The Rise of Big Tech
For most of the world, it is hard to imagine our lives without the presence of tech companies like Apple, Google, Facebook/Meta, Microsoft, and Amazon. They are a ubiquitous part of our daily lives, fully immersed in so many things we do, from work to social media, shopping and more. While their products help and entertain us, their sudden rise to power and influence has brought about a dark side that has affected humanity.
Rise of the Tech Giants examines the astronomical growth trajectories of these tech giants, not only in terms of revenue or financial gain, but also in terms of social and economic impact. They didn’t seem to be slowing down and dominated. They monopolize the industry and control its algorithms, so even small changes can have devastating effects on the small businesses that depend on their platform.
They also influence politics in various ways. They have made significant contributions to various political campaigns and currently spend a lot of money on lobbying. They are already influencing the outcome of cases brought against them in various state legislatures.
How much they pay in taxes is also highly opaque, vague and unclear. They use legal tax avoidance techniques, which give them various advantages, including setting up subsidiaries in low-tax countries, shifting income to tax havens, and special accounting techniques.
For example, in the case of Facebook, they traded a tax break for installing a data center in Prineville, Oregon. The city lost $120 million in potential tax revenue in 2020, while Facebook generated nearly $30 billion in profits. But local politicians know their cities are receiving donations from the company, including new school buildings, facilities and more, making it easier for them to influence those lawmakers.
Of course, the bigger they get, the harder it is to challenge or stop them. They often devour competition. The more subscribers they have, the more valuable it is to bring them profits and revenue, allowing them to buy out potential competitors at extremely high prices. They either assimilate their competitors into their “collective” or bury them.
Apple, on the other hand, wants software companies to distribute 30% of all their sales through the App Store, leading to many congressional hearings trying to break these practices.
Finally, the biggest concern is that it’s crazy that big tech products and platforms have access to so much of our data and information. They have little regulation, so what they do with this data is up to them, and of course they will use our information for profit.
Also known as market-driven surveillance, it violates our sovereignty and should be prevented, especially when data is used to spread lies, incite insurrection, and stoke hatred.
The question now is whether governments and we (their clients) can still somehow control them to protect our freedoms. Only time will tell.
Directed by: Milan Panek, Dirk Laabs
