>>> I DON'T THINK BIG IS
NECESSARILY BAD BUT I THINK A
LOT OF PEOPLE WONDER HOW SUCH
HUGE BEHEMOTHS THAT NOW EXIST IN
SILICON VALLEY HAVE TAKEN SHAPE
UNDER THE NOSE OF THE ANTITRUST
ENFORCERS.
YOU KNOW, YOU CAN WIN THAT PLACE
IN THE MARKETPLACE WITHOUT
VIOLATING THE ANTITRUST LAWS,
BUT I WANT TO FIND OUT MORE
ABOUT THAT DYNAMIC.
DAVID: THE WORD "BUT" A LOT OF
PEOPLE ARE CONCERNED ABOUT.
ATTORNEY GENERAL NOMINEE WILLIAM
BARR WAS ASKED A LOT OF
QUESTIONS ABOUT THE MUELLER
INVESTIGATION AT HIS
CONFIRMATION YESTERDAY BUT MOST
FOLKS FAILED TO NOTICE HIS
STRIKING CONCERNS ABOUT THE SIZE
OF BIG HIGH TECH FIRMS.
THAT WASN'T LOST ON OUR OWN
CHARLIE GASPARINO, WHO HAS BEEN
BREAKING NEWS ON THE SUBJECT ALL
DAY AS HE'S BEEN MAKING ROUNDS.
CHARLIE, TELL US WHAT YOU FOUND.
>> YOU KNOW, I COVERED THE
JUSTICE DEPARTMENT'S ANTITRUST
DIVISION A LOT.
THEY HAVE BEEN MOSTLY FOCUSED ON
TELECOM DEALS.
JUST TO BE CLEAR, FOR AWHILE
NOW, IT'S THE FTC, FEDERAL TRADE
COMMISSION, THAT PROVIDED MOST
OF THE FRONT LINE REGULATION OF
THE BIG TECH COMPANIES, NOT
JUSTICE DEPARTMENT DOJ.
THEY WERE GETTING, YOU KNOW,
FACEBOOK, FOR EXAMPLE, WHAT'S
APP, YOU KNOW THIS STUFF.
CURSORY REVIEW BY DOJ.
THE FTC REALLY BORE DOWN.
WHAT I HEARD AFTER HE MADE THAT
STATEMENT, I CALLED SOME OF MY
SOURCES, NOT GOING TO SAY WHO
BUT THEY ARE VERY PLUGGED IN AT
FACEBOOK, AT GOOGLE, THEY ARE
PLUGGED IN IN THE JUSTICE
DEPARTMENT AND THEY SAID DON'T
LET THIS GO UNNOTICED.
THIS IS A HUGE STATEMENT.
IT'S BASICALLY SAYING FOR THE
FIRST TIME, JUSTICE ANTITRUST IS
GOING TO START BEARING DOWN ON
THE BIG TECH COMPANIES,
PARTICULARLY FACEBOOK AND GOOGLE
AND THEY ARE GOING TO LOOK AT
THEIR MERGER ACTIVITY AND
BASICALLY, THEY ARE SAYING TO
THESE GUYS WE DON'T WANT YOU TO
GET BIGGER ANYMORE.
SO IF GOOGLE AND FACEBOOK WANT
TO GO OUT THERE AND BUY STUFF,
THEY WILL BE FACING FAIRLY
SIGNIFICANT REGULATORY SCRUTINY
FROM DOJ ANTITRUST AND AGAIN, IT
WILL BE THE FIRST TIME THEY HAVE
DONE THIS IN AWHILE, THE FTC WAS
GENERALLY THE FRONT LINE
REGULATOR ON THIS.
WHY ARE THEY DOING THIS?
WELL, THIS IS THE POLITICAL
CLIMATE SUGGESTING THAT.
JUSTICE, TRUMP JUSTICE
DEPARTMENT DOES NOT AGREE WITH
EVERYTHING THAT NANCY PELOSI AND
THE DEMOCRATS AGREE ON, BUT THEY
ALL KIND OF HATE BIG TECH, YOU
KNOW.
THEY HATE IT FROM THE PRIVACY
STANDPOINT.
I THINK TRUMP AND HIS PEOPLE
HATE IT FROM THE SIZE
STANDPOINT.
THEY BELIEVE IF GOOGLE AND
FACEBOOK KEEP BUYING STUFF,
GUESS WHAT, THEY ARE CROWDING
OUT INNOVATION, BASICALLY
CREATING MONOPOLIES BECAUSE THEY
CAN BUY OUT SMALLER COMPETITORS.
I THINK THAT'S WHERE WE ARE
RIGHT NOW.
AND BY THE WAY, IF YOU OWN THE
STOCK WHICH WE ARE A BUSINESS
CHANNEL, THIS IS A WORRY.
BY THE WAY, GOOGLE AND FACEBOOK
ARE IN ALL THESE INDICES, RIGHT?
SO IF THEY START GETTING HIT
WITH REGULATORY SCRUTINY FROM
THE DEMS OVER HERE, HEARINGS,
SOMETHING WE HAVE BEEN REPORTING
ON, AND THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION
OVER HERE, WELL, THAT'S
SOMETHING TO WATCH IN THE
STOCKS.
>> I THINK THAT'S GREAT
REPORTING BECAUSE IT'S NOT ONLY
THE REGULATORY SIDE, IT'S THE
POLITICAL SIDE.
HERE YOU ARE HAVING A REPUBLICAN
PERSON THAT WANTS TO BECOME THE
NEXT HEAD OF DEPARTMENT OF
JUSTICE AND HE'S PLAYING
INCREDIBLY WELL TO THE DEMOCRATS
RIGHT NOW BECAUSE THERE IS NO
QUESTION THEY WANT TO GO AFTER
ALL THE PRIVACY ISSUES, AND
SHOULD THESE COMPANIES WHICH YOU
HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT, SHOULD
THEY BE REGULATED LIKE A MEDIA
COMPANY.
>> INTERESTING THAT THE TRUMP
ADMINISTRATION'S DOJ ANTITRUST,
AND TRUMP'S POSITION ON
ANTITRUST HAS BEEN ALMOST LIKE A
DEMOCRAT.
REMEMBER, THEY SUED TO PREVENT
THE AT & T TIME WARNER DEAL.
THEY LOST IN FEDERAL COURT.
THEY BASICALLY -- NOT BASICALLY,
THEY DID APPEAL IT TO THE
FEDERAL DISTRICT COURT SO THEY
ARE AGAINST THESE BIG MONOPOLIES
IN TECH AND TELECOM, SO I GUESS
YOU COULD SAY THEY ARE BASICALLY
MOVING FROM TELECOM NOW TO BIG
TECH, BECAUSE THAT'S WHERE A LOT
OF PEOPLE ARE CONCERNED.
I STILL THINK THEY ARE GOING TO
GO AFTER SOME TELECOM STUFF.
THERE'S STILL A POSSIBILITY THEY
GO AFTER COMCAST.
TRUMP HATES NBC AS YOU KNOW, AND
HE'S DEVELOPED -- AND JUSTICE
DEPARTMENT ANTITRUST HAS
DEVELOPED A THEORY THAT DESPITE
HIS HATRED, WE CAN MAYBE MAKE,
KEEP COMCAST SMALLER, BECAUSE
THEY ARE TOO BIG, THEY CONTROL
TOO MUCH REAL ESTATE, THEY
CONTROL CONTENT AND
DISTRIBUTION.
>> WHY IS THERE SO LITTLE FAITH
IN TECHNOLOGY DISRUPTING THE
SEEMINGLY IMPREGNABLE COMPANIES?
HAVE THEY LEARNED NOTHING SINCE
20 YEARS THEY SAW MICROSOFT
TAKING OVER THE WORLD AND LOOK
WHERE MICROSOFT IS.
BIG, BUT NOTHING LIKE THE
MONSTER --
>> THEY DID BRING A CASE.
I AGREE WITH YOU
PHILOSOPHICALLY, JUST SO YOU
KNOW, BUT I WILL PLAY DEVIL'S
ADVOCATE.
WHAT THEY ARE GOING TO SAY IS
MICROSOFT WAS ABLE TO BE TAKEN
OUT BY OTHER COMPANIES BECAUSE,
JUST BECAUSE OF THE SCRUTINY
FROM THE GOVERNMENT, BECAUSE
THEY PUT THEM ON THEIR HEELS.
THEY WILL ALSO SAY THAT WE ARE
IN A DIFFERENT ERA RIGHT NOW.
THEY WILL SAY PARTICULARLY ON
TELECOM -- LISTEN, WHAT THEY ARE
SAYING IS THIS.
THERE'S ONLY FIVE OR SIX MAJOR
DISTRIBUTORS OF CONTENT, AND YOU
HAVE MUST-SEE CONTENT, YOU CAN
CREATE A MONOPOLY.
IF YOU DON'T -- SO THAT'S WHY
THEY DON'T LIKE THE AT & T/TIME
WARNER DEAL.
IT'S HARD TO TAKE APART
COMCAST/NBCU NOW BUT THEY CAN
MAKE LIFE DIFFICULT WHICH I
THINK THEY WILL.
>> IT'S ALSO A FAIRNESS THING.
THEY ARE REGULATING THE MEDIA
COMPANIES BUT THEY ARE NOT
REGULATING THESE TECH COMPANIES
LIKE THEY'RE MEDIA COMPANIES.
THAT HAS BEEN A BIG YELLING
MATCH WHERE I THINK BOTH SIDES,
THIS IS ONE THING THAT IS
BIPARTISAN.
>> WELL, REMEMBER, I JUST WONDER
HOW FAR THE DEMS GO.
LISTEN, THERE'S A LOT OF
DEMOCRAT STAFFERS THAT GO TO
WORK IN SILICON VALLEY.
I THINK THERE ARE A MORE
EXISTENTIAL THREAT.
DAVID: DO YOU THINK THEY WILL
MAKE A DISTINCTION BETWEEN
ANTITRUST AND HAVING NEW
REGULATIONS ON PRIVACY?
YOU HAVE STATES LIKE CALIFORNIA
THREATENING TO DO CRAZY THINGS.
TECH COMPANIES MAY SAY GIVE US
SOMETHING FEDERAL SO IF YOU GO
FROM NEW YORK TO NEW JERSEY
YOU'RE NOT SUDDENLY IN VIOLATION
OF A STATE LAW.
>> LISTEN, THAT'S WHAT THE
SECURITIES INDUSTRY HAS DONE, AS
YOU KNOW.
THERE IS GENERALLY, YES, A LOT
OF STATE ATTORNEYS GENERAL, LIKE
SPITZER DID IN THE DAY, TRIED TO
CREATE HIS OWN LITTLE POCKET.
I THINK THERE'S SOME DEGREE OF
THAT.
I THINK WHAT BARR IS COMING AT,
WHAT I HEARD, IS HE'S WORRIED
ABOUT THESE COMPANIES GETTING
WAY TOO BIG, BUYING MORE
COMPETITORS WHICH THE
COMPETITORS ARE NO PROBLEM.
THEY CHARGE TOP DOLLAR.
YOU BASICALLY THEN, BY BUYING,
LIKE FACEBOOK BUYING OR GOOGLE
BUYING YOUTUBE, YOU DO CREATE AN
INFORMATION MONOPOLY THROUGH
MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS, AND
THAT'S HOW THEY HAVE BEEN ABLE
TO GET THIS SORT OF MONOPOLY ON
INFORMATION.
THAT'S HOW THEY COULD
POTENTIALLY MISUSE IT.
THAT'S WHERE HE'S COMING FROM.
>> THERE'S NO APPLE BECAUSE
THAT'S CONSIDERED CLOSED SYSTEM.
>> GREAT QUESTION.
THIS IS GOING TO --
>> QUICK ANSWER.
>> THIS WILL APPEAR ON
FOXBUSINESS.COM ANY MOMENT.
YES, I MADE THAT DISTINCTION.
I DON'T THINK APPLE IS IN THE
SOUP LIKE THE REST OF THEM.
I THINK AMAZON IS IN THE SOUP AS
WELL.
THEY DO USE INFORMATION THIRD
PARTY AND ARE GROWING FAST.