Category Archives: Big Tech

The recent Dow Jones Industrial Average one-day plummet of 900 points didn't stick, but the Nasdaq reversal on Tuesday leading the market lower, and the Dow and S&P 500's first down day in six, came uncomfortably right ahead of big tech earnings.

A recent survey of stock traders with $1 million or more in a brokerage account shows one reason why the bull market quickly resumed and why any single-day decline in stocks, tech or otherwise, may not stop the current bull market run from continuing. Wealthy, veteran investors were a little more bullish coming into third quarter earnings than they were just one quarter ago, and remain convinced in the strength of the U.S. economy and the opportunity to chase profits in the tech sector.

Millionaires describing themselves as bullish rose by 7 percentage points quarter over quarter, from 58% to 65% of investors, according to a survey of self-directed investors from Morgan Stanley's E-Trade Financial. The largest group of millionaires expect gains to be modest, with a little less than half (46%) forecasting a 5% maximum gain. But very few foresee the big drop that bears have feared: only 6% of survey respondents said the markets will fall by 10% or more this quarter.

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., July 13, 2021.

Brendan McDermid | Reuters

"They are still optimistic that the bull run will continue, but a bit more realistic in expectations, cognizant of where we are and just how far equities markets have rebounded," said Mike Loewengart, managing director, investment strategy at E-Trade.

The E-Trade survey was conducted July 1 to July 9 among 898 self-directed active investors, with results from 157 investors with $1 million or more of investable assets broken out exclusively for CNBC.

The wealthy have an improved outlook on the U.S. economy even as inflation fears persist. The percentage of millionaires who graded the economy an A or B grade this quarter was up 13 percentage points since Q2, rising from a minority 39% last quarter to 52% at the start of Q3. Those who seemed unsure in Q2 (the 44% who graded the economy at a C) have moved into the more bullish camp, with that view falling to 29% of millionaires this quarter. Forty-one percent of millionaires described the current economic period as "expansionary" which was up from 30% who held that view last quarter.

"Optimism has the psychological momentum," said Lew Altfest, CEO of Altfest Personal Wealth Management. But he added that the virus still has the potential to reverse that, evidenced by the Dow's 900-point drop as the delta variant came into focus the CDC is now revising its masking guidance again to be more cautious indoors though he thinks the bigger risk to investor sentiment is that growth is just not as good as current expectations. "The optimism I have shared for a longer period of above-average growth is what we can still have, but the logical situation is sometime next year, less than a year from now, we will be looking at normalized growth and that isn't what people want to hear."

It is the reason that the bond markets have not reacted to Fed discussion of inflation and raising rates by pushing yields higher; in fact, fears of less than stellar economic growth have sent yields down in recent weeks.

Altfest said investors want to believe in the rosy outlook, and the year-over-year comparisons are large given the sudden recession caused by Covid-19, but if economic growth moderates to 2% to 2.5%, "that could be a psychological sobriety" event for investors, especially in light of high U.S. stock market valuations.

"There was a lot of gasoline thrown on the fire from the monetary and fiscal perspective," Loewengart said, and some of it pre-dated the pandemic in the form of the Trump tax cuts and "even that was not moving growth in a big way," he said. "It is important to keep that in mind. Growth remains elusive. We're starting from a low base out of the pandemic and highly accommodative policy, but still it's going to be challenging."

After even the biggest tech names proved vulnerable to temporary selling action in the second quarter, the wealthy rate tech as the third quarter's best bet. Millionaires who say the tech sector is the best opportunity for gains in Q3 increased by 12 percentage points, an increase that came amid lower bond yields and tech's continued strength, acting almost like a proxy for bonds, according to E-Trade.

Forty-six percent of the wealthy investors surveyed by E-Trade picked tech as their top target for gains this quarter, up from 34% in Q2.

"Tech's great appeal in large-cap is delivering earnings rain or shine," Altfest said. "I think tech has always been cyclical in people's minds and for good reason, because people have always gotten hit from high price-to-earnings ratios. But this cycle, from 2008 on, it's not like we just had an IBM ... now we're seeing many growth companies and less competition."

Antitrust scrutiny will remain high and concerns about the power of trillion-dollar technology companies are an issue where many Democrats and Republicans agree. "Somewhere in here these companies are gonna have a cloud over them, but not so much a cloud that people wont be interested," Altfest said.

"We've seen millionaires go back to old favorites," Loewengart said. "We saw value outperform for a while, but when I see stronger performanceof tech later on in Q2, the velocity with which tech bounced back, it drew investors in. ... These are the ones that work," he said. "Look at Apple saying it is increasing production of iPhones. It is tough to ignore from a business fundamentals perspective, to our daily lives."

While tech ranked No. 1 among these wealthy investors in terms of sector appeal and rebounded sharply from last quarter's view, it fell short of a majority view, at 46%. And interest remains among investors for energy which has been a strong value sector year to date.

Energy saw the second-largest increase in interest after tech, rising by six percentage points among millionaires choosing it as their top target, from 23% last quarter to 29% in Q3. Meanwhile, the reopening trade is one millionaires are easing off, with consumer discretionary declining as a focus of this group of investors from 31% last quarter ranking it No. 1 among sectors to 19% this quarter.

"They are taking a more balanced view of where they are seeing opportunities," Loewengart said.

Millionaires are much less likely to believe the market is in a bubble, according to the survey, with respondents describing bubble conditions falling by 11 percentage points quarter over quarter, and notably lower (14% lower) than the broader investor population surveyed by E-Trade.

People are less worried about valuations, and the loudest bears like Jeremy Grantham have been proven wrong, at least for now, but that does not mean the recent belief in a new "Roaring 20s" plays out, according to Altfest. "I myself am feeling less enthusiastic about it, but still think it can happen. But if it doesn't happen, we will be looking back at high P/Es and saying, 'How could you think of this when you could see it was a temporary surge?'"

The equity markets took what Loewengart described as a breather in the second quarter, though early in Q2 it did seem like some investors were expecting the bubble to burst. "We've seen how resilient the markets can be. And that is what's driving this sentiment," he said.

Bubble concerns do remain a majority view. Fifty-six percent of the wealthy said the market is in a bubble or somewhat in a bubble, but that compares to 70% of all investors who hold that view, showing the wealthy to be more confident in market durability.

The inflation concern is real, and it was the top-cited risk to portfolios by wealthy investors in the survey, with 32% of millionaires saying it was their biggest fear. However, that is not leading to a major shift in the way the wealthy are positioning their money in the market.

"There are decidedly less millionaires that the general population making moves based on inflation," Loewengart said. "That's what struck me. It goes along with the view that the economy is recovering and stands to reason that higher rates will eventually accompany this growth."

A minority (30%) of wealthy investors said they are selecting stocks based on rate sensitivity, and smaller percentages said inflation was leading them to move money to real estate investment trusts (19%), cash (18%),Treasury inflation-protected securities (16%), or commodities (15%).

"No doubt inflation is a topic of concern, and in general they see the market is not immune to all the short-term concerns going on, but we see them taking a long-term view of investments," Loewengart said."Investors are generally aligned with Powell and trusting the Fed assessment. We know that they are committed to equities overall, and equities are naturally well-suited to inflation over time."

Altfest thinks the dramatic temporary increases will come down, but longer-term inflation will rise, just "not as absurdly high as it is now."

The bond market is signaling it is not worried about inflation because it does not see major economic growth ahead, and there are warning signs that a downturn in economic expectations could hit stocks, but Altfest says the signs remain mild for now, more so than in the second quarter. A three-percent yield on the 10-year Treasury is still far off and that makes stocks inexpensive relative to history.

"We're still far away from that, but at 3% rates, that is when the bonds really represent to more people real competition to stocks," Altfest said. "At that point, the party for P/E will be over and investors will have to be focusing on the economy and if corporate profits are growing at a reasonable rate."

In this period where optimism remains high and there is a back to "favorites" view from more of the wealthy stock market investors, some recent stock fads and momentum trades are seeing declining interest. While never a majority pick from the millionaires surveyed by E-Trade in recent quarters, respondents indicated some of the recent hot areas of the market are less appealing.

Interest in clean energy stocks dipped quarter over quarter from 46% of these investors to 35%; interest in IPOs declined from 30% to 23%; interest in SPACs declined from 26% to 19%; interest in crypto declined from 27% to 19%.

"What happened with meme stocks is extraordinary, but millionaires are cognizant of what extraordinary means," Loewengart said.

View original post here:

Why wealthy investors remain bullish on market and tech stocks in particular - CNBC

President Biden has finally nominated Jonathan Kanter as the next Assistant Attorney General for the DOJs Antitrust Division. The White House called Kanter a leading advocate and expert in the effort to promote strong and meaningful antitrust enforcement and competition policy.

The nomination was well-received among prominent Democrats. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), head of the Senate antitrust subcommittee, described Kanter as a leader in the effort to increase antitrust enforcement against monopolies. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), who vowed on the presidential campaign trail to break up Big Tech, said Kanter would reinvigorate antitrust enforcement. And Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI), chairman of the House antitrust subcommittee who led an in-depth investigation of the market power of Big Tech, tweeted that Kanter is absolutely the right person to take on corporate monopolies and lead the antitrust division at this critical moment.

Kanter appears to be philosophically aligned with the other antitrust progressives appointed by President Biden, including Lina Khan the new chair of the FTC and Tim Wu on the National Economic Council. Together, and with support from many in Congress, Kanter, Khan and Wu are expected to usher in an era of significantly more aggressive and expansive antitrust enforcement.

While Kanter has solid support from anti-monopolists and progressive Democrats, questions are already being raised about the potential need for recusals given Kanters 21 years of experience as an antitrust lawyer in private practice, including previous representations of Microsoft Corp., Cigna Corp. and several rivals of Alphabet Inc.s Google. Kanter started his legal career as a Federal Trade Commission attorney from 1998 to 2000. But since then, he has been an associate at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP; a partner at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP; and a partner and co-chair of the antitrust group at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP. In September 2020, he struck out on his own, launching a boutique law firm, The Kanter Law Group PLLC, that specializes in representing parties with antitrust grievances against major tech companies.

Now that there is a nominee, the next step is the confirmation hearing. With the Senate set to go into recess from Aug. 9 to Sept. 10, there could be pressure to hold Kanters confirmation hearing in the next two-and-a-half weeks. Otherwise, hed have to wait for the Senate to reconvene briefly from Sept. 13 to 15, before taking another recess and returning Sept. 20 through Oct. 7. If the Democrats are unable to move quickly, it could be September or even October before Kanter is sworn in. Once he is sworn in, both federal agencies will have permanent leadership and a new era of antitrust enforcement will begin.

Continued here:

Jonathan Kanter, Another Big Tech Critic, Nominated to Head Up the Department of Justices Antitrust Division - JD Supra

The technology sector, which was the major victim of inflation fears and lofty valuation concerns, has regained solid momentum in recent months. Diminishing worries about runaway inflation compelled investors to pile back into the tech-oriented growth stocks. Additionally, the Delta variant of COVID-19 brought back the lure for stay-at-home trends that have resulted in higher demand for the technology space once again (read: Ride the Renewed Tech Momentum With These ETFs).

In fact, tech titans roared at the end of June with Facebook FB hitting $1 trillion and Microsoft MSFT topping $2 trillion market cap for the first time. The Amazon AMZN stock is hovering near record highs while Apple AAPL has become the trending stock ahead of its next iPhone launch. Alphabet GOOGL is also performing well.

These five companies combined now account for 23.3% of the total market capitalization of the S&P 500 Index. Total Q2 earnings from the group of five companies are expected to be up 48.4% on revenue growth of 29.2%. Microsoft, Alphabet and Apple are scheduled to release their earnings on Jul 27 while Facebook will report on Jul 28. Amazon is slated to report on Jul 29.

Microsoft has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) and an Earnings ESP of 0.00%. According to our methodology, the combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 or 3 (Hold) increases the chances of an earnings beat. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before theyre reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

The stock witnessed no earnings estimate revision for the fourth quarter fiscal 2021 over the past 30 days. The Zacks Consensus Estimate indicates substantial earnings growth of 30.1% and revenue growth of 15.9% from the year-ago quarter. Microsofts earnings track is impressive, with the last four-quarter positive earnings surprise being 14.83%, on average. The stock belongs to a top-ranked Zacks industry (top 44%) and has gained 10.7% over the past three months.

Story continues

Alphabet

Alphabet has a Zacks Rank #3 and an Earnings ESP of +7.01%. It saw positive earnings estimate revision of 11 cents over the past 7 days for the to-be-reported quarter. Analysts raising estimates right before earnings with the most up-to-date information possible is a good indicator for the stock. The companys earnings surprise track over the past four quarters is good with the beat being 43.02%, on average. Earnings and revenues are expected to grow 96.3% and 45.8%, respectively, from the year-ago quarter. Additionally, the stock falls under a bottom-ranked Zacks industry (bottom 15%). The Internet behemoth has surged about 15% in the past three months (read: 3 Solid Reasons to Bet on Big Tech ETFs and Stocks).

Apple

Apple has a Zacks Rank #3 and an Earnings ESP of +3.40%. The stock saw positive earnings estimate revision of a penny over the past 30 days for third-quarter fiscal 2021 and its earnings surprise history is strong. It delivered an earnings surprise of 23.01%, on average, over the past four quarters. Apple is expected to report substantial earnings growth of 53.8% from the year-ago quarter. Revenues are expected to increase 22.5% year over year. It belongs to a top-ranked Zacks industry (top 44%). The stock is up 10.2% in the past three-month timeframe.

Facebook

Facebook has a Zacks Rank #3 and an Earnings ESP of +7.52%. The social media giant saw positive earnings estimate revision of a penny for the to-be-reported quarter over the past 30 days. The current Zacks Consensus Estimate for the yet-to-be reported quarter indicates substantial year-over-year earnings growth of 68.9%. Revenues are expected to increase 49.2%. Facebook delivered an earnings surprise of 31.1%, on average, in the last four quarters. The stock belongs to a bottom-ranked Zacks industry (bottom 15%). Shares of FB have gained 22% in the past three months.

Amazon

Amazon has a Zacks Rank #2 and an Earnings ESP of -13.23%. The stock saw no earnings estimate revision over the past 30 days for the second quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate represents substantial year-over-year earnings growth of 18.1% and revenue growth of 29.4%. Amazons earnings surprise history is impressive, with an average beat of 180.8% for the last four quarters. However, the stock falls under a bottom-ranked Zacks industry (bottom 24%). The online e-commerce behemoth has witnessed share price increase of 7.2% in the past three months.

Given this, investors may want to play these stocks with the help of ETFs. Below we have highlighted six ETFs having the largest exposure to FAANGs.

MicroSectors FANG+ ETN FNGS: This ETN is linked to the performance of the NYSE FANG+ Index, which is equal-dollar weighted and designed to provide exposure to a group of highly traded growth stocks of next-generation technology and tech-enabled companies. The note accounts for a 10% share in each of the FAANG stocks and has a Zacks ETF Rank #3.

iShares Evolved U.S. Technology ETF IETC: This fund employs data science techniques to identify companies with exposure to the technology sector. The five firms account for a combined 45.6% share in the basket (see: all the Technology ETFs here).

Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF MGK: This ETF offers exposure to the largest growth stocks in the U.S. market and has a Zacks ETF Rank #2. The five firms account for a combined 40.7% share in the basket.

Blue Chip Growth ETF TCHP: This fund focuses on companies with leading market positions, seasoned management and strong financial fundamentals. It accounts for a combined 40.3% in the five firms.

Invesco QQQ QQQ: This ETF focuses on 100 of the largest domestic and international nonfinancial companies listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market based on market capitalization. This fund makes up for 37.6% share in the in-focus firms and has a Zacks ETF Rank #2 with a Medium risk outlook.

iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF IGM: This product offers broad exposure to the technology sector, and technology-related companies in the communication services and consumer discretionary sectors. It makes up for about 36.8% in the five big tech names and has a Zacks ETF Rank #3 with a Medium risk outlook.

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free reportAmazon.com, Inc. (AMZN) : Free Stock Analysis ReportApple Inc. (AAPL) : Free Stock Analysis ReportMicrosoft Corporation (MSFT) : Free Stock Analysis ReportInvesco QQQ (QQQ): ETF Research ReportsFacebook, Inc. (FB) : Free Stock Analysis ReportAlphabet Inc. (GOOGL) : Free Stock Analysis ReportiShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM): ETF Research ReportsVanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF (MGK): ETF Research ReportsiShares Evolved U.S. Technology ETF (IETC): ETF Research ReportsMICRSFANG (FNGS): ETF Research ReportsT. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth ETF (TCHP): ETF Research ReportsTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.Zacks Investment Research

See the rest here:

6 ETFs in the Spotlight Ahead of Big Tech Q2 Earnings - Yahoo Finance

Wall Street is gearing up for a slew of Big Tech earnings this week with Apple, Amazon, Facebook, Google and Microsoft all set to deliver figures for their latest quarter.

Twitter and Snap kicked off proceedings by smashing expectations last week, raising hopes that a post-pandemic advertising rebound will boost other platforms.

Tesla also shrugged off a semiconductor shortage and supply chain troubles to deliver a surge in profits.

But will the rest of the tech titans bring more good news for US investors?

All eyes will be on Apple this evening, with tech-watchers expecting strong growth from the company thanks to bumper revenue from both iPhones and its services such as Apple Music and the app store.

Analysts expect Apples services sales to rise 24.1 per cent to $16.3bn, more than a fifth of its expected overall sales of $73.3bn, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

Total iPhone sales for the companys third quarter are also expected to jump 28.7 per cent to $34bn.

We expect another very robust quarter for Apple, with little sign of demand for iPhone slowing as we near the traditional autumn product launch window, said Leo Gebbie, principal analyst at CCS Insight.

Company revenue should see double-digit growth thanks to strong iPhone replacement cycles, work-from-home trends helping Mac and iPad, and services benefiting from good performance across the portfolio.

Last week it emerged Apple is set to double down on 5G for its next line-up of iPhones in a move that should continue to fuel demand in 2022.

But investors will also have a keen eye on how the tech giant plans to respond to mounting regulatory scrutiny, with authorities in the US, UK and Europe probing antitrust issues such as Apples app store commission and its dominance in the smartphone market.

Also reporting tonight is Google owner Alphabet, which will be hoping to cash in on a rise in digital advertising spend as Covid restrictions continue to ease.

Analysts said Googles exposure to travel and small businesses such as physical stores would boost ad revenue both as re-opening continues and the online shopping trends that boomed during Covid is maintained.

Alphabets revenue is forecast to grow 46.6 per cent to $56.2bn.

More concerns could be raised over regulatory issues as Alphabet faces question marks over its decision to block third-party cookies, which has been delayed following pressure from the CMA.

Google could also be hit by changes to Apples iOS privacy settings earlier this year, which mean users of each app are now asked for permission to track their activity.

But Liam Patterson, chief executive of marketing firm Bidnamic said the company was in a strong position overall.

The pandemic has led to an acceleration in digital advertising and therefore a surge in Googles bottom line, he said.

It will be a similar story for Facebook when it reports its second quarter earnings tomorrow evening, with the social media giant hoping for a strong rebound in advertising.

Analyst forecasts put the companys revenue at $27.9bn a 49 per cent rise including a 47.5 per cent jump in ad revenue.

Again, regulatory issues abound for the tech platform, which has been hit with a two-pronged competition probe in the UK and EU over its use of data.

But experts pointed to Facebooks moves into ecommerce as a key potential area of growth though warned it faced stiff competition from the likes of Tiktok, Snapchat and Twitter.

Facebook has been doubling down on building meaningful social commerce experiences across shoppable posts, conversational commerce and live shopping experiences, siad Yuval Ben-Itzhak, chief of strategy at social media marketing firm Emplifi.

Facebook is providing the perfect space for brands to experiment with social commerce and learn what works best for their audiences, by offering a range of e-commerce capabilities to try out. After years of focusing on the top of the marketing funnel activities with reach and engagement metrics Facebook is finally investing further into conversion opportunities with e-commerce.

Capping off a big week for Big Tech will be Amazon, which reports its latest figures on Thursday night.

Amazon has been one of the stand-out winners of the pandemic as repeated lockdowns drove record trading for the ecommerce giant.

While the platform could now face a challenge to maintain its momentum, this will likely be offset in its latest quarter by its mammoth Prime Day sale.

Amazon is forecast to pull in revenue of $115bn, up from $88.9bn in the same quarter last year.

Investors will also be focusing on potential shifts in strategy for Amazon after it splurged $8.45bn to buy James Bond studio MGM.

We expect Amazon to post really strong results, boosted by the progressive opening of economies around the world, as well as its international Prime Day promotion, said Martin Garner, chief operating officer at CCS Insight.

This will be supported by its very rapid expansion of capacity, which began during the early part of the pandemic and continues at pace.

In addition to Prime Day, Amazon has made some big moves during 2Q21, which will not show benefits in this set of earnings but highlight its confidence and set the ground for the future.

View post:

Big Tech earnings: What to expect this week as tech titans report - City A.M.

Regulators around the globe are putting pressure on powerful tech companies and grappling with big tech regulation -- an area one expert argues could use some rethinking.

Marshall Van Alstyne, professor of information systems at the Boston University Questrom School of Business, said regulators can be too focused on traditional regulatory methods for large companies in today's digital economy and have proposed legislation that could do more harm than good. In the U.S., for example, six antitrust reform bills moving through Congress could break up companies that operate their own online marketplaces, such as Amazon and Apple; place heightened scrutiny on mergers and acquisitions; and require data portability, which allows consumers to move their data from one platform to another.

In this Q&A, Van Alstyne explains why breaking up tech companies and moving data from one place to another are not the answers. Rather, he argues, regulators should focus on data access to increase competition.

How effective could the six antitrust reform bills be if signed into law as they are written now?

Marshall Van Alstyne: If they were to go through, I think there are several practices that would change about the sharing of data, about the proscriptions for self-preferencing, and I think there might be some limitations on mergers and acquisitions. Let's pair that with a different question: whether or not those things are a good idea or not. Candidly, I think too many of the bills are grounded in traditional industrial-era economics and not internet-era economics. I think they need more refinement before they actually do what they're intended to do. Are there things that need to be addressed? On that I would concur; I think there are issues that do need to be addressed. But then there's this question of how should they be addressed.

Here is where I part company with some of the proposals that are on the table at present because I think some of the current proposals are not very good and, in some cases, could actually do harm. This is where I think we need more thoughtful discussion on how to solve this problem in the right way.

Why is it important regulators move away from traditional methods for big tech regulation?

Van Alstyne: The industrial era, almost all of these giant firms were driven by supply-side economies of scale. In every single one of those cases, it's a rival resource. Meaning, if you drive a car, I can't drive it, if you burn a barrel of oil, I can't burn it. We can't share that resource. By contrast, all these internet-era firms are driven by network effects, also known as demand economies of scale, and that's a non-rival resource. You and I can share the same network, we can share the same sets of ideas, we can share the same sets of data. The problem is, if you carved them up in order to create competition, what you're doing is denying different parties access to the same data from which they, too, can create value. So, they need a more sophisticated understanding of how value is created. They're asking the question 'how do we create competition,' assuming that competition is going to create value, and that's not true. They're portioning data sets, they are proposing breakups, they're putting in dividing lines and making it harder to create value. In contrast, what they should be doing is enabling third parties to gain access to the same non-rival resources so that third parties can also create much of that same value and compete in ways that give back to consumers. That is the more sophisticated approach to this problem.

Can you give an example of someone who is doing this right?

Van Alstyne: One of my favorites is European legislation, which is PSD2. It's Payment Services Directive 2, which is open banking legislation. What that does is, it requires banks to give you the power to let third parties access and manage your funds, so you could attach other payment systems to your bank account or [have apps] make investments on your behalf and you have control. I think that is the right way to do things, and I think what we want to do is expand this into an in situ data right. Literally, it means in location. What we would do is build on that, and we would grant all consumers in situ data rights. This stands [opposite] data portability what's been proposed in the European Digital Markets Act and also something that's been proposed in the U.S.

What's the difference between data portability and in situ data rights?

Van Alstyne: The theory behind data portability is to increase competition. So if you're pulling your data out of Facebook or out of Amazon, it's your data, so presumably you then create value out of location, and it might create more competition and reduce lock-in. Those are the theories.

Data portability has at least three or four separate problems: First, it loses context. If you pull your data off of Facebook, it doesn't include your friends' posts. That's their data, you don't get it, so it doesn't have the context and you can't analyze it in the same way. Two, it tends to be a depreciating stock of capital. Once you pull it out, it doesn't have the most recent flows, and you want the most recent flows in order for it to be the most valuable. Three, it creates a separate location for data violation. If your data goes out into the wild or into the black market, it gets harder and harder for you to figure out which source exposed your data in the wrong way.

We're proposing this in situ data right in which businesses and consumers gain the right to bring the algorithm to the data, rather than take the [data] from the platform. First, all the context is there. If you bring Google's algorithm to your Facebook data or Amazon's algorithm to your Facebook data, Amazon can now make recommendations based on who your friends are. Facebook could recommend friends based on what you're reading. You have control, it's entirely up to you whether you grant permission or not. Now Facebook can compete with Amazon on Amazon's turf. Amazon can compete with Google on Google's turf. What this does is it causes them to compete and therefore share more of those benefits back with you. Fourth, suppose that Facebook is behaving badly and something like Cambridge Analytica happens? Now you can turn off the APIs and know they no longer have access to your data because they never had it. You don't have to take it back, and you don't have to trust them that they destroyed it.

They could do damage by carving data up in the wrong ways and by putting too many impediments to using data in important ways that could benefit consumers. Marshall Van Alstyne Professor, Boston University

What is your top concern with current proposals for big tech regulation?

Van Alstyne: In too many cases, I believe the proposals are causing data fragmentation. You can't create network effects, you can't create cost-cutting ideas, you can't see broader patterns if you're carving up data resources. And again, it's not steel, it's not oil, it's not railroad tracks or electricity. This is a non-rival resource, and it's a sharable resource. Regulators need to be thinking differently about how to create competing governance models to put on data, as opposed to competing companies. That's the way to create value. They could do damage by carving data up in the wrong ways and by putting too many impediments to using data in important ways that could benefit consumers. They could actually retard the pace of innovation and harm competition inadvertently.

Editor's note: Responses have been edited for brevity and clarity.

Makenzie Holland is a news writer covering big tech and federal regulation. Prior to joining TechTarget, she was a general reporter for the Wilmington StarNews and a crime and education reporter at the Wabash Plain Dealer.

Originally posted here:

Regulators need to rethink big tech regulation, expert says - TechTarget

All three of the major U.S. stock indexes hit records Friday, and the Nasdaq Composite Index might reach its next milestone 15,000 next week.

Below is a list of stocks whose gains have powered the Nasdaq Composite Index COMP, -2.14% this year, along with another list of analysts favorite stocks in the Nasdaq-100 Index NDX, -2.09%.

Heres a summary of Fridays action:

(Note: All price changes in this article exclude dividends.)

The Nasdaq-100 Index is made up of the 100 largest non-financial companies by market capitalization in the full Nasdaq Composite Index. It is reconstituted each year in December. Both indexes are weighted by market cap, and the Nasdaq-100s market cap of $17.21 trillion is about 73% of the full index. So most of the full Nasdaqs performance is represented by the Nasdaq-100, which is tracked by the Invesco QQQ Trust QQQ, -2.10%.

Here are the 10 stocks among the Nasdaq-100 that have risen the most during 2021 through July 23:

Actually, there are 11 stocks on the list because the index includes Alphabet Inc.s Class C GOOG, -2.97% and Class A GOOGL, -2.69% shares.

Seven of those stocks hit 52-week highs July 23.

Here are the 10 stocks in the Nasdaq-100 with buy or equivalent ratings among at least 75% of analysts polled by FactSet, with the most 12-month upside potential implied by consensus price targets:

Chinese stocks listed in the U.S. took a beating Friday, and you can see from the three on this list (Baidu Inc. BIDU, -5.35%, JD.com Inc. JD, -6.07% and NetEase Inc. NTES, -4.27% ) that this hasnt been a good year for the group. Therese Poletti explained why.

Dont miss: Dont fall into a REIT value trap these 20 stocks score highest on quality

Read more here:

Here are Wall Street's favorite big tech stocks as the Nasdaq closes in on another milestone - MarketWatch

The White House said on Tuesday that it would nominate Jonathan Kanter to be the top antitrust official at the Justice Department, a move that would add another longtime critic of Big Tech and corporate concentration to a powerful regulatory position.

President Bidens plan to appoint Mr. Kanter, an antitrust lawyer who has made a career out of representing rivals of American tech giants like Google and Facebook, signals how strongly the administration is siding with the growing field of lawmakers, researchers and regulators who say Silicon Valley has obtained outsize power over the way Americans speak with one another, buy products online and consume news.

Mr. Biden has named other critics of Big Tech to prominent roles, such as Lina Khan, a critic of Amazon, to lead the Federal Trade Commission. Tim Wu, another legal scholar who says regulators need to crack down on the tech giants, serves in an economic policy role at the White House. And this month, Mr. Biden signed a sweeping executive order aimed at increasing competition across the economy and limiting corporate dominance.

Mr. Kanter, 47, is the founder of Kanter Law Group, which bills itself online as an antitrust advocacy boutique. He previously worked at the law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. His services have attracted some of the most prominent critics of Big Tech in corporate America, including Rupert Murdochs News Corp and Microsoft as well as upstarts like Spotify and Yelp.

If he is confirmed by the Senate, Mr. Kanter will lead a division of the Justice Department that last year filed a lawsuit arguing Google had illegally protected a monopoly over online search services. The antitrust division of the agency has also been asking questions about Apples business practices.

The White House took more than six months from Mr. Bidens swearing-in to land on Mr. Kanter. The administration has had to juggle progressive and moderate factions within its own party, as well as the likelihood of Republican support in a divided Senate.

The decision won immediate approval from policymakers and advocacy groups helping to lead the charge for more stringent antitrust enforcement.

Senator Amy Klobuchar, the Minnesota Democrat who leads the antitrust subcommittee of the Judiciary Committee, called Mr. Kanter an excellent choice, citing his deep legal experience and history of advocating for aggressive action.

Sarah Miller, the executive director of the American Economic Liberties Project, a progressive advocacy group, said in a statement that President Biden has made an excellent choice to lead the D.O.J.s antitrust division, noting that Mr. Kanter had devoted his career to reinvigorating antitrust enforcement.

Makan Delrahim, a lawyer who led the Justice Departments antitrust efforts under President Donald J. Trump, said in a text message that Mr. Kanter would be a great leader of the division and called him a serious lawyer with private sector and government experience.

July 27, 2021, 11:06 a.m. ET

The announcement may be less warmly embraced by deal-makers on Wall Street who have helped drive mergers and acquisitions volumes to record levels, propelled in part by an exuberant stock market.

Scrutiny in Washington on acquisitions has expanded beyond headline-grabbing Big Tech deals to industries like consumer goods, agriculture, insurance and health care.

The Justice Department has sued to block the proposed merger of Aon and Willis Towers Watson, its first major antitrust action since Mr. Biden took office. The F.T.C. announced in March that it was forming a group to update its approach to evaluating the impact of pharmaceutical deals, an industry that generally falls under its purview. That followed a report led by Representative Katie Porter, a Democrat from California, scrutinizing deals in the industry.

In recent years, Mr. Kanter built an unusual practice out of criticizing the tech giants from inside Washingtons corporate law firms. The tech giants have become lucrative clients for major law firms, often making it difficult for those firms to work for their opponents.

But last year, he left Paul, Weiss an elite corporate litigation firm because his portfolio representing critics of the tech giants conflicted with other work the firm was doing.

Jonathan made this decision due to a complicated legal conflict that would have required him to discontinue important and longstanding client representations and relationships, the firm said at the time.

Mr. Kanters critics are likely to question whether his previous work is a conflict of interest that should keep him out of investigations into the tech giants. Both Facebook and Amazon have asked that Ms. Khan recuse herself from matters involving the companies at the F.T.C., even though her background is as a legal scholar and not a paid representative for their rivals.

Asked whether Mr. Kanter would recuse himself from cases involving Google and Apple, a White House official simply said the administration was confident that it could move forward with his nomination given his expertise and record.

Even if Mr. Kanter has the votes to be confirmed it is likely to be months before he takes over at the Justice Department. Congress takes a long break during August which could push his confirmation past Labor Day.

Cecilia Kang contributed reporting.

Read the rest here:

Biden to Name a Critic of Big Tech as the Top Antitrust Cop - The New York Times

About a month ago, a federal judge threw anantitrust suit against Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) out of court.

He ruled that the Federal Trade Commission and several states didnt provide enough evidence that Facebook has monopoly control over social media.

If you thought that was the end of Washingtons efforts to rein in Silicon Valley and Big Tech, however, think again.

In fact, the fire under the Big Five tech companies Facebook, Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG, NASDAQ:GOOGL), Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), and Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) is heating up.

First off, that federal judge was more receptive to further investigate Facebooks acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp.

Then there is President Joe Biden, who is coming after Big Tech.

On July 9, he signed a far-reaching executive order seeking to crack down on alleged anti-competitive practices in the technology sector.

Capitalism without competition isnt capitalism, Biden said when signing the wide-reaching directive. Its exploitation.

Then earlier this week, we learned that President Bidenplans to appoint lawyer Jonathan Kanter as the head of the antitrust division at the Department of Justice (DOJ). Kanter has represented companies seeking to push antitrust enforcers into suing Google.

Congress and numerous U.S. states also are going after Big Tech. Earlier this month, for example, 36 states and D.C. filed a lawsuit against Google, alleging the Play store for Android violates antitrust laws.

According to an analysis by tech news site The Information, Apple, Amazon, Google, and Facebook globally are now facing 70 competition-related lawsuits or investigations. Thats up from 17 just two years ago.

Theyve got a target on their back.

Im not bringing up the hostile relationship between D.C. and Big Tech for political reasons. Rather, I want you to understand the forces shaping the market.

All of this is key to what Im going to discuss during my next big free event scheduled for Tuesday, July 27, at 7 p.m. Eastern (reserve your spot here).

So lets take a closer look

The dominance of Big Tech and the resulting antitrust efforts against them are side effects of the phenomenon that we call the Technochasm.

As money flows into these companies, not only do their shares soar but they become more dominant in the U.S. economy, society, and culture.

In the chart below, you can see the Technochasm blow apart.

Technology stocks, as represented by the Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (NYSEARCA:XLK), have produced better than double the return of the S&P 500 and absolutely crushed other sectors, including energy and utilities.

Washingtons regulatory hammer isnt aimed at every tech company, of course, and it would be foolish to abandon the entire sector because a few companies are being scrutinized.

Whether you believe regulators and politicians keep capitalism honest or you think they stifle innovation, theres no denying that they are capable of nuanced thinking.

I dont mean that theyre geniuses or that I necessarily agree with them. Again, Im not here to talk politics.

Rather, I think regulators can discern the real differences between a company like Apple, which has a market cap of nearly $2.5 trillion and dominates several tech subsectors, and one of my top stocks for taking advantage of the Technochasm.

This company has a market cap of less than $500 million but it is growing fast within its tech niche. (You can find out more about this tiny tech innovator joining me for my next big event on July 27, which you can sign up for here.)

Though theyre both technology companies, theyre in different universes.

Its important to remember that the companies being targeted with antitrust action are different from other tech companies.

As the Biden administration brings further antitrust litigation or legislation against Big Tech, they will likely focus solely on the Big 5 and a few others.

All hope isnt lost for tech stocks in general.

And frankly, if you were considering investing in one company, hoping for a big payday, the Big 5 stocks shouldnt be at the top of your list anyway.

With those stocks, youre just trying to pick the one least likely to be targeted by regulators, and thats a guessing game Id rather avoid.

Instead, I recommend looking at the companies that fly below the radar the companies that innovate new technology rather than inconspicuously dominate the competition.

That small-cap favorite of mine, for example, could become a major beneficiary of the multiyear build-out of the one specific advancement that I will be going in-depth on during my big event on Tuesday (sign up to reserve your spot for that here).

And that makes it the perfect way to get on the right side of the Technochasm

In simple terms, this companys testing products can detect and pinpoint flaws in fiber-optic networks to the millimeter.

In other words, this companys products test the performance of crucial internet and communications components. After all, fiber-optic networks made the original internet infrastructure boom possible.

That makes this companys products fundamental to the Technochasm.

Last year, this company introduced its newest fiber-optic testing product and secured a large order almost immediately from a major defense contractor.

The product allows fast and accurate troubleshooting of fiber networks in the field. Late last year, that contractor ordered about 100 units for the purpose of testing the fiber-optic communications networks on some of its products.

Following on the heels of that order, other defense contractors have anted up, as have several new customers in the data center space.

These latter orders are particularly fascinating, as they indicate demand for the one specific advancement that Louis and I are going to talk about on Tuesday. Data centers are buying these units to test network latency.

Thanks to this one specific advancement, this companys performance testers are likely to attract robust, long-lived demand.

That growing demand should accelerate its revenue growth over the coming quarters and years.

The companys rapid growth and potential to accelerate that growth should deliver outsized gains to investors for many years running.

This is just one of the many small but promising stocks that Ive recommended to help investors get on the right side of the Technochasm.

And if you want to learn more about the hidden opportunities that can get you ready to take on this ongoing phenomenon, join me for my next big event with legendary investor Louis Navellier.

That event is scheduled for Tuesday, July 27, at 7 p.m. Eastern.

You can reserve your spot here.

Regards,

Eric Fry

P.S. NOW OPEN: Register for the 2021 Tech Supercycle Summit

Louis Navellier and Eric Fry just opened registration to their first-ever 2021 Tech Supercycle Summit. On Tuesday, July 27, at 7 p.m. ET, theyre going to reveal how you could make at least $100K over the next 12 months as a new supercycle gets underway.

Reserve your spot by clicking here.

NOTE:On the date of publication, Eric Fry did not own either directly or indirectly any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.

Eric Fry is anaward-winning stock pickerwith numerous 10-bagger calls in good markets AND bad. How? By finding potent global megatrends before they take off. In fact, Eric has recommended 41 different 1,000%+ stock market winners in his career. Plus, he beat 650 of the worlds most famous investors (including Bill Ackman and David Einhorn) in a contest. And today hes revealing his next potential 1,000% winnerfor free, right here.

View post:

Big Tech Has a Target on Its Back so Look at These Stocks Instead - InvestorPlace

WASHINGTON, D.C. U.S. Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), and Todd Young (R-Ind.) this week introduced the Funding Affordable Internet with Reliable (FAIR) Contributions Act.

The legislation would direct the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to conduct a study into the feasibility of collecting Universal Service Fund (USF) contributions from internet edge providers such as YouTube, Netflix, and Google.

Theres no question the COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the need to close the digital dividewhether youre working from home, finishing school assignments, or in need of a telehealth appointment, Senator Capito said. And, while weve made progress, we still have a long way to go. As we all know, building out our internet infrastructure is expensive, and we have utilized various sources to pay for it. For too long, Big Tech has been able to profit off of the critical infrastructure used for common day-to-day activities while not helping at a sufficient level to improve those capabilities with broadband investment in states like West Virginia. With communications platforms moving away from telephone networks toward internet heavy platforms, its important now more than ever that we start looking at ways that Big Tech can step up and help close the digital divide and secure true universal service for West Virginians. Our legislation is a solid first step in working toward this goal and making this a reality.

I applaud Senators Wicker, Capito, and Young for introducing the FAIR Contributions Act, FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr said. For too long, Big Tech has been enjoying a free ride on our Internet infrastructure. The current funding mechanism for the Universal Service Funda regressive tax on the monthly bills for traditional telephone service, both wireless and wirelineis unfair and unsustainable. Indeed, its like taxing horseshoes to pay for highways. Requiring Big Tech to contribute is more than fair. It is consistent with the network compact that has prevailed since the earliest days of Americas communications networks. Historically, the businesses that derived the greatest benefit from a communications network paid the lions share of the costs. I am pleased that the FAIR Contributions Act would call on the FCC to open a proceeding to look at ending the charge on consumers monthly telephone bills and shifting a fair amount over to Big Tech.

The FAIR Contributions Act would:

Through the USF, the FCC disburses approximately $10 billion per year to fund broadband deployment to high-cost rural areas, schools and libraries, rural health care facilities, telehealth services, and broadband subsidies for low-income Americans. The USF collects money from telecommunications carriers, set at a percentage of their interstate and international revenues, which carriers usually pass onto consumers in their monthly bills.

Click here for the full text of the bill.

# # #

Link:

Capito, Colleagues Introduce Bill to Explore Collecting USF Contributions from Big Tech - Shelley Moore Capito

After big tech companies like Facebook and Google spent billions on cool office spaces and perks designed to keep workers at the office, those workers were suddenly able to do their jobs closer to home life and family during the pandemic. Office work was no longer the default, and many employees liked that.

Now, with the country reopening, tech companies are increasingly announcing their back-to-office plans. To understand the current job landscape facing tech workers, we examined the new office polices for more than 15 tech companiesfrom hybrid approaches that still favor in-person work to extreme flexibility to keep workers happy.

These policies are largely informed by the tech job market right now. Many tech workersespecially those with proven accomplishments and marketable skillsare looking around at other job opportunities, according to recruiters. A decision to change jobs might be swayed by the offer of more flexibility around remote work, which has put some tech companies in a bind. For them, its all about attracting and retaining top talent, and losing it is extremely costly. Tech company work policies should be read as highly strategic bids to keep talent happy in the pandemics wake.

Even though much of the country has reopened, the delta variants spread has confused and delayed those strategies even more. Companies dont want to push fearful workers, nor do they want their employees getting sick. Even fully vaccinated workers risk contracting the delta variant, and those workers can be carriers who might infect unvaccinated coworkers at the office. Since most tech companies are relying on the honor system when it comes to workers vaccination status, a delta outbreak is a possibility. (At some companies its considered intrusive and antisocial to even ask the question, one recruiter told me.)

Most of the back-to-office policies we reviewed are some form of hybrid modela mix of remote and on-site work. The mix often depends on the size and focus of the tech company. Larger companiesespecially ones that make hardwareseem more interested in getting their people back to the office, at least most of the time. Apple, for example, argues that face-to-face collaboration among engineers and designers is crucial to developing winning devices. Still, those companies have faced resistance from their employees. Smaller software companies seem more inclined to embrace liberal work-from-home policies, perhaps with an aim toward luring talent from larger companies.

Heres how tech companies are transitioning back to the office in 2021.

Apple

Apple CEO Tim Cook sent out a memo in June saying employees should plan to work in an office at least three days a week starting in September. After some push back from employees, Apple stuck to its guns on the policy, but has pushed the implementation date back to October. Apple will also let employees request to work remotely for several weeks during the year.

Amazon

Amazon said back in March that it expected to move its employees back to a work-centric culture. Some Amazon employees pushed back on the implication that all employees would need to return to the office full-time. As a result, Amazon revised its policy to something more in line with other big tech companies, saying employees could come back to the office three days a week, with the possibility of working certain weeks of the year completely remote.

Google

Google also wants its employees to return to the office at least three days a week. The company also says itll let employees work entirely remotely for up to four weeks out of the year. In a blog post, CEO Sundar Pichai says the company will let more employees request to work remotely full-time. But if they move to another city, theyre subject to having their salary adjusted to match local standards. Post-pandemic, Google believes that about 60% of its employees will be in an office three days a week, with another 20% working in new office locations, and 20% working from home.

Some Google employees were angered at learning that the company may use a different set of rules for higher-ranking people: A high-ranking Googler named Urs Hlzle recently told employees in an email that hed be doing his job from New Zealand, CNETs Richard Nieva reports. Google said Hlzles move was requested and approved before the hybrid work policy was announced.

Uber

The ride-hailing and food delivery company says it will shift to a hybrid remote office arrangement this September. The San Francisco-based company will allow employees to work from home two days a week but will expect them to be in the office for face-to-face work the other three. We feel that this combination of in-person and remote work will give people the freedom to do their best work while staying connected to their colleagues, a spokesperson said.

Microsoft

Microsoft says it plans to fully open its offices in the U.S. by September 7, 2021 at the earliest. We continue to review the situation on a local basis in each region/country/state where we work and will adjust dates by country as needed, a Microsoft spokesperson said in an email. The company, including its Redmond, Washington, headquarters, is currently in a soft open phase of its back-to-office plan. When health conditions permit offices to officially open, Microsoft expects that most of its workers will spend no more than half their time working from home.

DoorDash

The delivery app company says its corporate offices will remain officially closed until January 2022. But the company has begun to open its 17 U.S. corporate offices so that employees can begin to go into the office in-person as theyd like, a spokesperson said. DoorDash says itll phase in a hybrid work model next year, wherein most of its employees will split their time between in-office work and remote work.

Adobe

Adobe says its employees will have the option to spend half their time working from home and half their time working in an office. Well gather for the moments that matter: We will have an intentional mix of physical and virtual presences, with in-person gatherings driven by purpose and designed for collaboration, chief people officer Gloria Chen wrote in a June 24 blog post. Adobe says it expects to double the size of its remote workforce over time.

Salesforce

Salesforce employees have the option to continue working from home through at least December 31, 2021. After that, most employees will work in an office between one and three days a week, the company says, with a subset of employees working remotely full-time if their work allows for it. An immersive workspace is no longer limited to a desk in our Towers, chief people officer Brent Hyder wrote in a blog post. The nine-to-five workday is dead; and the employee experience is about more than ping-pong tables and snacks.

Dropbox

The company says its putting its virtual first work policy in place, with remote work being the default way of working going forward. In July Dropbox employees began to return to offices in San Francisco and Washington, D.C., with other locations to follow through the rest of this year. The company has also been redesigning some of its offices (in Seattle, San Francisco, and Austin for example) to have more open collaboration spaces with plentiful meeting rooms.

Grammarly

The writing tools company says its adopted a remote-first hybrid model, meaning that its employees can work primarily from home, and its office spaces will now turn into hubs where teams can work or hold face-to-face meetings. By remote-first, we mean that our modes of collaboration will assume every team member is remote, writes Grammarly CEO, Brad Hoover in a June blog post.

Twitter

Twitter just reopened its San Francisco headquarters, but the company is not requiring employees to return to the office if they can do their job remotely. Many employees will split their time between home and office.If our employees are in a role and situation that enables them to work from home indefinitely or split their time between their home and the office, we will support that, the company said in a statement.

Slack

Slack is transitioning to a remote-first workforce for most employees. The company says itll still have face-to-face get togethers, but mainly for pre-scheduled events like project kickoffs and team building.Its a fitting strategy for a company whose product is designed to enable remote communication and collaboration.

Facebook

The social networking company said in May 2020 that it would allow its most senior and experienced employees to request to work from home full-time. But in early June the company said itll let all full-time employees work from home permanently, if their job allows for it. Weve learned over the past year that good work can get done anywhere, and Im even more optimistic that remote work at scale is possible, CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote in a email to employees. Facebook has also said that it may adjust the salaries of employees who relocate, to match local salary standards. The company, which employs about 60,000 people, says it plans to open its offices up at 50% capacity in September, moving to full capacity in October.

GoPro

GoPro is taking an even more progressive approach to post-pandemic work than Twitter and Slack. GoPro fully supports its employees who want to relocate for whatever reason, be it to pursue their passions, be closer to family or otherwise, GoPro CEO Nicholas Woodman wrote in a blog post. We proactively encourage our employees to relocate if that will make them feel happy and appreciated.

Reddit

Reddit has said it will give all of its employees a chance to work remotely full-time. Its also said it will continue to pay employees who relocate away from coastal centers their current salaries, regardless of local salary norms. This strategy makes sense for a relatively small tech company that offers a digital-only service, and it may help attract talent from larger tech companies.

Coinbase

Coinbase says its adopting a remote first approach to work. Almost all of its employees can continue working fully remote if they choose, CEO Brian Armstrong said in a blog post. Anyone who wants to return to an office can do that.

Airbnb

Airbnb says it doesnt plan to require its employees to return to the office until September 1, 2022. CEO Brian Chesky said during an earnings call in May that his company wants to develop an anywhere lifestyle for employees. Even when employees return next September, they wont be expected to spend all week in an office. The company is still working out the details of its balance between face-to-face work and remote work. We want to get it right, Chesky said. We dont want to rush into this, so thats what were going to be working on over the course of the next year.

IBM

IBM says itll reopen all of its U.S. sites the week of September 7. As for remote work, the company is still working out its plans. IBM has long-established practices and policies supporting worklife balance which will continue as we return to the office, the company says in a blog post. More communication from your unit leadership, as well as specifics on safety protocols, will follow later this summer. Looking forward to seeing you in September.

Read more:

Which big tech companies offer remote and hybrid work? - Fast Company