Facebook is negotiating with the Federal Trade Commission over a possible multi-billion dollar fine to settle an investigation into privacy violations by the firm, the Washington Post reported Thursday.
Why it matters: Previous FTC privacy fines levied against tech firms have been in the (low) millions, not billions. A major fine would send a message to Facebook — and other tech giants — that the commission is determined to rein in careless treatment of user privacy.
The background: The Post story follows its report last month that the agency’s commissioners had met to discuss a possible fine — a sign that the probe into the company, which were made public with the Cambridge Analytica revelations last March, was further along.
What's next: If Facebook fails to reach a settlement with the FTC, the agency can seek remedies in court.
Amazon has spent the past two decades conquering the world, but today it beat a stunning retreat from the New York leg of its HQ2 expansion.
Why it matters: The optics are terrible for Amazon. It dangled 50,000 jobs as a life preserver for America's mid-sized cities, then picked the D.C. area and NYC for the bulk of the winnings, only to balk at the prospect of a local insurgency over its lucrative incentives package.
Behind the scenes: A source familiar with Amazon’s deliberations told Axios that serious conversations about pulling back on its New York plans started in the last two weeks, sometime after a second contentious City Council hearing with its executives.
Go deeper:
Executives from T-Mobile and Sprint defended their merger during a Wednesday hearing from critics who say that the $26 billion deal will cost customers more money and employees their jobs.
Why it matters: With Democrats in control of the House, the deal — which the companies argue will help America keep pace with foreign competitors on 5G — is under more scrutiny.
Details: T-Mobile CEO John Legere was aggressive in maintaining that costs would not go up for consumers and that the company would not employ fewer people after the merger than the two do now.
The big picture: Democrats' concerns about the impact of the merger ran the gamut.
What's next: The House Judiciary Committee had planned a hearing with the executives, but that was postponed — raising the prospect the executives will face another grilling from lawmakers in the future.
The bottom line: Congress has no say in merger approvals. Whether the deal goes through is up to the Department of Justice, Federal Communications Commission and state regulators.
Go deeper: Fight heats up over T-Mobile's $26 billion deal with Sprint
