Latest news with #Antitrust
Wall Street Journal
2 days ago
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
Sam Altman Is Up, Tim Cook Is Down: Big Tech's Trump Scorecard
Tech companies have been some of the most aggressive in trying to appeal to President Trump, whose policies stand to shake up antitrust, trade and other areas important to the industry. Executives and companies donated millions of dollars to Trump and have announced billions of dollars in new investments. Here is a look at how Big Tech is doing nearly six months into the Trump administration. This explanatory article may be periodically updated.
Yahoo
01-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
There's Explosive Drama Between OpenAI and Microsoft
The partnership that ushered in our age of AI is showing some major cracks. As the Wall Street Journal reports, OpenAI wants its longtime patron Microsoft to loosen its control on its AI products, while also seeking Microsoft's approval to let it become a for-profit company, which OpenAI has been planning for a while now. But the negotiations have turned ugly. And OpenAI is so frustrated with its benefactor that behind the scenes, executives are considering the "nuclear option": going to court and accusing Microsoft of anticompetitive practices, according to the reporting. That could bring down a review by federal regulators and a public campaign railing against the tech monolith. An antitrust investigation is something that Microsoft has been paranoid about: as Reuters notes, it gave up a board observer seat at OpenAI last year to get US and UK antitrust regulators off its back. It's a stunning breakdown in a relationship that's proven to be one of the most lucrative in tech history, per the WSJ. OpenAI arguably wouldn't be where it is without Microsoft's initial $1 billion investment back in 2019. And Microsoft wouldn't be able to cash in on the AI race — nor enjoy its considerable head start — without the breakout success of ChatGPT, a name that has become synonymous with AI itself. Like certain sparring couples, the pair are still publicly insisting that they're getting along famously. "We have a long-term, productive partnership that has delivered amazing AI tools for everyone," spokespersons for the two companies said in a joint statement, per the WSJ. "Talks are ongoing and we are optimistic we will continue to build together for years to come." There's a lot on the line here. Microsoft benefits from having the rights and access to OpenAI's intellectual property, which it integrates into its own AI offerings like Copilot. OpenAI received heavy investment from the Redmond giant, which became the lifeblood of the company. Both are locked into a revenue-sharing agreement, though OpenAI has recently moved to decrease what it shares with its partner. One point of contention is OpenAI's $3 billion acquisition of the coding startup Windsurf, according to the WSJ's sources. OpenAI doesn't want Microsoft, which has its own AI coding tool called GitHub Copilot that competes with OpenAI, to have access to Windsurf's IP — which again, under their current agreement, Microsoft technically would have the rights to. Another is OpenAI's lengthy endeavor to become for-profit by converting into a public-benefit corporation. Microsoft isn't against the move, but it's reportedly asking for an even bigger stake in the would-be corporation that OpenAI won't even countenance. The pressure's on OpenAI to complete the restructuring, because if it doesn't by the end of the year, it could lose out on an astonishing $20 billion in funding, notes the WSJ. Shortly prior to the paper's reporting, The Information reported that OpenAI wants Microsoft to relinquish its rights to all of OpenAI's future profits in exchange for a 33 percent stake in the new company. Further down the line, the current partnership is supposed to end if OpenAI ever achieves artificial general intelligence, or AGI, meaning a powerful AI that rivals or exceeds human levels of intelligence. It's not clear if this is even possible, let alone if it could be achieved any time soon, but Microsoft is reportedly demanding it keep its access to OpenAI's products even after this milestone, in what OpenAI sees as breaking the terms of the agreement. Cracks have shown elsewhere before this latest escalation. On top of benefiting from its investment, OpenAI has historically depended on Microsoft to supply the vast computing power necessary to train and run its AI models. But OpenAI has started to court others to fill this role as part of its massive Stargate Project, including software giant Oracle, which has agreed to buy $40 billion of Nvidia AI chips to power OpenAI's new US data center. OpenAI has even clinched a deal with Google to gain access to its vast computing capacity, Reuters reported last week. We'll have to see how this shakes out — but we're not necessarily anticipating a chummy conclusion. More on OpenAI: Sam Altman Says "Significant Fraction" of Earth's Total Electricity Should Go to Running AI
The Independent
26-06-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Funding of Olympic sports a bargaining chip as NCAA seeks antitrust help, AP sources say
College sports leaders seeking antitrust and other protections from Congress have a potential bargaining chip: School assurances that they will provide funding for their increasingly imperiled Olympic programs, by far the biggest pipeline of talent for Team USA. Four people familiar with the talks told The Associated Press that lawmakers, mostly from the Democratic side that will need to provide votes to help any legislation pass the Senate, have been approached by college sports experts and policy shapers to explore options in exchange for support of a bill that some Democrats oppose. One of the clearest tradeoffs would be for an idea that enjoys bipartisan support: helping collegiate Olympic sports programs. Those programs produce around three-quarters of U.S. Olympians at a typical Summer Games, but some are on uncertain footing in the wake of the $2.8 billion House settlement that clears the way for schools to begin sharing revenue directly with their athletes as early as next week. Most of that money will go to football and basketball — the moneymakers — in this new era of name, image and likeness payments to players. The people who spoke to AP did so on condition of anonymity because of the still-evolving and uncertain nature of the talks. But it's no secret that the NCAA and its biggest conferences are not convinced that the House settlement will end all their problems. In the halls of Congress The NCAA is lobbying for a bill that would supersede state laws that set different rules for NIL; ensure athletes do not get employment status; and provide limited antitrust protection. One key issue is the handful of lawsuits challenging the NCAA's longstanding rule of giving athletes five years to complete four seasons of eligibility. 'I get why limited liability is a big ask,' NCAA President Charlie Baker said. 'But when it comes to limited liability around basic rulemaking, the consequences of this for the next generation of young people if you play this thing out are enormous.' In a sign of the difficulty the NCAA might have in getting legislation passed, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., who has played a large role in shaping policy for college sports, told AP that athletes 'deserve real reform and independent oversight of college sports.' 'Congressional legislation must provide strong and enforceable protections for their health, safety, and economic rights and transparency to protect non-revenue-generating sports, rather than merely offering a blank check to the NCAA to return to the status quo,' Blumenthal said. While the U.S. government is forbidden by law from funding Olympic teams, there is no such prohibition on government funding for universities and their sports programs. One idea would be for the bill to include promises of certain levels of funding for college Olympic sports programs — some of which could be raised through federal grants to help the schools offset the cost. 'It would depend upon what they have in mind,' Baker said when asked about the idea. 'We'd be open to a conversation about that because those sports are important and they matter.' The issue is complicated and funding sources are going to be under pressure: Over the next year alone, each D-I school is allowed to share up to $20.5 million in revenue with its athletes and there are extra millions being committed to additional scholarships – for instance, in the case of Michigan, $6.2 million. All those figures are increasing under terms of the settlement and the money has to come from somewhere. Olympic sports in peril As of late May, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee had tallied about 40 Olympic sports programs cut in Division I since the beginning of 2024 (but also 18 programs added) as schools prepare for the new financial realities. Only three – the Virginia men's and women's diving programs and the Utah beach volleyball program – came from schools among the Power Four conferences that were co-defendants in the House case. Still, countless other teams have been reconfiguring their lineups with roster caps in place alongside unlimited scholarships, a combination that is forcing hard decisions. Leaders inside the USOPC are optimistic that schools that generate the most talent – for instance, the 39 medals won by Stanford athletes at last year's Paris Games would have placed the school 11th on the overall medal table – will retain robust Olympic sports programs and that Congress is on board with helping. 'We have no reason to believe that there's not real alignment from all the parties, including members of Congress, who have indicated to us a very real concern for Olympic and Paralympic sport,' USOPC CEO Sarah Hirshland said. Though a strictly partisan bill could pass the narrowly divided House, for it to become law it would need at least seven Democratic votes in the Senate to break a filibuster. In 2023, Blumenthal and Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., teamed with Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., to draft a bill that would have provided some antitrust protection in exchange for a number of guarantees, including the establishment of a health and safety trust fund for athletes who deal with long-term injuries from college sports. Among the NCAA's 'core guarantees' put in place last year, schools are now required to cover medical costs for athletic-related injuries for at least two years after players leave school. 'One of the messages was 'clean up your own house first, then come talk to us,'' Baker said of his conversations with lawmakers. 'So we did some of the things that were aligned with some of the previous legislation.' The big question is whether those moves, added to any guarantees for Olympic sports, would be enough to overcome Democratic reluctance to strip or limit legal rights of college athletes. ___
Associated Press
26-06-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Funding of Olympic sports a bargaining chip as NCAA seeks antitrust help, AP sources say
College sports leaders seeking antitrust and other protections from Congress have a potential bargaining chip: School assurances that they will provide funding for their increasingly imperiled Olympic programs, by far the biggest pipeline of talent for Team USA. Four people familiar with the talks told The Associated Press that lawmakers, mostly from the Democratic side that will need to provide votes to help any legislation pass the Senate, have been approached by college sports experts and policy shapers to explore options in exchange for support of a bill that some Democrats oppose. One of the clearest tradeoffs would be for an idea that enjoys bipartisan support: helping collegiate Olympic sports programs. Those programs produce around three-quarters of U.S. Olympians at a typical Summer Games, but some are on uncertain footing in the wake of the $2.8 billion House settlement that clears the way for schools to begin sharing revenue directly with their athletes as early as next week. Most of that money will go to football and basketball — the moneymakers — in this new era of name, image and likeness payments to players. The people who spoke to AP did so on condition of anonymity because of the still-evolving and uncertain nature of the talks. But it's no secret that the NCAA and its biggest conferences are not convinced that the House settlement will end all their problems. In the halls of Congress The NCAA is lobbying for a bill that would supersede state laws that set different rules for NIL; ensure athletes do not get employment status; and provide limited antitrust protection. One key issue is the handful of lawsuits challenging the NCAA's longstanding rule of giving athletes five years to complete four seasons of eligibility. 'I get why limited liability is a big ask,' NCAA President Charlie Baker said. 'But when it comes to limited liability around basic rulemaking, the consequences of this for the next generation of young people if you play this thing out are enormous.' In a sign of the difficulty the NCAA might have in getting legislation passed, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., who has played a large role in shaping policy for college sports, told AP that athletes 'deserve real reform and independent oversight of college sports.' 'Congressional legislation must provide strong and enforceable protections for their health, safety, and economic rights and transparency to protect non-revenue-generating sports, rather than merely offering a blank check to the NCAA to return to the status quo,' Blumenthal said. While the U.S. government is forbidden by law from funding Olympic teams, there is no such prohibition on government funding for universities and their sports programs. One idea would be for the bill to include promises of certain levels of funding for college Olympic sports programs — some of which could be raised through federal grants to help the schools offset the cost. 'It would depend upon what they have in mind,' Baker said when asked about the idea. 'We'd be open to a conversation about that because those sports are important and they matter.' The issue is complicated and funding sources are going to be under pressure: Over the next year alone, each D-I school is allowed to share up to $20.5 million in revenue with its athletes and there are extra millions being committed to additional scholarships – for instance, in the case of Michigan, $6.2 million. All those figures are increasing under terms of the settlement and the money has to come from somewhere. Olympic sports in peril As of late May, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee had tallied about 40 Olympic sports programs cut in Division I since the beginning of 2024 (but also 18 programs added) as schools prepare for the new financial realities. Only three – the Virginia men's and women's diving programs and the Utah beach volleyball program – came from schools among the Power Four conferences that were co-defendants in the House case. Still, countless other teams have been reconfiguring their lineups with roster caps in place alongside unlimited scholarships, a combination that is forcing hard decisions. Leaders inside the USOPC are optimistic that schools that generate the most talent – for instance, the 39 medals won by Stanford athletes at last year's Paris Games would have placed the school 11th on the overall medal table – will retain robust Olympic sports programs and that Congress is on board with helping. 'We have no reason to believe that there's not real alignment from all the parties, including members of Congress, who have indicated to us a very real concern for Olympic and Paralympic sport,' USOPC CEO Sarah Hirshland said. Though a strictly partisan bill could pass the narrowly divided House, for it to become law it would need at least seven Democratic votes in the Senate to break a filibuster. In 2023, Blumenthal and Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., teamed with Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., to draft a bill that would have provided some antitrust protection in exchange for a number of guarantees, including the establishment of a health and safety trust fund for athletes who deal with long-term injuries from college sports. Among the NCAA's 'core guarantees' put in place last year, schools are now required to cover medical costs for athletic-related injuries for at least two years after players leave school. 'One of the messages was 'clean up your own house first, then come talk to us,'' Baker said of his conversations with lawmakers. 'So we did some of the things that were aligned with some of the previous legislation.' The big question is whether those moves, added to any guarantees for Olympic sports, would be enough to overcome Democratic reluctance to strip or limit legal rights of college athletes. ___ AP college sports:
Bloomberg
20-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
UniCredit Taps Adviser for BPM Bid Branch Sales Amid Deal Doubts
UniCredit SpA has tapped an investment bank to manage the possible sale of branches it needs to carry out if it buys Banco BPM SpA, according to people familiar with the matter. The Italian lender has asked Kitra Advisory to help it offload branches across Italy in a move that would address demands from the European Union antitrust watchdog if the takeover goes ahead, the people said. The potential disposal of branches is part of a project dubbed Stardust, they said asking to not be named discussing private information.
