Regulators are taking on Big Tech

US regulators have launched a concerted attack on the Silicon Valley tech giants. Could their glory days soon be over? Matthew Partridge reports.

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America's antitrust police are on the warpath

Investors have "pummelled" technology stocks, says The New York Times. Facebook shares fell by more than 7% last Monday, while Google and Amazon shares were also sharply lower. US regulators are reportedly "divvying up antitrust oversight of the Silicon Valley giants", with the Justice Department agreeing "to handle potential antitrust investigations related to Apple and Google, while the Federal Trade Commission will take on Facebook and Amazon". At the same time, lawmakers are investigating "whether they have stifled competition and hurt consumers", and are even considering updating antitrust laws "to keep up with an industry that didn't exist when antitrust laws were written".

Regulators "would do well to remember that past crackdowns on tech behemoths have come only after good old competition did their job for them" says Dan Gallagher in The Wall Street Journal. For example, Google, and its parent company Alphabet, "is showing on its own that it is far from invincible". For instance, its search dominance has failed to translate into other markets, such as smartphones, where Google Pixel has a mere 1% share.

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Is the tech sector's time up?

Dr Matthew Partridge
MoneyWeek Shares editor