Monopoly money

Apple gets sued

Good morning, mobile mavens. This is your Stock Market Rundown for April 5th, 2024. Thanks for hanging out with me once again. Let’s get into it:

TODAY’S TOP STORY: TAKING A BITE OUT OF APPLE

We all know that perfect Apple fanboy. He sits at Starbucks with his MacBook in front of him, iPhone at his side, Apple Watch on his wrist, and AirPods jammed in his ears. Given how much he spends on tech, can you blame him for turning it into his entire personality?

The fanboys may love Apple, but the US Justice Department doesn’t. In fact, they just filed a lawsuit against the company for monopolization of the smartphone market. 

Their complaint is that Apple uses dirty tricks to hold onto their leading position—like excluding apps that might make it easier for users to switch away from the Apple ecosystem, and blocking non-Apple devices from working well with iPhones.

Translation: Apple runs their app store like a garden party at an elite country club, and the government wants it to look more like a Costco parking lot on Saturday morning. 

Apple’s self-defense? They say the reason they’re so hoity-toity about who they let in the app store is to protect the privacy and security of iPhone users. As for the antitrust allegations, Apple controls half the mobile phone market in the US, and one-fifth globally—not much of a monopoly.

This case is likely to drag on for years, so it’ll be a while before Apple’s garden party gets crashed. Regardless of the outcome, the fanboys will keep buying every new model. You can’t put a price on loyalty… though Apple sure does try.

SO WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?

• Filling up the gas tank of your SUV these days might empty out your bank account. Oil prices are surging as a falling rig count and global political instability squeeze supplies. 

• Industry experts say smartphone demand will rebound in 2024 as consumers in India and the Middle East splurge on new devices. Billions of consumers in the developing world can now enjoy roaming fees, text spam, and 9 PM emails from their bosses.

• US automakers are worried that consolidation in the steel industry could spur price hikes that would make cars more costly. There’s no substitute for steel, unless you’re cool with your Kia crumpling like a tin can in a crash.

• Sick days in bed cutting into your productivity? Moderna is working on developing better flu vaccines, so you can get back to your Microsoft Teams meetings ASAP.

That’s it for the week, my friends. Have yourselves a fantastic weekend, and let’s circle back first thing Monday morning. Yours in capitalism, The Axe

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