Governments around the world are taking major steps to clamp down on the anticompetitive practices of large technology companies. But the quest to rein in the power of these giants may have an unfortunate side effect for consumers: less free stuff.
One of the common themes among global antitrust regulators is that Big Tech has been able to use its vast financial resources and platforms to stifle smaller competitors. Last month’s US House antitrust report contended that big American technology companies such as Apple Inc and Google parent Alphabet Inc have abused their market power to hurt upstarts and extend their dominance into different markets.