Regulation, a necessary evil?

In Europe, Google recently lost its appeal against the anti-trust fine by the European Commission amounting to US$2.8bil (RM11.8bil) for giving preferential treatment to its own price-comparison shopping service over rival services. While this fine appears exorbitant, it is not the largest. The record fine was back in 2018 when Google was slapped with a total sum of US$5.1bil (RM21.6bil) related to its Android system dominance over rivals. (FILE PHOTO: A sign is pictured outside a Google office near the company's headquarters in Mountain View, California, - Reuters)

EXXON Mobil was once the most valuable company in the world in 2013 by virtue of its market capitalisation of US$438bil (RM1.85 trillion). It was a global oil giant with footprints everywhere, including Malaysia.

Interestingly, Exxon Mobil belongs to the lineage of the illustrious Standard Oil, owned by legendary entrepreneur and the richest man in modern history, John D Rockefeller.