I've been thinking about to what extent I support regulation of tech companies. Usually I side with software companies against governments (especially in cases like protecting encryption, etc.) But there are some battles where it doesn't seem like a tech issue per se, and I don't see why I need to side with the company:
* Apple vs govts on taxes
* Amazon (even Uber) vs govts on employee status and income
I don't really believe in the 'break up Google/Facebook/etc' case though. It is not likely to address the harms people imagine it will. (As a minor example, consider how cookie prompts solved nothing.) But some regulation on specific features across the board makes sense (like laws about facial recognition, or existing regulations like COPPA.)
I've always thought the Cambridge Analytica scandal was overblown and I think some of the anti-FB ballast provided by that story is fading. I think elite media/political opinion might over-emphasize it. Are average Americans really sitting around asking for Google to be cut apart? I don’t think so…
Plus, what about the beneficial aspects of the SV ecosystem? Reducing the power of Silicon Valley is a great way to let the NSA have more spying power, have fewer immigrants at top executive roles, let Comcast charge extra based on apps you use, enable record labels to shut down Youtube… and mess up many other things we take for granted.
* Apple vs govts on taxes
* Amazon (even Uber) vs govts on employee status and income
I don't really believe in the 'break up Google/Facebook/etc' case though. It is not likely to address the harms people imagine it will. (As a minor example, consider how cookie prompts solved nothing.) But some regulation on specific features across the board makes sense (like laws about facial recognition, or existing regulations like COPPA.)
I've always thought the Cambridge Analytica scandal was overblown and I think some of the anti-FB ballast provided by that story is fading. I think elite media/political opinion might over-emphasize it. Are average Americans really sitting around asking for Google to be cut apart? I don’t think so…
Plus, what about the beneficial aspects of the SV ecosystem? Reducing the power of Silicon Valley is a great way to let the NSA have more spying power, have fewer immigrants at top executive roles, let Comcast charge extra based on apps you use, enable record labels to shut down Youtube… and mess up many other things we take for granted.