What: An opinion piece on the state of big tech and how it has grown into a windfall economy.

Why it is important: Not only regulation (or public backlash) could affect what is available to retailers in terms of tech to promote their products, but it is also a striking parallel on how department stores lost their edge with years as they were growing their profits, somehow losing sight on their customers

Cory Doctorow, a renowned author and activist, has spent 20 years advocating against stringent copyright laws, tech monopolies, and surveillance capitalism. In his new book, "The Internet Con: How to Seize the Means of Computation," Doctorow underscores the covert threats hidden in mundane policies of tech giants. He aspires to galvanize public understanding and action against these issues through his book.

Doctorow acknowledges that he was once more hopeful about technology. However, with time, he observed that the tech sector shifted from being innovative and user-focused to becoming more monopolistic. Previously, tech firms emphasized creativity, making products that served users. But now, larger tech companies have colluded to stifle interoperability and curtail innovations that could threaten their dominance.

His primary argument is that policy intervention is essential to foster "adversarial interoperability," allowing new entities to challenge the prevailing tech titans. Reflecting on history, he believes that if conditions are restored where tech remains dynamic and cannot exert too much power, it would benefit the industry and users.

Doctorow introduces the term "competitive compatibility" or "comcom" as a synonym for adversarial interoperability, noting its easier pronunciation and the challenges associated with the original term.

Discussing the stronghold of platforms like Twitter, Doctorow points out that users stick to these platforms not necessarily because they're the best, but because of the immense costs associated with leaving, both in terms of followers and content. These constraints aren't technical but rather stem from policy restrictions that prevent alternatives.

Concluding the discussion, he emphasizes the challenge of making people care about tech policy before it's too late. Taking a leaf from Milton Friedman's playbook, Doctorow believes that in times of crisis, peripheral ideas can suddenly become central. As activists, he thinks the goal should be to have these transformative ideas readily available, waiting for the right moment of upheaval to drive substantial change.

Big Tech: there are no fast companies anymore