amazon. According to Attorney General William Barr (William Barr), the task of regulators is to find out whether IT companies are abusing their dominant position in the market. The investigation will be conducted by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the US Department of Justice, and the FTC has already a team of experts to monitor the activities of technology companies.
The work of this working group is already visible. At the beginning of the FTC week Facebook to pay $5 billion for violations related to leaks of personal data. In addition, the social network will have to create an independent committee that will resolve privacy issues without the participation of Mark Zuckerberg.
In addition to the Ministry of Justice and the FTC, a commission of the US House of Representatives began its investigation into IT companies. In mid-July, top managers of corporations in the Congress building as part of the program to "destroy the monopoly of Silicon Valley."
What are the opinions
Regulatory initiatives are supported by legislators. Senator Lindsey Graham said that the technology business has too much power and opportunity that no one limits. He was supported by Democrat Richard Blumenthal. He, in turn, demanded that decisive action be taken against IT corporations at the federal level.
As one such measure, some policies oblige Facebook to separate the management of services like Instagram and WhatsApp at the legal level. This idea even the co-founder of the social network (Chris Hughes). In his opinion, the company has at its disposal too large sets of data. It is impossible to manage them centrally while providing a high level of protection in parallel.
To this statement, Mark Zuckerberg replied that the separation would not help solve these problems. By contrast, Facebook's "gigantism" helps the company invest large sums of money in data security. In general, this view is shared by representatives of Google, Apple and Amazon. They that companies have earned their place at the top of the technology pyramid and are doing their best to stay there.
A photo - — unsplash
Despite the rather extensive support for the initiatives of the Trade Commission and the Department of Justice, there is an opinion in society that the new proceedings will end in nothing. In 2013, a similar case against Google, but the company was not punished. This time, the situation may take a different path - as an argument, experts cite the already mentioned fine issued by the FTC team, which became the largest in the history of the bureau.
What to expect
New initiatives to weaken the influence of IT companies are also appearing in Europe. So, in April of this year, the European Commission about the intention to work out more stringent rules for large IT companies in order to stimulate competition in the market.
At the beginning of the year, the German Federal Antimonopoly Service Facebook combine personal data collected in different applications into a single pool without the consent of users. According to the regulator, this will improve the security of PD. Similar measures European Commission hold against Amazon and Apple.
It is still difficult to say where the results of such actions in the US and Europe will lead. But they are unlikely to be introduced all at once - previous cases against Google have been considered for several years. Therefore, these proceedings remain to be observed.
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Source: habr.com