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The Enforcement Directorate (<keyword id="12163" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ed">ED</keyword>) has initiated a probe against e-commerce giant <keyword id="18635" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amazon">Amazon</keyword> for alleged violation of the foreign exchange law and rules of the country, official sources said on Thursday. The probe is being conducted under various sections of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) after the central probe agency recently received a communication from the Commerce Ministry seeking "necessary action" against e-commerce players like Amazon and Flipkart pertaining to certain multi-brand retail businesses and an observation made by the Delhi High Court in relation to Amazon. The HC had said that said the attempt made by the US-based firm to control Future Retail through a conflation of agreements it has with an unlisted unit of the Indian company will be considered as violative of the FEMA and foreign direct investment (FDI) rules. When contacted, an Amazon spokesperson said it was "not aware of any new case by the ED against <keyword id="6354743" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amazon-India">Amazon India</keyword>". Sources said the agency is looking to "investigate into the entire issue and will seek details from Amazon and other stakeholders". In the first instance under the ED scanner is a recent communication sent to it by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) that functions under the Commerce Ministry. It had forwarded a representation made by the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) alleging that major e-commerce players like Flipkart and Amazon violated FEMA and FDI rules. CAIT had alleged that these e-commerce companies were in violation of FEMA and FDI rules by adopting illegal structuring/investments and practices. Flipkart, at that time, had said it was "fully compliant with all applicable laws and FDI regulations in the country". In the second instance being investigated by the ED that involves Amazon, the Delhi High Court had made observations on the US e-commerce firm objecting to the Rs 24,713 crore Future Group-Reliance deal that was signed in August last year. In August 2019, Amazon had agreed to purchase 49 per cent of one of Future's unlisted firms, Future Coupons Ltd (which owns 7.3 per cent equity in BSE-listed Future Retail Ltd through convertible warrants), with the right to buy into the flagship Future Retail after a period of three to 10 years. Amazon had dragged Future Group to arbitration at Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC), arguing that Future violated the contract by entering into the deal with rival Reliance. On October 25, 2020, an interim award was passed in favour of Amazon with a single-judge bench of V K Rajah barring FRL from taking any step to dispose of or encumber its assets or issuing any securities to secure any funding from a restricted party. After this, Future Group filed a plea with the Delhi High Court. On December 21, a single member bench rejected the plea to restrain Amazon from writing to regulatory authorities about the SIAC arbitral order but gave a go-ahead to the regulators to decide over the deal. The court had also made several observations indicating that Amazon's attempt to control Future Retail through a conflation of agreements Amazon has with an unlisted unit of the Indian company will be violative of the FEMA FDI rules. Since then, Amazon has also filed a petition in the Delhi High Court seeking detention of Future Group founders, including CEO Kishore Biyani, and seizure of their assets as it sought to block the Future-Reliance deal.

India's Enforcement Directorate begins probe against Amazon for alleged violation of FEMA rules in the Future Retail deal

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="11893181" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="amazon" source="Orion">Amazon</keyword> gave police 11 <keyword id="12690854" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="ring" source="Orion">Ring</keyword> doorbell videos without consent in 2022 so far, per a <a href="https://www.markey.senate.gov/news/press-releases/senator-markeys-probe-into-amazon-ring-reveals-new-privacy-problems">US Senator probe</a>.</li><li>It shares videos after determining there is "imminent danger of death or serious physical injury."</li></ul>In the first six months of 2022 Amazon shared 11 Ring doorbell videos with law enforcement without first receiving consent from the owner, <a href="https://www.markey.senate.gov/news/press-releases/senator-markeys-probe-into-amazon-ring-reveals-new-privacy-problems">a probe into the technology</a> by US Senator <keyword id="12467486" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="ed-markey" source="Orion">Ed Markey</keyword> found. In each of the 11 instances, Amazon's vice president of public policy <a href="https://www.markey.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/amazon_response_to_senator_markey-july_13_2022.pdf">Brian Huseman said</a> that Ring "made a good-faith determination that there was an imminent danger of death or serious physical injury to a person."Ring's video sharing was in response to emergency disclosure requests filed by law enforcement agencies in the US.The company's Neighbors Public Safety Service currently has partnerships with 2,161 law enforcement agencies and over 450 fire departments, Huseman said. That's more than five times growth in partnerships with police forces since November 2019, when <a href="https://www.markey.senate.gov/news/press-releases/senator-markey-investigation-into-amazon-ring-doorbell-reveals-egregiously-lax-privacy-policies-and-civil-rights-protections">Markey's investigation</a> logged relationships with over 400 departments."It has become increasingly difficult for the public to move, assemble, and converse in public without being tracked and recorded. We cannot accept this as inevitable," Markey said.In 2021, Markey was one of five US senators to re-<a href="https://www.markey.senate.gov/news/press-releases/senators-markey-merkley-lead-colleagues-on-legislation-to-ban-government-use-of-facial-recognition-other-biometric-technology">introduce legislation</a> aimed at banning government use of biometric technology, out of concerns for privacy and civil rights.In 2020, an Amazon engineer <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-engineer-says-ring-should-be-shut-down-immediately-2020-1">called for</a> the smart doorbell and home security system to be "shut down immediately" due to privacy issues. The company has <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ring-says-fired-four-employees-for-abusing-access-user-videos-2020-1">also faced controversy</a> over four employees having abused their access to owners' home footage. Amazon is not considering making end-to-end encryption of Ring videos and recordings the default setting for users, rather than an opt-in setting, it said. By encrypting its service end-to-end, Amazon and Ring would not have access to user videos. Huseman added: "We will continue to prioritize privacy, security, and user control as we pursue and improve technologies to help achieve our mission of making neighborhoods safer."

Amazon has handed over 11 Ring doorbell videos to police without owners' consent so far this year, report finds

It's Friday! We made it! Hooray! This is Matt Weinberger, writing to you from San Francisco. The week is drawing to a close, and with it, my time writing this newsletter. Monday's edition of 10 Things in Tech will be written once more by your usual host, Jordan Parker Erb. Before I go, let me just say: Thank you for reading! Thursday was another messy day for tech, in the middle of the messiest month for the industry in recent memory. Meta reportedly fired or disciplined about two dozen employees over the last year for <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/meta-fired-workers-for-allegedly-accessing-user-accounts-wsj-2022-11">hijacking Facebook user accounts</a> — with some of them accused of taking thousands of dollars in bribes.Meanwhile, the new CEO of now-defunct crypto exchange FTX is <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/read-full-ftx-bankruptcy-filing-online-new-ceo-2022-11">blasting former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried in bankruptcy court</a>, saying that he's never seen a company in such bad shape. Google is<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/google-layoffs-performance-rating-jobs-2022-11"> inching closer to performing mass layoffs.</a> Thursday was also the deadline for Twitter employees to accept Elon Musk's ultimatum: Get with the program, or get out. It seems many effectively opted for the latter, as Musk abruptly <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/twitter-offices-shutting-down-after-elon-musk-ended-remote-work-2022-11">shut down Twitter's offices and workers resigned en masse</a>.Take one giant step back, and there's one group benefitting from all the tech carnage: Wall Street investors, who finally have leverage over Big Tech after years of having to swallow spending to excess.There is, once again, very much happening. So let's get to it:If this was forwarded to you, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/subscription/newsletter/10-things-in-tech" rel="">sign up here</a>. Download Insider's app <a href="https://link.insider.com/click/27645591.160803/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuaW5zaWRlci5jb20vYXBwP25yX2VtYWlsX3JlZmVyZXI9MSZ1dG1fc291cmNlPVNhaWx0aHJ1JnV0bV9tZWRpdW09ZW1haWwmdXRtX2NvbnRlbnQ9T3BlbmluZ19iZWxs/62667762063d6b9bef0cffb3Bf9c9aa56" rel="">here.</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tech-layoffs-meta-alphabet-wall-street-2022-11"></a>1. Wall Street is ready to slice and dice. Insider's Jake Swearingen writes that Wall Street firms have had little choice but to bite their tongues when Big Tech firms spend good money after bad on hiring, acquisitions, office perks, and cutting-edge research.<ul><li>The balance of power has shifted: With tech companies struggling on the public markets, Wall Street has more leverage than it's held in a long time. </li><li>That's made an opening for activist investors to call on companies like Meta and Google to trim headcount — marking the end of an era where tech CEOs had free rein. </li><li>Those investors are having an impact. Meta already made Wall Street happy when it recently trimmed 11,000 jobs, and Insider reported on Thursday that <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/google-layoffs-performance-rating-jobs-2022-11">Google is imperiling as many as 10,000 jobs with a new performance-review system</a>.</li></ul><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tech-layoffs-meta-alphabet-wall-street-2022-11">Read more about how Wall Street is taking the driver's seat in tech here.</a>In Other News:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/twitter-offices-shutting-down-after-elon-musk-ended-remote-work-2022-11"></a><div type="image" title="Elon Musk, the owner of Twitter, is pushing for a harder-driving culture at the company." height="2743" width="3658" msid="95606080" hostid="261" sizebytes="489514"></div>2. Elon Musk has locked Twitter staff out of offices until next week. According to Slack messages seen by Insider, a current employee said the move wast intended to "prevent physical sabotage," after hundreds of employees effectively <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/twitter-offices-shutting-down-after-elon-musk-ended-remote-work-2022-11">resigned after being given an ultimatum by the billionaire</a>. 3. The plan to outwit human evolution. Insider's Julia Black reports on the underground world of pronatalism — a movement embraced by Elon Musk and other tech industry elites who want to avert the threat of population collapse by having lots of genetically-superior children. I found the idea pretty unsettling — <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/pronatalism-elon-musk-simone-malcolm-collins-underpopulation-breeding-tech-2022-11">you can read more here</a>.4. How hard is being a CEO, really? Insider contributor Ed Zitron writes that if Elon Musk can be the CEO of three extremely prominent companies simultaneously — Tesla, SpaceX, and Twitter — it says that there's <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-twitter-tesla-ceo-job-broken-chief-hypocrisy-officer-2022-11">something very wrong with our notion of what it actually means to be a chief executive officer</a>.5. Amazon could hold retail layoffs after Thanksgiving. Insider's Katherine Long reports that Amazon plans to preserve its current level of staffing in its retail division until the busy Black Friday weekend is over. After that, Katherine reports, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-layoffs-retail-thanksgiving-black-friday-2022-11">layoffs xare on the table.</a>6. The new CEO of FTX calls out the old one. In bankruptcy filings, new FTX CEO John J. Ray calls out founder and former crypto billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried, saying he's never seen a worse-run company.<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/read-full-ftx-bankruptcy-filing-online-new-ceo-2022-11"> That's particularly funny when you realize that Ray once oversaw Enron's bankruptcy proceedings, too</a>.7. TikTok and the music industry are best frenemies forever. TikTok needs access to the latest and greatest hits to stay relevant. The music industry needs TikTok to promote new singles and artists directly to their target demographics. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiktok-record-labels-remain-frenemies-as-they-battle-over-licenses-2022-11">Their mutual interest is complicated by fights over licensing and costs, Insider reports here.</a>8. Ticketmaster in trouble over Taylor Swift. In the wake of the absolute rodeo that's been the Taylor Swift Eras tour ticketing process, figures like <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/aoc-slams-ticketmaster-amid-taylor-swift-ticket-sale-controversy-2022-11">Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have called on Ticketmaster</a> to be broken up. Now, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ticketmaster-taylor-swift-eras-tour-meltdown-investigation-tennessee-ag-2022-11">the attorney general of Tennessee says that he's probing Ticketmaster customer complaints. </a>Odds and Ends:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/2023-toyota-prius-prime-hybrid-mpg-mileage-horsepower-2022-11"></a><div type="image" title="The 2023 Toyota Prius." height="1361" width="2500" msid="95606081" hostid="261" sizebytes="491716"></div>9. A newly-resigned Toyota Prius is coming next year. Earlier this week, Consumer Reports said that hybrids like the Prius are generally more reliable than your favorite pickup truck. On Thursday, Toyota unveiled a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/2023-toyota-prius-prime-hybrid-mpg-mileage-horsepower-2022-11">redesigned Prius with a sleek new design, 57mpg, and a horsepower boost</a>.10. Sleep in the Airbnb CEO's house. Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky is putting a bedroom in his own home up on the home-sharing service — and for free, to boot. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/airbnb-ceo-brian-chesky-home-listing-free-aircover-guest-verification-2022-11">He says he'll even bake you chocolate chip cookies</a>.Keep updated with the latest tech news throughout your day by checking out<a href="https://link.chtbl.com/therefresh"> The Refresh from Insider,</a> a dynamic audio news brief from the Insider newsroom. <a href="https://link.chtbl.com/therefresh">Listen here.</a>Curated by Matt Weinberger in San Francisco. (Feedback or tips? Email <a href="https://mail.google.com/mail/?view=cm&amp;fs=1&amp;tf=1&amp;to=mweinberger@insider.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">mweinberger@insider.com</a> or tweet <a href="https://twitter.com/gamoid" rel=" nofollow">@gamoid</a>.) Edited by Hallam Bullock (tweet <a href="https://twitter.com/hallam_bullock" rel=" nofollow">@hallam_bullock</a>) in London.

Wall Street finally has the leverage it's been wanting over Big Tech

New Delhi, Jan 15 () Following are the top business stories at 1824 hours:
 
DEL65 BIZ-LD AMAZON-BEZOS
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos commits USD 1 bn investment to digitise small businesses in India
New Delhi: Amazon.com Inc chief Jeff Bezos on Wednesday announced USD 1 billion (over Rs 7,000 crore) investment in India to help bring small and medium businesses online and committed to exporting USD 10 billion worth of India-made goods by 2025.

DCM25 BIZ-EDELWEISS-ED
FEMA violation case: Edelweiss Group Chairman appears before ED
Mumbai: Financial services company Edelwesiss Group Chairman Rashesh Shah on Wednesday appeared before Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials for questioning with regard to a case of FEMA (Foreign Exchange Management Act) violation. 
 
DCM44 BIZ-GST-FAKE
Over 1,200 exporters untraceable; govt saves Rs 350 cr fake IGST refund
New Delhi: Revenue Department using its data analytics has discovered a fraud in GST refunds with as many as 1,200 exporters, who have have claimed Rs 350 crore refunds, are now untraceable.

DCM43 BIZ-BANK-STRIKE
Employees of govt-owned banks threaten two-day strike from Jan 31
New Delhi: Bank unions have threatened to go on a two-day nationwide strike beginning January 31 to press for early wage revision.
 
DEL86 BIZ-LD STOCKS
Market pauses after four-day winning run; banking stocks slide on NPA woes
Mumbai: Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty took a pause after a four-session record run on Wednesday, as higher bank NPAs in ongoing quarterly results weighed on banking stocks coupled with a caution ahead of US-China trade deal.

DCM28 BIZ-LD BHARTI AIRTEL
Airtel raises USD 3 billion dollars via QIP, FCCB offering
New Delhi: Bharti Airtel has raised USD 3 billion through QIP and FCCB route, completing a massive fund raising exercise for the firm, which has to pay billions of dollars in statutory dues. 
 
DEL85 BIZ-RUPEE-CLOSE
Rupee pares losses; settles 5 paise higher at 70.82 against US dollar
Mumbai: The rupee pared its early losses to settle 5 paise higher at 70.82 against the US dollar on Wednesday, ahead of the signing of phase 1 trade agreement between the US and China.
 
DCM39 BIZ-IMPORTS RESTRICTIONS
Govt will put restrictions on imports of products under 'others' category: Goyal
New Delhi: Concerned over rise in imports in the 'others' category, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday asked those importers to seek HSN or tariff code within 30 days from the foreign trade office, failing which the government would impose strong restrictions on their inbound shipments.
 
DCM41 BIZ-CCI-ASIAN PAINTS
CCI orders probe against Asian Paints
New Delhi: The Competition Commission of India has ordered a probe against Asian Paints for allegedly hindering the entry of JSW Paints by virtue of its dominance in the market for manufacture and sale of decorative paints. 

DEL70 BIZ-GOLD-PRICE
Gold rises Rs 256 on strong global trend
New Delhi: Gold prices rallied Rs 256 to Rs 40,441 per 10 gram in the national capital on Wednesday, led by strong buying in global markets, according to HDFC Securities. 
 
 
 
 SHW
SHW

Business highlights :

Hi! Welcome to the Insider <keyword id="35666" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="advertising">Advertising</keyword> daily for October 16. I'm Lauren Johnson, a senior advertising reporter at Business Insider. <a href="http://newsletter.businessinsider.com/join/4np/insider-advertising">Subscribe here to get this newsletter in your inbox every weekday.</a> Send me feedback or tips at <a>ljohnson@businessinsider.com.</a>Today's news: Inside the future of millennial-news network <keyword id="796414" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Cheddar">Cheddar</keyword>, the FBI interviews former Ruder Finn employees, and the ad experts up for hire.<h1><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-altice-cheddar-trying-sustain-model-streaming-tv-news-2020-10"></a></h1><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-altice-cheddar-trying-sustain-model-streaming-tv-news-2020-10">Inside Cheddar, the millennial-news network trying to find its footing after a $200 million exit and big layoffs during the pandemic</a></h3><ul><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-altice-cheddar-trying-sustain-model-streaming-tv-news-2020-10">Ashley Rodriguez spoke with Cheddar's founder, former employees, and analysts about the future of the "post-cable-network" model the company was built on after it sold to Altice last year and went through a round of layoffs this year.</a></li><li> Founder Jon Steinberg said the network was focusing its distribution efforts on free streaming-TV services like Samsung TV Plus and growing direct and programmatic ad dollars.</li><li>But some insiders questioned whether ad revenue alone could sustain Cheddar's growth — and how much more Altice is willing to invest in making the network a household name.</li></ul><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-altice-cheddar-trying-sustain-model-streaming-tv-news-2020-10">Read the entire story here.</a></h3><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/fbi-questions-former-ruder-finn-employees-chinese-consulate-2020-10"><div type="image" title="chinese consulate" height="1334" width="1778" msid="78692020" hostid="261"></div></a></h3><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/fbi-questions-former-ruder-finn-employees-chinese-consulate-2020-10">The FBI probed public relations giant Ruder Finn about prospective work for the Chinese consulate, former employees say</a></h3><ul><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/fbi-questions-former-ruder-finn-employees-chinese-consulate-2020-10">Sean Czarnecki reports that the FBI questioned former employees at public-relations firm Ruder Finn about work the agency pitched for the Chinese consulate.</a></li><li>The FBI asked the former employees questions like who was involved from the firm and the consulate and what the potential scope of work was.</li><li>Lobbyists and re<keyword id="86164" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="PR">pr</keyword>esentatives for foreign governments, including PR firms, are required to register with the US government, and the US government has been stepping up enforcement of this requirement, said Joshua Rosenstein, a lawyer at Sandler Reiff Lamb Rosenstein &amp; Birkenstock.</li></ul><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/fbi-questions-former-ruder-finn-employees-chinese-consulate-2020-10">Read the full story here.</a></h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/top-advertising-and-marketing-pros-who-are-on-the-market-2020-10"><div type="image" title="2x1 ad" height="600" width="1200" msid="78692022" hostid="261"></div></a><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/top-advertising-and-marketing-pros-who-are-on-the-market-2020-10">Meet 18 top advertising and marketing pros who are expert at positioning brands, persuading consumers — and are on the market</a></h3><ul><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/top-advertising-and-marketing-pros-who-are-on-the-market-2020-10">Michael Kaminer identified 18 respected pros on the market who can help confront brand challenges in these turbulent times.</a></li><li>While the pandemic has significantly cut ad spend, agencies and brands still need talent.</li><li>The list includes agency veterans like Ed Gorman, formerly of Carat; and ex WarnerMedia CMO Chris Spadaccini.</li></ul><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/top-advertising-and-marketing-pros-who-are-on-the-market-2020-10">Read the full story here.</a></h3><h3>More stories we're reading:</h3><ul><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/founder-exits-agency-racist-remarks-cause-furor-and-clients-flee-2020-10">Inside Dallas ad agency The Richards Group, whose founder just stepped down after a racist remark caused clients like Home Depot and Motel 6 to flee</a> (Business Insider)</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/the-walmart-advertising-execs-to-know-competing-with-amazon-2020-1">Meet the 11 execs who are leading Walmart's effort to challenge Amazon's advertising business</a> (Business Insider)</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-prime-day-ditches-celebrity-promotions-this-year-covid-2020-10">Amazon abandoned Prime Day promotions from celebrities this year because it shifted spending to meet demand amid an online shopping boom</a> (Business Insider)</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-new-york-post-hunter-biden-shared-thousands-after-restrictions-2020-10">The New York Post's dubious Hunter Biden article was shared 300,000 times on Facebook even after the company said it limited its reach</a> (Business Insider)</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/loreal-opens-offices-to-50-capacity-covid-19-cases-rise-2020-10">Leaked emails show L'Oreal is requiring employees to clean their desks three times a day and giving them two face masks daily</a> (Business Insider)</li><li><a href="https://digiday.com/media/we-want-to-be-as-frictionless-as-possible-samsung-ramps-up-its-pitch-to-advertisers-across-europe/">'We want to be as frictionless as possible': Samsung ramps up its pitch to advertisers across Europe</a> (Digiday)</li></ul>Thanks for reading and see you on Monday! You can reach me in the meantime at <a style="color: #222222;">ljohnson@businessinsider.com</a> and <a href="http://newsletter.businessinsider.com/join/4np/advertising-insider">subscribe to this daily email here.</a>— Lauren

The future of millennial-news network Cheddar post-Altice acquisition and layoffs

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image"></div></div></div><ul class="summary-list"><li>Mistrust of Big Tech is one of the few issues that has strong bi-partisan agreement.</li><li>With the backdrop of last month's news that 50 state attorney's general had launched a probe into <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/google" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Google</a>, the company's CEO Sundar Pichai wrote an op-ed for Fox Business News.</li><li>Pichai argues that <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/google" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Google</a> is a friend to small business, not a foe.</li><li>His choice of publication is an interesting appeal to pro-business political conservatives as Fox Business News is the sister outlet to Fox News, both owned by conservative-leaning Fox New Group.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/?hprecirc-bullet">Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.</a></li></ul>There's one thing that people on both sides of the aisle seem to agree on these days: a mistrust of Big Tech, especially Google and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/facebook" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a>.On Thursday, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, made <a href="https://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/google-ceo-sundar-pichai-american-small-business-big-business-grow-together">a public appeal for his company in an op-ed on Fox Business News,</a> a sister news outlet to Fox News, both of whom are owned by the conservative-leaning Fox News Group.Pichai was making the case that Google was not a big, evil tech corporation, but that it uses its monopolistic hold on internet search advertising and all of its monitoring tech to be a friend to small business owners."Some people assume that big companies can only succeed at the expense of small ones," he wrote. "At its core, connecting local businesses with customers is an information problem. So when someone asks Google to find the best BBQ restaurant or dry cleaner "near me," we try to get as much relevant information in their hands as possible. That includes information like driving directions, hours, or popular times to help plan a visit, along with easy ways to make a purchase or reservation on the spot."In other words, Pichai is saying that Google needs to collect massive amounts of information on people to use in service of small businesses.He then promoted Google's free training tools, a site that trains people on how to use Google's advertising and technology products and services. Google is positioning this free training as being a gift to small business, and it is helpful to many small businesses not to have to hire someone to use Google's ad. But, like all corporate-specific training programs, the goal is a self-serving one: the more people that know how to use Google's commercial offerings, the more money Google makes.Read: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/state-attorneys-general-launch-antitrust-probe-into-google-2019-9">50 state attorneys general have launched a formal probe into whether Google has engaged in anticompetitive practices in its ads business</a>Pichai also announced that its charity organization has made a $10 million pledge to help entrepreneurs from underserved communities start new businesses. The first grant will be a $2 million contribution to the American Library Association to support entrepreneurship centers at libraries in ten states.All of this comes on the backdrop of <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/state-attorneys-general-launch-antitrust-probe-into-google-2019-9">50 state attorneys general officially opening up an investigation into Google</a> last month, a move with bipartisan support.One of them is Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who said in a statement to the New York Times, "we have seen evidence that Google's business practices may have undermined consumer choice, stifled innovation, violated users' privacy and put Google in control of the flow and dissemination of online information."Meanwhile, top Democrat presidential candidate, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, <a href="https://medium.com/@teamwarren/heres-how-we-can-break-up-big-tech-9ad9e0da324c">has also been preaching</a> that Google, Facebook and Amazon should be broken up.Read: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/wework-employees-share-stories-about-barefoot-adam-neumann-2019-9">Former employees from WeWork share stories about Adam Neumann running around barefoot, yelling at employees, and demanding cases of tequila</a>Get the latest Google stock price<a href="http://markets.businessinsider.com/stock/GOOG-Quote"> here.</a>

Google's CEO is making his case to conservatives in a bid to ward off regulation

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div></div></div><ul class="summary-list"><li>Mark Zuckerberg reiterated on Wednesday that he thinks breaking up Facebook is a bad idea, saying lawmakers should not "take a big hammer" to the company.</li><li>Facebook cofounder Chris Hughes published an op-ed last month saying the company should be separated from subsidiaries like Instagram and WhatsApp to reduce its power.</li><li>Zuckerberg argues that Facebook's enormous size is what enables it to fight problems like election interference.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/?hprecirc-bullet">Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.</a></li></ul>Mark Zuckerberg has doubled down on his argument that it would be a bad idea to break up Facebook, saying lawmakers should not "take a big hammer" to the company.In an interview with Harvard law professor Cass Sunstein at the Aspen Ideas Festival on Wednesday, Zuckerberg was asked about his cofounder <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/09/opinion/sunday/chris-hughes-facebook-zuckerberg.html?utm_source=newsletter&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=newsletter_axiosam&amp;stream=top" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Chris Hughes' New York Times op-ed in May</a>, in which Hughes said Facebook should be separated from WhatsApp and Instagram.The argument is not unique to Hughes, some US politicians including Democratic presidential hopeful <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/elizabeth-warren-break-up-big-tech-billboard-in-san-francisco-2019-5?r=US&amp;IR=T">Elizabeth Warren have made breaking up big tech part of their ticket for office</a>."I don't agree with that one," Zuckerberg said, laughing. He countered that breaking up big tech companies like Facebook would do nothing to solve looming problems like election interference and harmful content, because only companies as large as Facebook have the resources to fight these problems.Read more: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-antitrust-probes-mean-for-facebook-google-apple-amazon-2019-6?r=US&amp;IR=T">Big tech's giant power could be challenged in blockbuster antitrust probes - here's what that means for Apple, Amazon, Facebook, and Google</a>"The ability to work on election integrity or content systems - we have an ability now because we're a successful company and we're large to be able to go build these systems that I think are unprecedented," said Zuckerberg."It's not the case that if you broke up Facebook into a bunch of pieces you wouldn't have those issues. You would have those issues, you would just be much less equipped to deal with them," he added.Zuckerberg addressed the common counter-argument that Facebook's immense size means it is at the heart of these problems in the first place, making it impossible for the company to effectively fight the deluge of problems on its platforms."The proof point that shows that that is wrong, is that you can look at the other social media companies out there. Look at Twitter, look at Reddit, all these different services… they have hundreds of millions of people instead of billions, but do they face qualitatively different issues? The same kind of misinformation questions or election interference, are they not suffering from those too? They absolutely are," he said."I can kind of get why politically saying that you want to break up the companies feels nice, right. It's like, 'Okay, there are issues. Let's just take a big hammer and go do it.' But I just think the reality is we want to make sure the things we do actually address the problems."This isn't the first time Zuckerberg has pushed back against breaking up Facebook. Shortly after Hughes' piece appeared in the Time, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-ceo-mark-zuckerberg-responds-calls-break-up-the-company-2019-5?r=US&amp;IR=T">Zuckerberg told reporters</a> that Facebook's size doesn't quash competition and helps it fight abuse. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-break-up-would-make-instagram-less-safe-mosseri-2019-6?r=US&amp;IR=T">Instagram boss Adam Mosseri echoed this sentiment earlier this month</a>, saying being orphaned from Facebook would make it harder for Instagram to "keep people safe."You can watch the full interview with Zuckerberg here:<div></div> <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/apple-to-android-switch-new-phone-stuck-ecosystem-2019-6">Here's why it's so hard to switch from Apple to Android</a></h3> <div> </div> </div>

Mark Zuckerberg laid out his case for why lawmakers shouldn't 'take a big hammer' to Facebook

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image">Associated Press/Nick UtICE has reportedly been luring immigrants into sting operations with fake Facebook accounts.</div></div></div>Good morning! This is the tech news you need to know this Friday.<ol><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/wework-plans-thousands-of-job-cuts-shelving-initial-public-offering-2019-10?r=US&amp;IR=T">WeWork is planning to lay off up to 25% of its employees, a source familiar with the matter told Business Insider</a>. The cuts come as new CEOs Artie Minson and Sebastian Gunningham try to focus on WeWork's core business after a tumultuous lead-up to a shelved initial public offering.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ice-used-fake-facebook-accounts-for-raids-report-2019-10?r=US&amp;IR=T">ICE is reportedly using fake Facebook accounts to track undocumented immigrants and lure them into sting operations</a>. The practice seemingly violates Facebook's terms of service, but it's unclear whether the social media company is aware of ICE's fake profiles or is taking action against them.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ecj-rules-facebook-ordered-take-down-illegal-content-worldwide-2019-10?r=US&amp;IR=T">Europe's top court ruled that EU courts can order Facebook to take down illegal content worldwide</a>. The case was brought by an Austrian politician after she demanded the removal of a defamatory Facebook post about herself.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/anduril-is-sending-attack-drones-to-conflict-zones-2019-10?r=US&amp;IR=T">Palmer Luckey's military tech company Anduril is sending drone destroyers to conflict zones</a>. The firm says its new "Interceptor" drone weighs about as much as a bowling ball and is capable of smashing other drones out of the sky.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/activist-group-targets-palantir-over-controversial-ice-raid-2019-10?r=US&amp;IR=T">Palantir's tech was used by ICE in the controversial arrests of 680 people at a Mississippi chicken farm according to immigrants rights group Mijente</a>. Mijente has been pounding the drums over Palantir's use by ICE, even as Palantir has insisted that its tech is used by a different group within ICE that is not responsible for deportations or family separations at the border.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-messaging-justice-department-mark-zuckerberg-william-barr-2019-10?r=US&amp;IR=T">Attorney General William Barr will ask Facebook to delay its plans for a fully encrypted, auto-deleting messaging platform</a>. In March 2019 Zuckerberg announced that Facebook was developing a new messaging platform that would feature end-to-end encryption and auto-delete messages after a certain amount of time.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/instagram-threads-app-messaging-close-friends-status-launches-facebook-snapchat-2019-10?r=US&amp;IR=T">Instagram launched an app for instant messaging with people on your Close Friends list in an attempt to best Snapchat</a>. The app, called Threads, acts as a dedicated standalone platform for communicating quicker and easier with the people users talk to most.</li><li><a href="https://techcrunch.com/2019/10/03/bird-raises-275-million-series-d-round-at-2-5-billion-valuation/">Dockless scooter startup Bird raised $275 million in a Series D funding round pegging its valuation at $2.5 billion, TechCrunch reports</a>. Venture capital firm Sequoia Capital was a returning investor for the series D round.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/google-ceo-makes-case-to-conservatives-in-bid-ward-off-regulation-2019-10?r=US&amp;IR=T">Google CEO Sundar Pichai tried to appeal to conservatives by writing an op-ed in Fox Business News</a>. This comes after 50 state attorney general announced last month they were launching a probe into Google.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/google-sergey-brin-married-nicole-shanahan-child-anne-wojcicki-divorce-2019-10?r=US&amp;IR=T">It was revealed Thursday that Google cofounder Sergey Brin has secretly been married to tech startup founder Nicole Shanahan since 2018</a>. Brin, 46, and Shanahan, 34, have been dating since 2015, and have one child together who was born last year. </li></ol>Have an Amazon Alexa device? Now you can hear 10 Things in Tech each morning. Just search for "Business Insider" in your Alexa's flash briefing settings.You can also <a href="https://newsletter.businessinsider.com/join/free">subscribe to this newsletter</a> here - just tick "10 Things in Tech You Need to Know. <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/iphone-gestures-ios-13-software-update-how-to-2019-9">All the new iPhone iOS 13 gestures you need to know</a></h3> <div> </div> </div>

10 things in tech you need to know today

All I wanted was a swimming pool. What I got was a $31,000 lesson in Zelle fraud.

Good morning! Welcome back to <keyword id="10669910" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="10-things-in-politics">10 Things in Politics</keyword>. I'm Brent Griffiths. <a href="http://newsletter.businessinsider.com/join/10-things-in-politics">Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox each day.</a>I hope you enjoyed our longer weekend. Our thoughts are with everyone in the middle of these terrible winter storms.Send your tips and musings to <a href="mailto:bgriffiths@insider.com">bgriffiths@insider.com</a> or tweet me<a href="https://twitter.com/BrentGriffiths"> @BrentGriffiths</a>.Here's what you need to know:<ul><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-federal-state-local-investigation-prosecution-georgia-call-2021-1">Trump is facing a potential legal tsunami after his acquittal.</a></li><li><a href="https://www.insider.com/texas-snow-storm-blackouts-states-power-grid-electricity-energy-emergency-2021-2">Millions of Americans are without power amid freezing temperatures.</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/liz-cheney-republican-impeachment-trump-matt-gaetz-denver-riggleman-2021-2">Liz Cheney is in for her biggest fight yet.</a></li></ul>1. FULL COURT PRESS: Former President Donald Trump survived impeachment by being out of office. But the same status could prove to be a future detriment. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mcconnell-senate-trump-impeachment-vote-acquittal-gop-2021-2">Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell</a> and other GOP senators who voted to acquit Trump say the court system is the best suited to potentially charge Trump over the Capitol insurrection. Other prosecutors have pledged to investigate. This, combined with ongoing probes, could escalate into a legal tsunami.My colleague Dave Levinthal <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-federal-state-local-investigation-prosecution-georgia-call-2021-1">illustrates in an exclusive report</a> why we may still see Trump in court.<ul><li>Why is this happening now?: A longstanding Justice Department tradition calls for not prosecuting sitting presidents. Presidents can also argue they are too busy to cooperate with lawsuits. And finally, there are a number of ways to bend the bureaucracy in your favor, as Trump found out when the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/08/nyregion/donald-trump-jean-carroll-lawsuit-rape.html">DOJ intervened in a defamation suit against him</a>. All of these protections are now gone.</li></ul>What might be on the docket?: The list ranges from before Trump even entered office to his final days trying to cling to power.<ul><li>The investigations that left the headlines: Southern District of New York prosecutors named Trump as "Individual-1" in their investigation of the hush-money scheme to silence Stormy Daniels. Also, DC Attorney General Karl Racine is investigating whether Trump's inauguration included improper payments to his private businesses. There's also Trump's years-long audit fight with the IRS.</li><li>The most recent issues: Prosecutors in Fulton County, Georgia, are investigating Trump's efforts to pressure the state's secretary of state to "find" votes for him. The Capitol riots also open the former president to other liabilities far beyond what impeachment would have imposed on him.</li><li>A congressional commission?: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/nancy-pelosi-capitol-riots-commission-investigate-police-2021-2">House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has promised to create a congressional investigation</a> similar to the famous 9/11 commission to investigate the riots. Some Democrats want to go further by forming a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-truth-commission-investigation-biden-democrats-republicans-coronavirus-ethics-2020-11?utmSource=twitter&amp;utmContent=referral&amp;utmTerm=topbar&amp;referrer=twitterrrer=twitter">"truth commission"</a> to review any number of Trump-era policies, from child separations to his pandemic response.</li></ul><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-federal-state-local-investigation-prosecution-georgia-call-2021-1">Read more of Dave's report here.</a>2. Millions of Americans are without power amid freezing temps: 150 million Americans are under storm warnings, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/15/us/winter-storm-today.html">per The New York Times</a>. Residents in 14 different states <a href="https://www.insider.com/texas-snow-storm-blackouts-states-power-grid-electricity-energy-emergency-2021-2">are facing rolling blackouts</a>.<ul><li>The situation in Texas is particularly dire: 2 million Texans are without power. Some in the state, including in Austin, are experiencing outages that lasted overnight, <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2021/02/15/rolling-blackouts-texas/">the Texas Tribune reports</a>. A particularly severe cold snap is stressing the grid, made worse by limited gas supplies and frozen wind turbines.</li></ul>3. Liz Cheney faces a brutal fight: The Wyoming Republican is used to clashing with parts of the GOP, but the heat from her colleagues is spreading back home. She is already facing a primary challenger over her vote to impeach Trump. Former Sen. Alan Simpson, a long-time ally, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/liz-cheney-republican-impeachment-trump-matt-gaetz-denver-riggleman-2021-2">told my colleague Kayla Epstein</a> that Cheney maintains a more quiet base of supporters in the state that will outnumber the more vocal, pro-Trump "zealots."<div type="image" title="biden vaccine" height="1719" width="2293" msid="80983187" hostid="261"></div>4. Biden wants to reverse the federal employee exodus: Government employees were "gutt[ed]" under Trump, someone who worked on the Biden transition said, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-federal-workers-quit-trump-agencies-scientists-2021-2">per my colleague Robin Bravender in her exclusive report.</a> Extremely thin ranks could hamper Biden's ambitious agenda. His goal of reorienting foreign policy will run into a depleted State Department, and bold climate actions face an EPA that lost an average of 219 scientists per year while Trump was in power.5. The top things for your calendar, all times Eastern:<ul><li>11:30 a.m.: Jen Psaki holds the White House's daily news briefing.</li><li>5:30 p.m.: The Senate holds a procedural vote on Linda Thomas-Greenfield's nomination to be Ambassador to the UN.</li><li>8:00 p.m.: Biden speaks during a live CNN town hall from Wisconsin.</li></ul>6. Virus cases are dropping across the country: While possibly influenced by the holiday weekend, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/covid-cases-us-drop-lowest-since-october-daily-infections-data-2021-2">Monday saw the lowest number of new COVID-19 cases </a>since October. "[T]he seven-day average, considered a more reliable measure, has dipped below 90,000 a day for the first time since early November," <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/02/16/coronavirus-covid-live-updates-us/">per The Washington Post</a>. Experts disagree on the exact reason for the drop, but attribute it to a combination of more vaccines, fewer tests, and some seasonal patterns typical with similar viruses. 7. Parler is back online: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/parler-far-right-social-media-back-online-new-ceo-2021-2">The preferred social media of far-right has returned</a> with a Tea Party co-founder serving as interim CEO. The site was previously offline after Amazon Web Services dropped it on January 11.8. Gov. Andrew Cuomo accepts some blame for nursing home scandal: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/15/nyregion/cuomo-nursing-homes.html">The New York Democrat admitted a "void" was created</a> by failing to respond to journalists' and state lawmakers' requests for more data on COVID-19 related deaths in nursing homes. But Cuomo refused to express any further contrition as bipartisan calls grow for further investigations, and to strip him of some of his powers.9. Biden's lawyers told the vice president's niece to stop selling merch featuring her aunt: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-lawyers-told-meena-harris-stop-using-kamala-brand-report-2021-2">Transition team lawyers told Meena Harris</a> to stop producing products using Vice President Kamala Harris' name and image. "Behavior needs to change," a White House official <a href="https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2021-02-11/meena-branding-business-kamala-harris-niece">told the Los Angeles Times</a> of the ethics issues arising from such sales. But Meena Harris has remained defiant on social media.10. Forget sheep or stars, one Twitch user is counting the commas: Asian Andy is among the influencers making money on "sleep streams." Andy pocketed $16,000 for a stream that enabled text-to-speech recognition so viewers could play music and issue commands. And he's far from the first to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/influencer-instagram-youtube-twitch-alexa-recognition-speech-disturb-money-subscribe-donate-view">find a way to make money in his sleep</a>.Today's trivia question: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/at-camp-david-retreat-biden-hangs-out-shows-hes-got-game-2021-2">Biden took his first trip to Camp David</a> as president over the holiday weekend. What did FDR first name the presidential retreat? Email your response and a suggested question to me at <a href="mailto:bgriffiths@insider.com">bgriffiths@insider.com</a><ul><li>Friday's answer: The Secret Service found Russian President Boris Yeltsin by Pennsylvania Ave. in <a href="https://www.history.com/news/bill-clinton-boris-yeltsin-drunk-1994-russian-state-visit">his underwear, drunk, and wanting pizza in September 1994.</a> </li></ul>

10 Things in Politics: Trump faces a tsunami of legal peril

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">Associated PressThe US Department of Justice, under Attorney General William Barr, announced Tuesday a review of the market power and actions of the big tech companies.</div></div></div><ul class="summary-list"><li>The US <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/justice-department">Justice Department's</a> surprise announcement that it's launching an antitrust review of the big tech companies was a very unusual move.</li><li>Federal enforcement agencies rarely announce, or even confirm, ongoing investigations into people or companies.</li><li>The move was likely a response to growing political pressure, antitrust experts said.</li><li>Ironically, it may be good news for the tech giants.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/prime?module=article&amp;area=summary">Click here for more BI Prime stories</a>.</li></ul> The US Department of Justice's surprise <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/doj-broad-probe-into-big-tech-2019-7">press release</a> Tuesday of its Big Tech investigation was designed to send a signal to a lot of groups - but tech companies were not really one of them. The announcement was an unusually public performance by a federal regulator which typically prizes confidentiality in such matters. That's because it was basically a notice, intended particularly to a key figure in Congress, that the Justice Department will now be spearheading the antitrust investigations into the big tech companies, said David Balto, an antitrust lawyer in Washington D.C. with decades of experience working for and with competition regulators officials there.For tech companies, the DOJs' announcement was if anything, a subtle indication that the government may not come down as hard on them as it might seem, he said."This is good news for the companies," Balto said.That may seem a bit ironic, given the substance of the announcement. In its <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-reviewing-practices-market-leading-online-platforms">statement</a>, the Justice Department said it would review the market power of the "leading online platforms" to see if they have thwarted competition or harmed consumers. The agency vowed to "seek redress" if it found violations, essentially threatening to sue the companies.Read this: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/doj-broad-probe-into-big-tech-2019-7">The Department of Justice just launched a broad probe into whether big tech companies like Amazon, Facebook, and others illegally harm competition</a>The announcement came as something of a surprise. Numerous reports have indicated that the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission were starting to look into the competitive practices of the big tech companies. But the agencies had declined to comment on the record for those reports. In fact, federal enforcement agencies rarely acknowledge ongoing investigations into particular people or companies.<h2>The agency is likely responding to political pressure</h2>Unusual as it was, the Justice Department's move didn't come out of nowhere. Political figures on the left and right, including senators <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/elizabeth-warren-call-to-break-up-amazon-google-is-a-real-threat-2019-3">Elizabeth Warren</a> and Bernie Sanders and President Donald Trump, have been calling for increased scrutiny of the market power of the big tech companies and even, in many cases, for breaking them up."There is enormous political pressure on the agencies in Washington to be seen as doing something about big tech," said Daniel Crane, a professor at the University of Michigan's law school who focuses on antitrust issues. He continued: "This is their way of responding to the political pressure."But Balto thinks there something more going on. Last month, <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/ftc-to-examine-how-facebook-s-practices-affect-digital-competition-11559576731">The Wall Street Journal reported</a> that the FTC and the Justice Department had divvied up oversight over the tech giants. Under the agreement, the FTC was to get authority over <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/facebook">Facebook</a> and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/amazon">Amazon</a>, while the Department of Justice would oversee <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/apple">Apple</a> and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/google">Google parent Alphabet.</a>The problem with that arrangement was that Mike Lee, who serves as chairman of Senate Judiciary Committee's subcommittee on antitrust, competition policy and consumer rights, objected to it, Balto noted. In an <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/op-eds/just-one-agency-should-enforce-antitrust-law">opinion piece published by the Washington Examiner</a> last month, Lee lambasted the idea that the agencies would split oversight duties over the big tech companies. The two agencies risked duplicating efforts and causing a divergence in enforcement, he said.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><a href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/sen-mike-lee-r-utah-questions-supreme-court-nominee-brett-news-photo/1042080306">Andrew Harnik, Pool/Getty Images</a>Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, questions Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh as he testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill on September 27, 2018 in Washington, DC.</div></div></div>"These investigations will clearly cover much of the same ground," Lee said in his op-ed. "Splitting antitrust investigations of these firms between two agencies," he continued, "is just analytically inefficient."<h2>The Justice Department is saying it's in charge</h2>Lee's subcommittee was scheduled to hold a hearing on Tuesday with top antitrust regulators in the Trump administration at which he was <a href="https://lrus.wolterskluwer.com/news/antitrust-law-daily/senate-antitrust-oversight-hearing-set-for-july-23/81055/">expected to question them over the decision</a> to split up oversight of the tech companies. That hearing ended up being <a href="https://news.bloomberglaw.com/mergers-and-antitrust/senate-antitrust-panel-postpones-hearing-with-top-regulators">postponed</a>, but, in Balto's view, the Justice Department's announcement was its way of responding to Lee's concerns by staking out its turf. "This is really the (Justice Department) saying, 'thank you, it's my football, and I plan to play with it,'" he said.The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that the Justice Department's review would not pre-empt the investigations already underway by the FTC into the companies under its purview.Balto says that while the Justice Department may leave some issues to the FTC, Tuesday's announcement indicates that the DOJ is laying claim to all inquiries involving online platform and marketplace issues - the core of the antitrust charges made against the big tech companies. Senator Elizabeth Warren and others have raised concerns about how those companies use their control over their platforms and marketplaces to give their own products and services a leg up over rivals."These issues are incredibly complex, time consuming, and really difficult, and to have two agencies looking at the same conduct really didn't make sense," Balto said.Lee's office did not respond to calls or an email seeking comment. Likewise, the Justice Department did not respond to an email seeking comment.<h2>The move could be good news for the tech giants</h2>The news that the Justice Department was opening up its review was seen as a negative sign on Wall Street Tuesday. The big four companies' stock prices all fell following the announcement.But having the Justice Department take point on antitrust review is actually a good thing for the tech companies, Balto said. The Department of Justice hasn't filed a major suit under the Sherman Antitrust Act since the Microsoft case two decades ago. And the agency actually has fewer legal options when it comes to policing competition than does the FTC, he said."I don't think anybody's going to lose any more sleep that this is all with the Justice Department," Balto said. "If anything, they'll feel more comfortable in their legal position."<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"> Drew Angerer/Getty Images</div></div></div>For his part, Crane is dubious that anything much will come of the investigations in the near future, regardless of which agency is leading the charge. When it comes to antitrust enforcement, the FTC's track record is not much better than the Department of Justice in recent decades, despite theoretically having enhanced enforcement powers, he said.The courts have made it difficult for regulators to win antitrust cases, and even when such cases are successful, they tend to take many years to play out. Because of that, there's little chance the big tech companies will be broken up anytime soon, despite the political pressure on them, he said."The kind of blockbuster, 'let's break them up' case that is being trumpeted politically, I just don't see that being in the offing," Crane said.Got a tip about the tech industry? Contact this reporter via email at twolverton@businessinsider.com, message him on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/troywolv/">@troywolv</a>, or send him a secure message through Signal at 415.515.5594. You can also <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-tip-business-insider-securely-guide-signal-securedrop-2017-6"> contact Business Insider securely via SecureDrop</a>.<ul class="read-more-links"><li>Read more about the tech industry's antitrust issues:</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-dos-investigation-real-lesson-economist-warren-boulton-2019-6" data-read-more-link="" data-e2e-name="read-more-link">This forgotten investigation into Microsoft, 10 years before the antitrust trial, let it get away with tactics that sealed its tech dominance, according to a key player</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/makan-delrahim-doj-no-need-new-antirust-laws-big-tech-2019-6" data-read-more-link="" data-e2e-name="read-more-link">A top DOJ official just outlined why the agency has everything it needs to go after Big Tech - and Facebook, Google, and Amazon should be nervous</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/apple-google-could-be-scrutinized-mergers-exclusive-deals-2019-6" data-read-more-link="" data-e2e-name="read-more-link">Top antitrust enforcer at DOJ reveals 3 ways the agency could make a case against big tech companies like Google and Apple</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/lessig-kusinitz-say-microsoft-case-has-lessons-for-tech-today-2019-6" data-read-more-link="" data-e2e-name="read-more-link">Here's why the failed attempt to break up Microsoft will make or break the crackdown on Facebook, Amazon, and Google, according to 2 top lawyers in the Microsoft case</a></li></ul> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/40-big-tech-predictions-for-2019?IR=T&amp;itm_source=businessinsider&amp;itm_medium=ctgr_bii&amp;itm_term=ctgr_leadgen&amp;itm_content=amazon&amp;itm_campaign=40-big-tech-predictions-for-2019-2"></a> <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/bose-bluetooth-audio-sunglasses-could-replace-headphones-2019-7">We tried $200 Bose audio sunglasses that can replace your headphones</a></h3> <div> </div> </div>

The Justice Department's surprise 'reveal' of a Big Tech investigation was highly unusual, and it could actually turn out to be good news for the tech giants

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">Amazon; Apple; Facebook; Google; Samantha Lee/Business InsiderAmazon, Facebook, Google and more are under mounting pressure to defend themselves as the case for breaking up big tech companies gains momentum.</div></div></div><ul class="summary-list"><li>Tech firms like <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/google">Google</a>, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/facebook">Facebook</a>, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/apple">Apple</a>, and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/amazon">Amazon</a> are under increased scrutiny as the ongoing debate regarding whether or not their size and influence is problematic for competition within the industry continues to grow.</li><li>Reports have indicated that the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission have discussed how to divide up the tasks of investigating Google, Amazon, Facebook, and Apple.</li><li>In recent months, such companies have made the case for how their platforms benefit the tech industry.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/">Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. </a></li></ul>Silicon Valley tech giants are coming under fire. Firms like Facebook, Google, Apple, and Amazon are said to be under increased scrutiny from regulators questioning whether their size and impact is hurting competition and consumer choice.The debate of whether or not the government should step in and subject large tech firms to regulation is a large and complex one that doesn't have a clear answer. But what does seem certain is that giants like Amazon, Facebook, Google, and Apple are in a position where defending their business practices could be more important than ever.<h2>A call for regulation</h2><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">Sergio Flores/Getty ImagesDemocratic presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).</div></div></div>Among the biggest challengers taking on these tech behemoths is Democratic senator and 2020 presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren, who proposed a sweeping <a href="https://medium.com/@teamwarren/heres-how-we-can-break-up-big-tech-9ad9e0da324c">plan</a> in March that would <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/elizabeth-warren-plan-to-break-up-amazon-facebook-google-big-tech-2019-3">subject major tech firms to regulation</a>. Her plan hinges on two major steps: classifying large tech firms with an annual global revenue of $25 billion or more as "platform utilities," and reversing certain major tech acquisitions.It's one of several indications that US regulators are cracking down on big tech. The Department of Justice is reportedly planning to launch an antitrust investigation into Google regarding its search division among other businesses, according to reports from <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/06/01/justice-department-is-preparing-potential-antitrust-investigation-google/?utm_term=.3b9288561924">The Washington Post</a> and <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/justice-department-is-preparing-antitrust-investigation-of-google-11559348795">The Wall Street Journal</a>. The agency has also been granted permission to investigate Apple, according to <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tech-antitrust-exclusive/exclusive-u-s-justice-dept-considering-apple-probe-sources-idUSKCN1T42DD">Reuters</a>, although that report did not clearly indicate whether a probe was currently being planned.The European Commission is also reportedly preparing <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2019/05/06/eu-will-reportedly-investigate-apple/">to look into Apple</a> after Spotify filed a complaint in March, as <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/1cc16026-6da7-11e9-80c7-60ee53e6681d">The Financial Times</a> reported. The Swedish music streaming giant <a href="https://newsroom.spotify.com/2019-03-13/consumers-and-innovators-win-on-a-level-playing-field/">accused Apple</a> of making it difficult to remain competitive in the App Store by charging a 30% commission on purchases made through the digital shop.The Federal Trade Commission recently secured the authority to look into Facebook and Amazon over anticompetitive business practices, as <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/06/02/amazon-could-face-heightened-antitrust-scrutiny-under-new-agreement-between-us-regulators/?utm_term=.2fd3c90c5244">The Washington Post</a> and the <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/ftc-to-examine-how-facebook-s-practices-affect-digital-competition-11559576731?mod=e2tw">Journal</a> also reported earlier this month. A House judiciary subcommittee <a href="https://judiciary.house.gov/news/press-releases/house-judiciary-committee-launches-bipartisan-investigation-competition-digital">also said in early June</a> that it would launch its own investigation into competition in digital markets.Read more: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/bill-gates-microsoft-antitrust-lawsuit-2019-6">Bill Gates says today's big tech companies have learned from Microsoft's mistakes in its big antitrust battle</a>It wouldn't be the first time tech firms have been entangled in antitrust concerns. But the mounting attention from US regulators in recent years could be linked to the increasingly prevalent role tech platforms have played in <keyword id="6358883" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="politics">politics</keyword> and other aspects of society, according to Danny O'Brien, director of strategy for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a non-profit consumer advocacy group focusing on defending civil liberties online."We're in a time where people are really concerned over a lack of stability," O'Brien, said. "For regulators and politicians, I think a huge chunk of that comes down to the fact that things have happened in the world that affect politicians in particular. You could make the argument that those problems should be laid at the feet of the big tech companies."<h2>Facebook, Google, Apple, and Amazon are going on the defense</h2><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">JOSH EDELSON/GettyGoogle CEO Sundar Pichai.</div></div></div>As pressure mounts, tech companies are starting to fight back. Facebook, Google, and Apple have addressed concerns in their own way through a series of public statements and media interviews, and there seems to be a common thread among their standpoints: Their platforms and technologies are beneficial to the industry, and that there's plenty of competition in the tech sector despite the size and influence of these companies.Apple publicly disputed accusations that its App Store policies unfairly stifle competition <a href="https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2019/03/addressing-spotifys-claims/">in a response</a> to Spotify's EU complaint. In the rebuke, Apple pointed out that it does not collect a fee from most of the apps published in the App Store (84% pay nothing to Apple) and that its revenue-sharing model only applies to a fraction of Spotify's subscriptions. It has also argued that the 30% fee - which drops to 15% after the first year of a subscription - is fair considering Apple connects Spotify to its users and provides a stable system for payments among other benefits."Spotify wouldn't be the business they are today without the App Store ecosystem, but now they're leveraging their scale to avoid contributing to maintaining that ecosystem for the next generation of app entrepreneurs," Apple wrote. "We think that's wrong."Apple also recently published a page on its website <a href="https://www.apple.com/ios/app-store/principles-practices/">outlining its App Store practices and principles</a>, on which it highlights apps with which it competes in a variety of categories including navigation, music streaming, and cloud storage among others.In his <a href="https://blog.aboutamazon.com/company-news/2018-letter-to-shareholders?tag=bisafetynet2-20">annual letter to shareholders</a> published in April, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos didn't directly address the discussion around whether or not big tech firms like his should be regulated or broken up. But he did emphasize the success that small and medium-sized businesses have experienced on his platform, potentially a move to subdue concerns that Amazon is growing too powerful."Third party sellers are kicking our first-party butt," Bezos wrote in the letter. "Badly." The compound annual growth rate for Amazon's third-party business between 1999 and this past year was 52%, he wrote in the letter, more than doubling the first-party business's growth rate of 25%.Later on in the note, Bezos also describes Amazon as a" small player" in the worldwide retail space. "We represent a low single-digit percentage of the retail market, and there are much larger retailers in every country where we operate," Bezos wrote. "And that's largely because nearly 90% of retail remains offline, in brick and mortar stores."Google and Facebook have expressed a willingness to embrace government regulation, but they aren't onboard with breaking up their companies. Google CEO Sundar Pichai recently encouraged scrutiny of large tech firms and said his company will "participate constructively in these discussions" when speaking with <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2019/06/14/tech/sundar-pichai-google-antitrust/index.html">CNN Business.</a> But he added that "scale does offer many benefits," allowing the firm to invest deeply into new technologies like artificial intelligence. Pichai also said imposing regulations "for the sake of regulating" could have "unintended consequences."Read more: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tim-cook-stanford-commencement-speech-2019-6">Apple CEO Tim Cook called out companies like Facebook, Theranos, and YouTube in a speech pushing for responsibility in Silicon Valley</a>Last week, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mark-zuckerberg-counters-argument-for-breaking-up-facebook-2019-6">reiterated his stance</a> on why breaking up Facebook would be a bad idea when speaking at the Aspen Ideas Festival. Similar to Pichai's response, Zuckerberg said dismantling the social media giant could make it more difficult for the firm to solve issues, like ensuring toxic content doesn't emerge on the platform and preventing election interference."It's not the case that if you broke up Facebook into a bunch of pieces that you wouldn't have those issues," Zuckerberg said. "You would have those issues - you would just be much less equipped to deal with them."Zuckerberg also said that other platforms not owned by Facebook - like Reddit and Twitter - similarly grappled with issues regarding misinformation and election interference, refuting the notion that Facebook was particularly prone to such activity due to its size. However, its size is also precisely what makes it difficult for a firm like Facebook to get ahead of problems, says Irina Raicu, the internet ethics program director at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University."Critics have pointed out that they're being reactive," said Raicu. "But they're trying to deal with problems that arise, and at the same time, we want them to look ahead and anticipate problems. And that's not easy given the size of these companies and the scale of these platforms."Zuckerberg has also voiced support for regulation in the past, writing an op-ed in <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/mark-zuckerberg-the-internet-needs-new-rules-lets-start-in-these-four-areas/2019/03/29/9e6f0504-521a-11e9-a3f7-78b7525a8d5f_story.html">The Washington Post</a> calling for "<a href="https://www.theverge.com/2019/3/30/18288470/mark-zuckerberg-op-ed-tech-regulation-privacy-data-portability-harmful-content-elections">a more active role for governments and regulators</a>" when it comes to internet companies.Although firms like Google and Facebook have supported the idea of discussing possible regulation, O'Brien says that could be problematic. It positions these companies as being the solution to the problem, therefore failing to address the issue of reducing their influence."There's nothing that a lawmaker feels more comfortable with than being able to get three to four people in the room and feel that they're talking to the whole industry," O'Brien said. "And our concern is that is both not a description of how the internet is and how it should be."<h2>A shift in perspective</h2><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">Facebook</div></div></div>The increase in scrutiny also coincides with a shift in perspective among tech giants like Facebook, which for years had argued that it's a tech platform, not a media company, and therefore shouldn't be responsible for how users interact and what they publish on its platform."I don't think we have to be the publisher and we definitely don't want to be the arbiter of truth," Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook's chief operating officer, said to the BBC in April 2017 as <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2017/04/24/facebook-fake-news-sheryl-sanberg.html">CNBC reported</a>. Similarly, Susan Wojcicki, CEO of the Google-owned YouTube, also said the video platform is "not a news organization" when speaking at the South by Southwest festival in 2018, as the <a href="https://www.cjr.org/innovations/youtube-wants-the-news-audience-but-not-the-responsibility.php">Columbia Journalism Review</a> reported at the time.Zuckerberg also <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-changing-statements-russian-meddling-2016-election-2017-11">initially downplayed the role</a> that fake news circulating on his social media network played in the US presidential election, saying in November 2016 that "to think it influenced the election in any way is a pretty crazy idea."Companies like Google and Facebook are still figuring out how to strike the right balance between cracking down on harmful content and maintaining freedom of speech on their platforms, a problem that's far from being solved. But the notion that they're a neutral part of the equation has gradually changed in recent years, as both firms have imposed new rules and processes for providing more information about posts that appear on their networks.Facebook recently shared more detail about <a href="https://newsroom.fb.com/news/2019/05/fake-accounts/">how it measures fake accounts</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/help/132021603539177?helpref=related">why it chooses to promote certain posts</a> in the Newsfeed. Google's YouTube <a href="https://youtube.googleblog.com/2019/01/continuing-our-work-to-improve.html">said earlier this year</a> that it would work to reduce the prominence of content that comes close to violating its community guidelines."[It's] not about whether they're going to make the right call every time, because obviously they won't," said Raicu. "But the question is, if they turn out to have been mistaken, how quickly do they recognize that? How do they respond ethically when it turns out that they've caused harm in the world?"It's unclear if breaking up firms like Facebook and Google is the answer. But if regulators do move to do so, they should make sure they do it in such a way that fosters growth and competition amongst the industry rather than handing Silicon Valley more power, says O'Brien."If you come to this with the idea that Facebook and Google are the problem, then the last thing you want to be doing is accepting a regulatory framework that thinks a Google or a Facebook is also the solution," said O'Brien. "The real danger here is that you end up with a regulation that cements the position of these giants rather than seeking to dismantle or dilute their influence."<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/40-big-tech-predictions-for-2019?IR=T&amp;itm_source=businessinsider&amp;itm_medium=ctgr_bii&amp;itm_term=ctgr_leadgen&amp;itm_content=amazon&amp;itm_campaign=40-big-tech-predictions-for-2019"></a> <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/spacex-falcon-heavy-rocket-most-difficult-launch-ever-2019-6">Watch SpaceX's 'most difficult launch ever'</a></h3> <div> </div> </div>

Facebook, Google, and Apple are going on the defense as the battle cry to break up 'big tech' gets louder than ever

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image">Thomson ReutersEuropean Competition Commissioner Vestager addresses the European Parliament's tax rulings committee at the EU Parliament in Brussels</div></div></div>The European Union's probe into Apple's taxes was actually triggered by the US Senate.That's according to EU competition chief Margrethe Vestager, who spoke at a panel at Columbia University Wednesday. Back in 2013, a US Senate committee said Apple had <a href="https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CHRG-113shrg81657/pdf/CHRG-113shrg81657.pdf">quietly negotiated a special corporate tax rate </a>of 2% or less in Ireland. While they didn't accuse Apple of breaking any laws, they had called out the "gimmicks" and "schemes" that allowed the company to get sweetheart deals.Here is Vestager (emphasis ours):"What's been open is state aid control, what's been secret is the number of the companies and the tax rulings. And I think the irony of the transatlantic discussion is that the case in Europe only started because questions were being asked by the US Senate. Because this is where they take things forward, which allow questions to be asked and then eventually there might be a predecessor to opening the case." Vestager has <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/margrethe-vestager-european-commission-apple-2016-8">launched similar tax-related </a><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/margrethe-vestager-european-commission-apple-2016-8">campaigns against multinationals </a>such as Starbucks in the Netherlands and Amazon in Luxembourg.She has been the target of criticism from across the Atlantic for ordering Ireland to claw back up to $14.7 billion in back taxes from Apple. The European Union has <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-has-been-fined-by-the-eu-2016-8">never ordered a company to pay this much</a> before.US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew wrote that the European Commission's actions "threaten to erode America's corporate tax base," and "threatens to undermine the overall business climate in Europe," in an <a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/europes-bite-out-of-apple-shows-the-need-for-u-s-tax-reform-1473722046">op-ed at The Wall Street Journal</a>. Apple CEO Tim Cook told the Irish Independent newspaper that the ruling was <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/r-apple-ceo-says-eu-tax-ruling-total-political-crap-irish-independent-2016-9">"total political crap,"</a> and suggested anti-US bias as one reason why Apple has been targeted. The iPhone maker, which is now the largest taxpayer in Ireland, said the ruling will have <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/apple-has-been-fined-by-the-eu-2016-8">a profound and harmful effect on investment and job creation in Europe</a>.Ms. Vestager fired back, saying she's just doing her job as per the EU treaties. She also cited that since 2000, only 2% of some 150 tax rulings made by the European Commission involved US companies, <a href="http://www.rte.ie/news/business/2016/0919/817682-eu-apple-us/">according to AFP</a>.Both Ireland and Apple said they intended to fight Europe's decision. <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/krugman-financial-markets-arent-taking-trump-seriously-2016-8">KRUGMAN: Financial markets aren't taking a Trump victory very seriously</a></h3> <div> <div> <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="RrNXdtNTE6A2yVb-FAhQwFsUcSxyV1lf" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div> </div> </div> </div>

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