Wolf Money(book recommendation)

 

(Contents)

“Monopolies Suck”, 7 ways big corporations rule your life and how to take back control by Sally Hubbard is another anti big tech anti big business anti monopoly book. It seem that I am getting into a habit of reviewing corporate demonising, corporate bashing focus genre. Maybe I am always drawn to the same old shelf in the NLB. I promise this will be the last on this topic. To be honest, it is quite depressing reading on this particular subject three times over. The book made Lewis Capaldi’s song seem rather cheerful.

What I knew from my past reading as described by the author, big businesses, big tech and monopolies are bad for workers and consumers. It affect us by limiting our choices, our employment and most importantly our free way of life. Here she mention, big tech use algorithms to limit choice for consumers when shopping online. For e.g the biggest online retailer in US gives priority in term of “eyeball sphere” to their own house brand as compare to another competitor selling a better product at a cheaper price. Sellers of products rely on the platform infrastructure of the dominant online retailer which they are in competition are always caught in a losing proposition. Some retailers are force to sign a draconian agreement, paying extra fees dictated by the service providers. It had an impact on quality and the price of goods sold which ultimately resulted in higher prices for consumers. Small retailers find it hard to compete with the giant online retailer that lead to their demise.

The limiting of choices are not only confine in area of selling a product. Choices are also limited in area of employment as tech giants had a gentleman agreement not to poaching each other’s employees. That had an impact on job opportunities and the ability to negotiate for better pay with current employer. The limited choices are not only in the field of white collar high tech jobs, it affected blue collar jobs where the prominent giant hypermarket is the only employer in town. Employee gets what the employer like to pay them,no negotiation. The lack of union movement offer no bargaining powers for the rank and file workers against the powerful employers. Years of merger had decreased the bargaining chips of the workers. Big merger are usually coincide with big jobs cuts.

The author drawn on the importance of keeping big tech unfiltered power over the use of data in check through robust regulation. Can one imaging big techs having the most intimate of personal data right down to your medical records, households spending habit, where you go, what you eat, what your political affliction is etc. It is like a black hole of unlimited data they could use for or against you.

The author suggested using people power in election to vote against big tech and big business Congress lobbyists. When the bucks stop, big business and big tech couldn’t advance their business interest. On a personal basis, the author suggested staying clear of social media. In that way, data mining can be kept at a minimum. Strengthening antitrust agency and rule of laws governing antitrust regulations is another way to stop the abuse in the system. Treating internet as critical infrastructure with similar rule governing telecom sector will be the right way to go. We as a consumers can also do the right thing by supporting small businesses. Sensible regulation is the way to go. If you don’t control tech, tech will control you. Be afraid, be very afraid. The book goes onto Lone Wolf recommendation list for its insight to some dirty tricks deployed by big businesses in pursuit of greed. 

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