Image: Facebook / Protocol
Facebook picks a fight

Good morning! This Thursday: the big question your company should be asking in 2021, why Facebook isn't slowing down in the face of antitrust reform and more moves at Coinbase.
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"The lawsuit alone changed the company" is a phrase you hear a lot about antitrust action. The theory is that companies are made nervous by the inquiry, and will change their monopolistic ways before the government has to.
Facebook hasn't changed, at least in the early days after the antitrust world came down hard on it.
Apple obviously has incentives of its own, but it's a bold move for Facebook to say "come for us, you'll kill small businesses!" It won't be hard for regulators to read that ad as Facebook saying, "small businesses have literally nowhere else to go but Facebook." And it's bolder still to take a stance against the company taking a stance for privacy. (And honestly, is bold really the right word?)
If regulators have been looking for signs of contrition from Facebook, they're going to be all the way out of luck.
In related news: There's a big new antitrust suit against Google, from 10 states led by Texas. The most explosive allegation in the suit involves Google and Facebook striking a deal to give Facebook an advantage in Google's ad auctions. If true, it would be about as clean-cut an example of collusive behavior among tech giants as you'd ever find.To top things off, a third lawsuit is reportedly coming today from 30 states, focusing on Google's search dominance.
It might be the biggest question facing the tech industry right now: To what extent are companies responsible for the things that are done with their products? Even when the answer seems simple, it rarely is.
A few examples just from the last couple of days:
The question applies up the entire tech stack and across the tech industry. Cloudflare has had to reckon with hosting and providing security for objectionable websites. Nvidia and Intel chips are used in that same Chinese surveillance system. Whether you run a social platform, a code repository, a podcast app or a porn website, you've had to ask and answer difficult questions about moderation.
The big question here quickly splinters into lots of little ones, too. Is there a difference between what you allow and what you promote? (Yes.) Do you have a responsibility to set clear rules from the get-go and adhere to them as best you can? (Yes.) But the more I talk to folks about the tech industry going forward, the more they're anxious about the second- and third- and fourth-order effects of the tech being built right now. Accountability gets messy fast.
On Protocol: Wish had an underwhelming first day as a public company, and CFO Rajat Bahri said the problem is education:
Bitcoin is up to record highs, but Brian Armstrong said we're still early in a very long game and investors should bear that in mind:
Shopify's Tobi Lütke says the formula for building a successful company is often overlooked:
Salesforce, the global leader in CRM, and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, announced today that they will collaborate to help Gavi manage critical information to equitably distribute approximately two billion COVID-19 vaccines to 190 countries by the end of 2021. Fair, rapid and equitable access to vaccines is critical to ending the global pandemic.
Kelly Kramer is joining Coinbase's board. Marc Andreessen, who joined as a board observer in August, is becoming a director.
Nicole Johnson was promoted to partner at Forerunner Ventures. She's been at the firm since 2013, most recently as a principal.
Kevin Peterson is Waymo's new Head of Perception, joining the company after selling Marble to Caterpillar earlier this year.
Bob Iger and Jeffrey Katzenberg may become U.S. ambassadors. They're both reportedly in the running for such gigs under Joe Biden, with the most likely posts being the U.K. or China.
And it's the latest installment in our holiday recipes! If you'd like to be included, send over your faves to akramer@protocol.com, or just reply to this email.
Today's holiday food tradition comes from Fidji Simo, who's in charge of the Facebook app: "Two of my favorite things about the holidays are getting to be with my family and being able to pass along generation-old traditions to my 5-year-old daughter. Every year on Christmas Eve, my family bakes a yule log cake, which is a French holiday dessert that consists of a sweet spongy cake rolled and frosted with a rich chocolate buttercream made to look like bark — perfect for someone who has a sweet tooth like me! Better known as a bûche de Noël in my home country, this dessert represents the yule log that families used to burn on Christmas Eve to symbolize the coming of a new year and to bring good luck. While the yule log looks complicated, even an amateur baker can master it! I will admit, you can usually find me cheering on my mom and husband as I take my place as the designated dessert taste-tester for any leftover frosting."
If you'd like to try your hand at this notoriously fiddly cake (perhaps with the whole fam!), you can find Simo's recipe here.
Salesforce, the global leader in CRM, and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, announced today that they will collaborate to help Gavi manage critical information to equitably distribute approximately two billion COVID-19 vaccines to 190 countries by the end of 2021. Fair, rapid and equitable access to vaccines is critical to ending the global pandemic.
Today's Source Code was written by David Pierce, with help from Anna Kramer and Shakeel Hashim. Thoughts, questions, tips? Send them to david@protocol.com, or our tips line, tips@protocol.com. Enjoy your day; see you tomorrow.
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