Silicon Valley Antitrust

Since the rise of the FAANGS, Silicon Valley and other technology companies have lacked federal oversight.  This has led to the advent of fraudulent companies, such as Theranos.  These fraudulent companies have been able to entice investors into investing large amounts of money into them based on a pitch on "disrupting" the future.  Additionally, it has led to companies that have become "too big."

Now, the Federal Government has begun to adopt a stricter attitude on Silicon Valley and the world's biggest tech companies.  The federal government has divided up the responsibilities of federal institutions.  The Justice Department will handle antitrust investigations relating to Apple and Google, while the Federal Trade Commission will take care of Facebook and Amazon.  The question on mind is whether or not any of these tech companies violate antitrust laws.  The technology industry is now in the sights of President Trump, Democrats running for president, Congress, and consumers.

Since the 2016 Election, Silicon Valley companies, such as Facebook, has faced criticism over disinformation, privacy breachers, and political bias.  There have been multiple discussions on whether or not these technology companies are doing the right thing in deciding what advertisements or news consumers are receiving on their devices and social media.

The agencies have not opened any official investigations, but the oversight from Washington could lead to possible lawsuits to break up the companies, hefty fines and settlements, or new laws limiting the reach of the se technology companies.  This has led to the stock of many technology companies to fall, such as Facebook, Google, and Amazon.