, Columnist
Google, Amazon and Apple Face the Nuclear Option
The EU wants new powers to curb tech companies’ dominance — including the ability to break them up. Silicon Valley should pay attention.
Are you listening now?
Photographer: Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP
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There’s a good reason that breaking up tech giants is the nuclear option: It’s a deterrent. If everything works as planned, you should never have to do it.
On Tuesday, European Union antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager and internal market commissioner Thierry Breton announced a range of new tools to tackle the excesses of the West Coast’s finest, including the ability to dismantle them. If the legislation has the desired effect, then the more extreme measures will remain untouched.