Washington (AFP)

The US technology giants are facing increased pressure from the authorities, who threaten to force them to cease activities, but they continue to display an insolent health in the stock market.

Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Alphabet (Google's parent company) have once again hit all-time highs in recent weeks, helped by record profits in the second quarter.

Their market value peaks for each of them above 1,000 billion dollars, Apple having even exceeded 2,000 billion.

Over a year, Alphabet took 80%, Facebook 40% and Apple 30%.

Amazon is relatively stable after hitting all-time highs in July.

Microsoft, which also exceeds 2,000 billion in market value, for the moment escapes the radar of regulators.

However, President Biden's government has taken a more aggressive stance with these big names, notably by appointing critical figures in this sector to the American competition authority (FTC).

Lawyer Lina Khan took over as head of the institution in June, a 32-year-old woman known for her hostility to monopolies on major technology platforms.

- Splits -

Among the grievances blamed on these giants, the stranglehold of Apple and Google in the market for mobile applications, the lack of competition in a digital advertising market dominated by Facebook and Google, and unfair conditions for independent sellers on Amazon.com.

Lina Khan, President of the US Competition Authority (FTC) POOL GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / AFP / Archives

FTC lawsuits for anti-competitive practices could further force Facebook to part ways with Instagram and WhatsApp.

But despite the firm rhetoric and financial agreements in antitrust disputes in the United States and Europe, the "Big Tech" have not seen their momentum slowed down.

At the same time, they were able to count on the unwitting support of the Chinese government, which launched a powerful crackdown on the largest national listed companies.

This "was so strong that it led investors from Chinese tech to American tech," observes Daniel Ives, analyst for Wedbush Securities.

On both the legal and legislative levels, observers believe that any action by the authorities could take years to materialize, and be subject to challenge.

Given the controversial legislative measures required to achieve such a sanction, "splits from such groups are almost impossible," said Daniel Newman, analyst for Futurum Research.

Especially since Congress is very divided, adds Dan Ives.

"As long as investors do not see a consensus on the proposed antitrust regulations, they will see a moderate risk (for companies) and will therefore continue to acquire technology stocks," he believes.

- Billions of dollars in fines -

The most likely outcome, according to Daniel Newman, is the imposition of fines of billions of dollars on these companies which would at the same time adapt to the regulatory changes.

Apple's stock market value has surpassed $ 2,000 billion despite regulatory threats to its online store Chris Delmas AFP / Archives

They "have more resources and knowledge of the sector than regulators," he adds.

These companies are also highly exposed to data privacy regulations and content moderation, according to Tracy Li of investment firm Capital Group.

However, "concerns about privacy or content could strengthen rather than weaken them", as "these companies often have protocols well in place and have more resources to tackle privacy and legal issues", she says on her blog.

This is one of the major differences between regulators and large platforms: they can innovate quickly while institutions suffer from the slowness of the role of policeman.

Facebook, for example, is already preparing for a future that will no longer be dominated by social networks but by the "metaverse", a "meta-universe" where real and virtual will merge thanks to virtual and augmented reality technologies.

Regulatory changes could have "a significant impact" on the group, notes independent analyst Eric Seufert, "but the very scale of Facebook and the growth trajectory of digital advertising make this easier to bear."

"The gold mine (...) is far from being exhausted", he adds.

Generally speaking, these companies took advantage of their base to grow even more during the pandemic by offering innovative services to captive consumers.

"It has become extremely difficult for new entrants to break through," observes Newman.

For investors, this means that "no one else can create value this quickly."

© 2021 AFP