3 ms·

We CAN break them up. Facebook can be broken up into a federated network. Split Google into YouTube, Hangouts, Cloud, and The Rest. Force any integrations betwe

We CAN break them up. Facebook can be broken up into a federated network. Split Google into YouTube, Hangouts, Cloud, and The Rest. Force any integrations between these to be done with open protocols anyone can implement.

beisner 9y ago
In your example, The Rest would still be the vast majority of the company.
neolefty 9y ago
Search and ads are the big ones. And you can't really split any part of the company off from ads because that's revenue. So if you're going to split Google, the only way I can see it working is a bilateral (or multilateral) split, like the AT&T breakup into the Baby Bells. Each part would get search and ads and maybe the existing YouTube corpus, ??? Discussion question: How did the AT&T breakup work out in the long run? (Genuinely curious, not trying to be snarky.)
- theandrewbailey 9y ago
  In the long run, tech changed the landscape so much that the breakup was ultimately a success. I'm skeptical that cell phones would be as ubiquitous and cheap as they are if it didn't. Long distance calling (a big deal back then) was killed by tech and competition at the same time.
  - Sir_Cmpwn 9y ago
    Other things like answering machines probably would not have happened, too. I wasn't around back then but as I understand it you were only allowed to connect Ma Bell's telephones to your telephone line and Bell's goons would break in and rip out unapproved telephone equipment.
    - theandrewbailey 9y ago
      Third party devices were "legalized" by the Carterfone decision in the 1950s, long before the breakup. https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2017/12/carterfone-40-years/ https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2017/12/carterfone-40-ye...
- mlinksva 9y ago
  > can't really split any part of the company off from ads because that's revenue Sure you can, but in a different way: tax ads.

3 ms·

We CAN break them up. Facebook can be broken up into a federated network. Split Google into YouTube, Hangouts, Cloud, and The Rest. Force any integrations betwe

by Sir_Cmpwn 9y ago

beisner 9y ago
In your example, The Rest would still be the vast majority of the company.
neolefty 9y ago
Search and ads are the big ones. And you can't really split any part of the company off from ads because that's revenue. So if you're going to split Google, the only way I can see it working is a bilateral (or multilateral) split, like the AT&T breakup into the Baby Bells. Each part would get search and ads and maybe the existing YouTube corpus, ??? Discussion question: How did the AT&T breakup work out in the long run? (Genuinely curious, not trying to be snarky.)
- theandrewbailey 9y ago
  In the long run, tech changed the landscape so much that the breakup was ultimately a success. I'm skeptical that cell phones would be as ubiquitous and cheap as they are if it didn't. Long distance calling (a big deal back then) was killed by tech and competition at the same time.
  - Sir_Cmpwn 9y ago
    Other things like answering machines probably would not have happened, too. I wasn't around back then but as I understand it you were only allowed to connect Ma Bell's telephones to your telephone line and Bell's goons would break in and rip out unapproved telephone equipment.
    - theandrewbailey 9y ago
      Third party devices were "legalized" by the Carterfone decision in the 1950s, long before the breakup. https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2017/12/carterfone-40-years/ https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2017/12/carterfone-40-ye...
- mlinksva 9y ago
  > can't really split any part of the company off from ads because that's revenue Sure you can, but in a different way: tax ads.