Wednesday Oct.21, 2020

🌎 Google's big monopoly lawsuit

_When you accidentally set off the Code Red_
_When you accidentally set off the Code Red_

Hey Snackers,

The next viral TikTok stars could be astronauts: NASA is launching a 4G mobile network on the moon. A moonwalk dance video counts as "important data," right?

Stocks jumped yesterday as House Speaker Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Mnuchin made some progress on stimulus talks, though big differences remain.

Search

Google gets hit with the biggest tech anti-monopoly lawsuit since the '90s

Googling Google... That's concerning. The Justice Department filed an antitrust lawsuit against Google yesterday, more than a year after its investigation started. The DoJ claims Google uses anti-competitive tactics to keep its search biz monopoly. It's the biggest US legal challenge to a tech company's reign since Microsoft got served in 1998.

  • Google controls 90% of global search and 92% of smartphone search in the US, research finds. That's partly thanks to key deals with phone-makers.
  • Android: Google has agreements to make sure its preloaded search app can’t be deleted from phones running its Android OS.
  • Apple: Google pays Apple ~$10B a year to feed it search traffic and make itself the default on Safari.

Anything but Bing... Dominating market share isn't illegal — Google can't be punished for its success. Buuut: exclusionary moves that shut out competitors are illegal. That's why the lawsuit focuses on Google's exclusive deals with Apple. Losing that search pipeline would be so crushing that Googlers referred to it as "Code Red." If Google loses the suit, it could be forced to end deals or break up parts of its biz.

Google's monopoly doesn't hurt us... At least, not as clearly as traditional monopolies. The DoJ says Google's anticompetitiveness means less choice/innovation for consumers, and pricier ads for companies. Google's case: people choose to use its tools, from Search to YouTube to Gmail, for the value they provide — plus, Google's services are mostly free. That undercuts typical antitrust arguments anchored on price. The harm to consumers isn't as obvious.

Scrub

P&G sees its shiniest growth in 15 years thanks to the "Hygiene Revolution"

Charmin, Crest, Vicks, and Tide... Your pandemic grocery list is also Procter & Gamble's pandemic winners list. The consumer goods giant had its biggest quarterly global sales increase in 15 years as we compulsively cleaned our homes (and ourselves).

  • Sales jumped 9%, and profit soared 20% compared to last year.
  • That's impressive growth for a 182-year-old company whose most exciting product is scented laundry beads.

It's the Hygiene Revolution... The pandemic has caused us to splurge on brand-name hygiene products instead of $15 craft cocktails and 2 a.m. Uber rides. People are spending more time at home, and they also have more money to spend on their home.

  • P&G's home-care sales jumped 30%, outsparkling every other unit. Swiffer, Febreze, and Mr. Clean were the sanitized stars of the earnings.
  • Lysol-maker Reckitt Benckiser just had its biggest quarterly sales growth ever thanks to its hygiene unit. It's also doing "hygiene consulting" for companies like Delta and Airbnb.

The hygiene bar has been (permanently) raised... Hygiene isn’t just a corona-trend like sourdough starters and tie dye. Early in the pandemic, cleaning sales gains were driven by hoarding and shortages. But recent demand appears to be fueled by our sustained obsession with sanitizing — and big-brand names are benefiting over generics. P&G raised its financial forecast for the quarter since it's expecting growth to get shinier.

What else we’re Snackin’

  • Unchill: Netflix missed on earnings and new subscribers as growth slowed, adding just 2.2M subs last quarter vs. 10M in the one before.
  • Snapback: Snap stock soared on surprisingly strong 52% sales growth and 249M daily users.
  • Ride: Uber says it might majorly scale back or even end its ride service in California if Prop 22 doesn't pass on election day.
  • Malled: JCPenney expects to come out of bankruptcy before the holidays. It could sell itself to mall owner Simon Property.
  • Joggers: Kohl's aims to make activewear at least 30% of its business, since the athleisure trend is more like the new status quo.

🍪 Thanks for Snacking with us! Want to share the Snacks? Invite your friends to sign up here.

Wednesday

Disclosure: Authors of this Snacks own shares of Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and Snap

ID: 1377597

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