In this “economy of attention,” users’ eyeballs have become the main commodity traded (5, 6). Still others highlight the ability of digital monopolies to control much of our attention, which allows them to dictate which content we are exposed to and to influence our behavior. Others focus on the unprecedented scale and speed with which personal data is collected and used in the context of prediction algorithms, an omniscient, opaque machinery that threatens to erode the very foundation of privacy (4). Some point to the mere size, power, and unregulated conduct of these digital monopolies. In conjunction with the increased popularity of those platforms-the number of users ranges from 310 million for Amazon to 2.2 billion for Facebook and Google-the public discourse focuses not only on the merits of these digital platforms but also on the potential threats they pose to markets, financial institutions, and democratic processes (3). In 2017 alone, the five Silicon Valley giants have added nearly a trillion dollars to their aggregate value, which is now more than double the value of the largest seven banks in the world.
Examples such as the foreign meddling in the US election via large-scale advertising campaigns on Facebook (1), or the alleged abuse of market power by Google resulting in one of the largest antitrust fines ever levied by the European Union (€2.42 billion, ), are frequently echoed in mainstream media.
Recent tidal waves of scandals and public upheavals have shed light on the potential perils and risks of digital monopolies such as the five Silicon Valley giants: Facebook, Google, Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft. In Chapter 5 of the forthcoming Stigler Center ebook Digital Platforms and Concentration, published in anticipation of the eponymous conference at Chicago Booth on April 19 and 20, ProMarket editor Guy Rolnik and coauthors give an overview of the challenges facing the regulators of tech giants today.Įditors’ note: See also our 2017 conference volume Is There a Concentration Problem in America? Other chapters from this year’s ebook can be read at the following links: