Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon are at each other’s throats in all sorts of ways
Nor has the industry ever seen such young and feisty firms—Apple, the oldest of
the quartet, was founded in 1976—with so much financial firepower. Each of the
companies has developed a powerful business model. Google has turned search into
a huge money-spinner by tying it to advertising. Facebook is in the process of
doing something similar with the way people’s interests and relationships are
revealed by their social networks. Amazon has made it cheap and easy to order
physical goods and digital content online. And Apple has minted money by selling
beautiful gadgets at premium prices.
