Unlike the previous types of push-back against BigTech, the latest initiatives seem to have unusual traction. The objective is this: Break up BigTech, reducing its size, influence, power and hopefully its pricing.
The cause has mutated into sniper guerrilla warfare with bipartisan support.
Those antitrust warriors are coming locked and loaded. They are aiming their ammo from all directions: litigation by both federal and state governments, Congressional hearings, federal agency reviews of proposed M&A activity, negative press and individual postings on social media about getting screwed.
But the really provocative part is that this campaign is bipartisan. The Wall Street Journal reports:
"Ken Paxton is an outspoken Texan and Christian conservative who has become a legal champion of the right. Dina Srinivasan is a Bay Area-based independent whose scrutiny of big business has made her a rising star for the left. Despite differing worldviews, they have united against a common enemy: Big Tech."
The elephant in the room on this one, of course, is: Could this common cause reduce the extent of polarization in America? Wars can unite people. Cohesiveness can come from fighting the good cause.
Meanwhile, new heroes will emerge.
Paxton and Srinivasan are already antitrust celebrities.
Over in Ohio, attorney general Dave Yost has achieved national recognition.
Joe Biden's branding as the 21st century Teddy Roosevelt isn't too shabby either.
The star power of FTC chairperson Lina Kahn, though, has dimmed. Yeah, less is more and she is too more.
Those on the other side of this fight to keep America safe from antitrust can also play that positioning into a fresh kind of cred.
What about the defense law firms handling the transactions/litigation of BigTech? If they understand the dynamics of issue-based marketing they can pivot every aspect of The Great Cause into platforms for new business development. Hey, look how we're helping BigTech, which has become the underdog. It could happen to you.
Classic example: At Paul Weiss, chaired by Brad Karp, those lawyers managing the MGM part of the proposed Amazon acquisition (Kahn is a busy bee reviewing it) can roll that over into everything from memorable quotes to the media to thought-leadership articles later landing on those lessons-learned platforms. Especially marketable are contrarian points of view. (The fundamental of that game is to take on hype: Everyone's into wellness, so show the extreme peril of wellness.) Sure, put a knock on competition per se. Showcase alternative ways to operate a blockbuster economy.
In short, war creates opportunities for unique professional advancement. There had been myriad reasons not to Like Ike. But that WW II leader got elected.
Those on both sides of the antitrust issue should be thinking the long game. BigTech won't become SmallerTech in a year or two years or even three. Microsoft's historic antitrust battle with government consumed 21 years.
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