Implications of Facebook's Success • Attempting to Continue Apple's Jobs Legacy • Amazon - Mall Horror • Rise and Rise of Technology Giants • Decade Summary

• Apple, Amazon, Google and Facebook have become international tech powers over the past decade // Photo: Reuters

Social networks and tech companies have been invading everywhere for the past decade. Facebook has swelled to a super-sized superpower, Amazon has crushed the malls and food chains, Google has become an information and advertising powerhouse, Apple has rolled out huge profits from smartphones and Microsoft has retained its status as a software giant. Many countries were horrified by the great success and worked to limit the power of the new powers. Fears of fragmentation and collapse are bubbling under the ground, but for now investors are pleased. This has been the decade of 5 tech giants: Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, Facebook and Google.

Microsoft: Dominance in the Shadow of Competition

Despite the deluge of competitors in recent years, Microsoft still maintains its position. From the beginning of the decade, the software giant has embarked on a tens of billions of shopping spree. From companies like Nokia to open source platforms like Gitab.

In 2014, Satya Nadella was appointed CEO to lead the ship in the New Age. He got rid of surplus resources, and refocused it on software, without her sad adventures in mobile, but with unique computing such as Surface.

There is nothing to feel sorry for the company. Microsoft // Photo: Reuters

Last October, the company won a $ 10 billion tender to provide cloud services to the U.S. Department of Defense. The ambition remains: to maintain Windus's hegemony while at the same time dominating new areas such as digital cloud services. The company for those who wondered - continues to grow. This year, Microsoft made $ 125 billion. A 14% increase over 2018. It still maintains 90 percent control of operating systems and recently also agreed to collaborate with US telephony company AT&T, in a dual-screen smartphone remake, its return to the smartphone field since leaving it at the beginning of the decade.

Google: From a search engine to an information empire

Google's information giant has been trying to break into new markets over the past decade. Advertising, smartphones, videos, cloud services, online payments, autonomous cars were just some of the areas Google has been eyeing. And in all its areas of activity, a parent company was formed in 2015 in the form of an alphabetic holding company.

The Internet empire, which also holds the most popular browser, Chrome, has been heavily criticized in the West as a result of China's censorship collaboration, where ongoing human rights abuses are occurring.

Advertising and information empire. Google // Photo: IP

Google has also been under pressure from visitors in the area of ​​information in the face of mining user data via YouTube and contacting advertisers for children. Similar cases have occurred in other apps under the "alphabetic" purpose, leading to the opening of proceedings against the EU company and the imposition of billions of fines.

The Mi Who campaign also did not spare his tribe from corporate executives accused of being led by discriminated women and experiencing sexual harassment. The managerial level also entered into clashes with company employees, who opposed the cooperation with the Chinese government and the Pentagon.

The world's largest digital mall

Anyone remember that Amazon a decade ago was selling books online? Meanwhile, the company has become one of the largest retailers in the world as it collapses shopping malls one by one in the United States and reaches more and more countries.

Amazon's main innovation was in quick sales and distribution services, which seek to save us the weekly visit to the supermarket or mall. In this area, the company seeks to streamline in every way, including the use of ratchets for the benefit of messengers and robots in the sorting and warehouse centers.

Amazon Distribution Center in Spain // Photo: Reuters

Here, too, the giant company is not free from overbearing moves en route to a whopping $ 887 billion. For example, it is characterized by selling products at a loss to eliminate competitors and employing low-wage workers and harsh conditions (including suffering strikes with repellent material), which has also led to criticism in the United States. But in the meantime, Jeff Bezos, the owner and founder of the company, doesn't seem to be bothered by that.

Apple: Where's Jobs's legacy?

Apple's last decade was characterized by an attempt to continue the legacy of mythical founder Steve Jobs while growing competition from tech companies in the East.

Jobs, who retired from corporate management in 2011 and passed away after a long and persistent battle with cancer, took current CEO Tim Cook. Despite the founder's death, his successor succeeded in establishing himself by maintaining the company's status and profits. A series of smart watch launches, a TV service that will compete with Netflix and even its own credit card.

Apple CEO Tim Cook. "Preserving Company Status" // Photo: Reuters

By the end of the decade, the company's closed ecosystem, along with its zealous protection of customer privacy, will be put to the test. True, the loyal audience will not leave, but the various governments will strive to impose restrictions on Apple, forcing it to cooperate in security and policing matters.

Facebook: The success that has become a runaway

Facebook draws its power from being the largest social network in the world. In 2017, it had over two billion accounts and 800 million active accounts. Like other tech companies, it has maintained its position primarily through the acquisition of potential competitors. This was the case, for example, in the cases of Wattsap and Instagram, which became empires themselves, but also strategic acquisitions such as the reality company Simulated Oculus. Its power became so great that China banned its activities in its territory and established a closed social network under government control.

With this power comes great responsibility. And on that level, Facebook has failed miserably. Pedophilia, drug trafficking, xenophobia, anti-Semitism, verbal violence, Pike News, incitement and public opinion - all of which Facebook has tried to prevent and not much success. This is the downside to being the largest social network in the world, on multiple accounts - your oversight ability is limited.

The Cambridge Analytica case, which revealed that personal information of 800 million surfers reached Trump's election headquarters and was used to skew political opinions, along with a series of additional speculations and failures in maintaining private information along with ongoing reluctance to comply with oversight and investigative demands worldwide, has undermined its credibility, And calls from investors to oust the company's founder, CEO and chairman, Mark Zuckerberg, from his roles.

Will have to deal with the threat of regulation. Mark Zuckerberg // Photo: IP

What does Facebook do? To make money, and a lot of it, from our personal data, which it sells to most for the price: advertisers, marketing networks, businesses and of course politicians.

Together, these failures and successes have made Mark Zuckerberg a runner over the last decade. From a social network seen as the bearer of the flag of freedom and democracy, especially in light of the events of the "Arab Spring" at the beginning of the decade, it has become a society that is chasing its own tail and has trouble keeping up with the scandals associated with its name. Once a sieve, once compensating, once apologetic, and often ashamed.

And from now on, like the other technological powers, it too will have to stand the test of regulation of international states and bodies. It will be interesting to see how Facebook manages to survive this.