Beyond the coronavirus & cancellations
It’s been mostly coronavirus and cancellations since Friday, so this is an abbreviated edition… One thing tho: Those of us who've been managing mission-critical global teams filled with remote workers for 10+ years are amused at the wringing of hands and gnashing of teeth from corporate “managers” who have no idea how to lead when employees are more than 10 feet from their office door... it’s the 21st century, y’all.
TODAY IN…
DEEP TECH
The 5G plot thickens … even as the FCC approves a $9 billion plan to redeploy airwaves
MEDIA & TELECOM
A group of unions representing 5.3 million U.S. workers asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Amazon’s alleged anticompetitive practices and influence on wages
Activist investor Paul Singer (Elliott Management) is pushing for big changes at Twitter after taking a $1 billion stake, and Singer rarely loses these kinds of contests…. Bloomberg seems to be confused about the first law of activist investing: If Singer isn’t in the room, Dorsey wouldn’t be either. Singer will take Jack out 1:1 for their first discussion … And: Twitter did not cancel Jack’s appearance because their travel policy changed (next up: cancelling that six months in Africa):
HEALTHCARE TECH
The European Data Protection Board says Google’s acquisition of Fitbit could pose ‘high level of risk to privacy and data protection’ and is ordering the company to “mitigate possible risks” … See also: Academics advise the European Data Protection Board on how to do data correctly … And: The Plutocracy is officially worried about facial recognition
FINANCE
The S&P 500 is down 11% in one week, wiping out $3 trillion in value from U.S. equities — the worst week of declines since the 2008 financial crisis but still nowhere near the 22%+ plunge of October 1987
Business Roundtable members are already being challenged on their great proclamation on corporate responsibility
PUBLIC POLICY
California companies that failed to add at least one woman to their board in 2019 will be hit with a $100,000 fine this week