Amazon Makes Massive Purchase to Compete With Big Companies

(RepublicanDaily.org) – In the ongoing debate about the seemingly unstoppable force that is Big Tech, Amazon is one of the major talking points. Jeff Bezos’ online retail giant has spread its operations in every direction over the last few years. It has also proven willing to partake in the sort of toxic “wokeness” that’s been damaging our political landscape of late. When Amazon Web Services (AWS) refused to continue hosting free-speech platform Parler earlier this year, the website was rendered temporarily defunct. Amazon is in the news for another reason this week, following the announcement that it’s set to acquire movie and TV studio MGM for $8.45 billion.

Acquisition of MGM

MGM owns the rights to the James Bond and Rocky franchises, along with popular titles like Shark Tank, RoboCop, Legally Blonde, and Pink Panther. These will now appear on the Amazon Prime streaming platform.

That isn’t the only major development of this type that has come about recently. Last week, AT&T and Discovery announced their intention to merge. That would put major media brands like CNN, HBO, and HGTV under the same corporate umbrella.

It’s interesting to note that this is just the second-largest acquisition Amazon has made. The $13.7-billion check the tech giant signed to acquire Whole Foods in 2017 dwarfs this latest transaction and illustrates just how broad Amazon’s portfolio is.

What Does This Mean?

Amazon reportedly made this move to strengthen its position in relation to Netflix and Disney+, the two platforms currently dominating the streaming market. More competition is generally good news for consumers. Here, however, it’s necessary to consider just how powerful a force Amazon is becoming.

Having started as an online bookstore operating out of Jeff Bezos’ Seattle, WA garage in 1994, Amazon has expanded into almost every industry. It’s already the world’s fourth-largest company; Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet Inc. (Google’s parent company), and Tencent also occupy spots in the top 10.

The more powerful Big Tech becomes, the greater an influence it’ll have on all our everyday lives. Policymakers across the world need to start seriously considering the implications of this situation, and soon.