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I think you're getting it backwards. The research operations are a desperate attempt stave off regulation to keep the sweet, sweet monopoly profits coming in (a
by tivert 2y ago
I think you're getting it backwards. The research operations are a desperate attempt stave off regulation to keep the sweet, sweet monopoly profits coming in (and those profits are so big that the bean-counters allow it). I believe that was the explicit strategy at AT&T. We collectively pay way, way more.
It'd be way more efficient and cost effective to just set up a well-funded government labs to do that research.
- dehrmann 2y agoIt's an interesting argument for monopolies possibly being a net-good, but I don't think regulators really look at it. Companies do R&D because they like their monopoly status and don't want to be caught flat-footed by something new.
- ta1243 2y agoYes. If a large company didn't employ those researchers, someone else would, and if they were for someone else maybe they'll come up with something which could damage the large company. It's not about building and owning the next best thing, it's about preventing someone else building and owning the next best thing.
- mcmoor 2y agoWell then the monopoly still isn't bad, because they can still be brought down solely by merit (just that no one have done it yet). Unlike government-enforced monopolies that'll stay no matter what they don't even have to do R&D.
- zaphar 2y agoI am not at all confident that a government lab will be either well-funded or efficient in any sense of the words.
- 2OEH8eoCRo0 2y agohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ARPANET https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ARPANET TCP/IP?
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- mulmen 2y agoIt’s this kind of baseless negativity that is toxic to mental health. I’m done with this site for a while. It’s just too exhausting reading lies about how much everything sucks.