- (0:20) - Breaking Down The Anti Trust Investigations
- (2:30) - How Long Could This Last and Could We See Fines?
- (4:45) - Could These Investigations Slow Down The Economy?
- (6:25) - What does this mean for investors?
Big Tech is now on the federal government’s radar. Partly at issue is anti-competitive tactics employed by these companies. It’s been reported that the Justice Department is preparing an antitrust investigation into some of the largest of these tech giants. That’s what we’re taking a Closer Look at now with Zacks Chief Equity Strategist and Economist, John Blank.
1. John, break this down for us, it wasn’t that long ago that everyone loved these tech giants. What happened?
2. So what are the real issues here?
3. We’re just in the preliminary stages of this scrutiny. How long can this go on though?
4. If this leads to full-blown complaints or lawsuits, one of the biggest punishments could be a multibillion dollar fine if a company is found guilty of anti-competitive behavior. What do you see as the likelihood of that happening?
5. What do you think the likelihood is of these big tech companies actually getting broken up as a result of the investigations?
6. Do you think investigations of these big technology companies will slow down the momentum of a large U.S. economic driver?
7. Does this have the potential of materially changing the tech sector as we currently know it?
8. The federal government and the companies will probably not be disclosing much about these investigations as they progress. Are investors just going to have to live with this cloud over these companies for the time being?
9. Given how these companies were allowed to get as big as they are and now this development, does all this make for a kind of “bizarre” situation surrounding these big tech companies?
Bizarre or not, I’m sure there will be future interesting developments to take a Closer Look at. With John Blank, I’m Terry Ruffolo.
Image: Bigstock
Is Breaking Up Hard to Do?
Big Tech is now on the federal government’s radar. Partly at issue is anti-competitive tactics employed by these companies. It’s been reported that the Justice Department is preparing an antitrust investigation into some of the largest of these tech giants. That’s what we’re taking a Closer Look at now with Zacks Chief Equity Strategist and Economist, John Blank.
1. John, break this down for us, it wasn’t that long ago that everyone loved these tech giants. What happened?
2. So what are the real issues here?
3. We’re just in the preliminary stages of this scrutiny. How long can this go on though?
4. If this leads to full-blown complaints or lawsuits, one of the biggest punishments could be a multibillion dollar fine if a company is found guilty of anti-competitive behavior. What do you see as the likelihood of that happening?
5. What do you think the likelihood is of these big tech companies actually getting broken up as a result of the investigations?
6. Do you think investigations of these big technology companies will slow down the momentum of a large U.S. economic driver?
7. Does this have the potential of materially changing the tech sector as we currently know it?
8. The federal government and the companies will probably not be disclosing much about these investigations as they progress. Are investors just going to have to live with this cloud over these companies for the time being?
9. Given how these companies were allowed to get as big as they are and now this development, does all this make for a kind of “bizarre” situation surrounding these big tech companies?
Bizarre or not, I’m sure there will be future interesting developments to take a Closer Look at. With John Blank, I’m Terry Ruffolo.