I've had a role in two of the antitrust cases. The one between Microsoft and JavaSoft (Sun Microsystems) where I was the fulcrum of the whole thing when it kicked off, and the one between the Federal Government and Microsoft for their browser shenanigans against Netscape, where I was a tech advisor because of my role at NASA.

Both cases went on for something like a decade, and both accomplished zilch, practically speaking. Some small software tweaks here and there were made, and one path forward (which was technologically impractical anyway) was closed off to Microsoft. (Who, with the release of Office365 has stepped completely over that thinly-drawn line anyway.)

And both cases produced results long after the technologies/methodologies in question had been made obsolete, and the industry had moved on to other methods/tech solutions that were not in the scope of the rulings.

The biggest issue is M&As. There are PLENTY of new products being invented, and companies being started, and innovations being made, for there to truly be competition in any tech marketplace.

The issue is when the big dogs are allowed to buy the innovators - Microsoft buying Bungie, Google acquiring Nest, Facebook buying Instagram. Every one of these acquisitions made the acquired company and product worse, and made the tech landscape duller and less vibrant.

M&As have long been used as a weapon. That's not news.

But I feel that tech M&As need to be evaluated by a different standard than the FCC has been using for decades. Something more along the lines of the CFPB set up by Elizabeth Warren.

The companies need to make an incontrovertible (not "compelling") case that the acquisition is the best thing for the product AND the public market. (This would also have to take into account security liabilities from too much data sitting in one company's hands.) Then the case needs to be weighed using the company's attestations, as well as independent review by the CFPB and - like patents - by others with a vested interest in finding fault with the merger or acquisition. It should be a LONG and arduous process for the purchaser, and should not be taken on lightly. Announcement of an M&A should make your stock take a hit, rather than immediately spike.

With proper scrutiny and consumer protections in place, the existing tech giants could be whittled down and made less monopolistic, while also protecting innovators and spurring a new push in innovations in the US.

Thank you for coming to my TED Talk....