Dear Gods and Elite Traders:
Since some techique giant companies has ascending for over decades, is the below news from InteractiveBrokers and USA FTC a short signal for facebook, microsoft,Amazon, Google and other techique giant companies?
Below is Transfered from InteractiveBrokers and USA FTC:
UPDATE 4-FTC demands data on small buys by Google, Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Microsoft
(Adds context in first paragraph; adds Microsoft, analyst
comments)
By Diane Bartz and Nandita Bose
WASHINGTON, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Concerned that big tech
companies are unfairly engaging in potential anti-competitive
behavior, the Federal Trade Commission said on Tuesday it
ordered Alphabet Inc's <GOOGL.O> Google unit, Amazon.com Inc
<AMZN.O>, Apple Inc <AAPL.O>, Facebook Inc <FB.O> and Microsoft
Corp <MSFT.O> to provide information on mergers that were too
small to report to antitrust regulators.
The queries come as the Justice Department, the FTC, state
attorneys general and the House Judiciary Committee are
investigating the big tech platforms, which are accused of
unfairly using their clout to defend market share or expand into
adjacent markets.
Much of the criticism has focused on massive deals such as
Facebook's acquisition of Instagram and Amazon's purchase of
Whole Foods, but the companies also have spent billions on
smaller companies, dramatically changing the competitive
landscape in emerging tech sectors.
FTC Chairman Joseph Simons said notices being issued to Big
Tech companies were intended for research but could lead to
enforcement action.
"If during the study we see that there are transactions that
are problematic ... we could go back and initiate enforcement
action to deal with those transactions," said Simons.
The notices were not meant to be a warning to the companies
but were designed to identify areas that need more antitrust
enforcement, he added.
The FTC will study "hundreds" of acquisitions made by the
companies and aims to finish its study "quickly," agency
officials said.
"It depends what they do with it," said Matt Stoller,
research director at the American Economic Liberties Project and
a vocal critic of big tech companies. "I'm not going to say this
is good until they do something that impacts power."
Google, Amazon.com, Apple and Facebook did not immediately
respond to requests for comment.
"We look forward to working with the FTC to answer their
questions," a Microsoft spokesman said.
The agency asked for information about deals that were done
between Jan. 1, 2010 and Dec. 31, 2019, and require each company
to identify transactions that were too small to report to the
FTC and Justice Department, which assess mergers for compliance
with antitrust law.
The tech giants have come under fire from both sides of the
political spectrum, with Republicans irked by what they say is a
stifling of conservative voices on social media and Democrats
angered by increasing consolidation.
Senator Elizabeth Warren, who is running for president, has
explicitly urged federal regulators to undo "anti-competitive
mergers," including Amazon's purchases of Whole Foods and
Zappos, Facebook's purchase of WhatsApp and Instagram, and
Google's acquisitions of Waze, Nest and DoubleClick.
Paul Holland, a general partner at Foundation Capital, said
big tech players' frequent purchases of start-ups have been a
double-edged sword.
"They've created a true marketplace for startups. They've
created a destination for them," he said. But Holland added that
the limited number of potential acquirers has also created an
"oligopolistic competitive environment" for those sales.
Facebook acquired dozens of companies between 2010 and 2019,
according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data, including
eye-catching purchases like WhatsApp and Instagram as well as
smaller transactions in ad tech, facial recognition and social
analytics.
Alphabet spent $1 billion on an unspecified number of small
acquisitions in 2019, according to securities filings. Many were
companies working on artificial intelligence research and cloud
computing services, areas in which Google is trying to innovate
quickly and has sought to bolster hiring.
With the exception of its $3 billion purchase of headphone
and streaming company Beats in 2014, Apple has mostly made small
deals valued at less than $500 million over the past decade,
snapping up small companies working on key technologies such as
augmented reality displays, camera sensors and artificial
intelligence software.
In fiscal 2019, Microsoft made 19 small acquisitions for
$1.6 billion, mostly in cash.
Microsoft has sought to consolidate its position in the
business software market, with major acquisitions such as the
LinkedIn social network for business professionals and the code
repository site GitHub. Since buying LinkedIn, which also
fielded offers from Salesforce Inc <CRM.N>, Microsoft has begun
integrating its social network data with Microsoft products such
as Outlook email.
(Reporting by Diane Bartz, Katie Paul, Nandita Bose, Paresh
Dave and Stephen Nellis, Editing by Franklin Paul, Richard Chang
and Dan Grebler)
((Diane.Bartz@thomsonreuters.com; 1 202 898 8313
)
Rank : positive
Since some techique giant companies has ascending for over decades, is the below news from InteractiveBrokers and USA FTC a short signal for facebook, microsoft,Amazon, Google and other techique giant companies?
Below is Transfered from InteractiveBrokers and USA FTC:
UPDATE 4-FTC demands data on small buys by Google, Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Microsoft
(Adds context in first paragraph; adds Microsoft, analyst
comments)
By Diane Bartz and Nandita Bose
WASHINGTON, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Concerned that big tech
companies are unfairly engaging in potential anti-competitive
behavior, the Federal Trade Commission said on Tuesday it
ordered Alphabet Inc's <GOOGL.O> Google unit, Amazon.com Inc
<AMZN.O>, Apple Inc <AAPL.O>, Facebook Inc <FB.O> and Microsoft
Corp <MSFT.O> to provide information on mergers that were too
small to report to antitrust regulators.
The queries come as the Justice Department, the FTC, state
attorneys general and the House Judiciary Committee are
investigating the big tech platforms, which are accused of
unfairly using their clout to defend market share or expand into
adjacent markets.
Much of the criticism has focused on massive deals such as
Facebook's acquisition of Instagram and Amazon's purchase of
Whole Foods, but the companies also have spent billions on
smaller companies, dramatically changing the competitive
landscape in emerging tech sectors.
FTC Chairman Joseph Simons said notices being issued to Big
Tech companies were intended for research but could lead to
enforcement action.
"If during the study we see that there are transactions that
are problematic ... we could go back and initiate enforcement
action to deal with those transactions," said Simons.
The notices were not meant to be a warning to the companies
but were designed to identify areas that need more antitrust
enforcement, he added.
The FTC will study "hundreds" of acquisitions made by the
companies and aims to finish its study "quickly," agency
officials said.
"It depends what they do with it," said Matt Stoller,
research director at the American Economic Liberties Project and
a vocal critic of big tech companies. "I'm not going to say this
is good until they do something that impacts power."
Google, Amazon.com, Apple and Facebook did not immediately
respond to requests for comment.
"We look forward to working with the FTC to answer their
questions," a Microsoft spokesman said.
The agency asked for information about deals that were done
between Jan. 1, 2010 and Dec. 31, 2019, and require each company
to identify transactions that were too small to report to the
FTC and Justice Department, which assess mergers for compliance
with antitrust law.
The tech giants have come under fire from both sides of the
political spectrum, with Republicans irked by what they say is a
stifling of conservative voices on social media and Democrats
angered by increasing consolidation.
Senator Elizabeth Warren, who is running for president, has
explicitly urged federal regulators to undo "anti-competitive
mergers," including Amazon's purchases of Whole Foods and
Zappos, Facebook's purchase of WhatsApp and Instagram, and
Google's acquisitions of Waze, Nest and DoubleClick.
Paul Holland, a general partner at Foundation Capital, said
big tech players' frequent purchases of start-ups have been a
double-edged sword.
"They've created a true marketplace for startups. They've
created a destination for them," he said. But Holland added that
the limited number of potential acquirers has also created an
"oligopolistic competitive environment" for those sales.
Facebook acquired dozens of companies between 2010 and 2019,
according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data, including
eye-catching purchases like WhatsApp and Instagram as well as
smaller transactions in ad tech, facial recognition and social
analytics.
Alphabet spent $1 billion on an unspecified number of small
acquisitions in 2019, according to securities filings. Many were
companies working on artificial intelligence research and cloud
computing services, areas in which Google is trying to innovate
quickly and has sought to bolster hiring.
With the exception of its $3 billion purchase of headphone
and streaming company Beats in 2014, Apple has mostly made small
deals valued at less than $500 million over the past decade,
snapping up small companies working on key technologies such as
augmented reality displays, camera sensors and artificial
intelligence software.
In fiscal 2019, Microsoft made 19 small acquisitions for
$1.6 billion, mostly in cash.
Microsoft has sought to consolidate its position in the
business software market, with major acquisitions such as the
LinkedIn social network for business professionals and the code
repository site GitHub. Since buying LinkedIn, which also
fielded offers from Salesforce Inc <CRM.N>, Microsoft has begun
integrating its social network data with Microsoft products such
as Outlook email.
(Reporting by Diane Bartz, Katie Paul, Nandita Bose, Paresh
Dave and Stephen Nellis, Editing by Franklin Paul, Richard Chang
and Dan Grebler)
((Diane.Bartz@thomsonreuters.com; 1 202 898 8313
)Rank : positive
