Facebook is sued and this time is more serious. DoorDash and Airbnb go public. We don’t like the former, we prefer the latter. And the NBA season is about to start, while Formula 1’s weirdest season is coming to an end.

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In this episode:

We start our conversation with the news that the FTC along with 47 states are suing Facebook claiming the social media giant has harmed competition by buying up smaller companies like Instagram and WhatsApp to squash the threat they posed to its business. The lawsuit centers on Facebook’s acquisitions, particularly its $1 billion purchase of Instagram in 2011. In addition to its acquisition strategy, the attorneys general allege that Facebook used the power and reach of its platform to stifle user growth for competing services.

We expand into the current role of social media giants (Faceboo, Twitter, YouTube…) Have they become too big to control?  Do we want them to become arbiters of truth?  Should they add a paywall to limit trolling?

In other news, the long awaited IPOs of DoorDash and Airbnb finally happened.  DoorDash raised $3.4 billion with an initial public offering that exceeded heightened expectations. The DoorDash IPO began trading Wednesday afternoon as shares soared by double digits.  DoorDash claims more than 18 million customers and 1 million delivery workers.  Yet, net profits do not justify the hype. DoorDash reported a net loss of $667 million in 2019 and lost $149 million in the first nine months of 2020. The company said it turned a profit of $23 million in the second quarter this year, but followed that with a $43 million loss in the third quarter.

Meanwhile, Airbnb is off to a great start too.  On Thursday, Airbnb Stock Closed at $144 After Pricing IPO at $68 a Share. For perspective, with an $87 billion valuation based on its first traded price of $144 per share, Airbnb is more than twice the size of hotelier Marriott International, larger than Expedia and a shade larger than Booking Holdings, owner of Priceline and Kayak.  Is it overvalued or undervalued?

We end with a loose conversation about the NBA new season, the Formula 1 last race and some silly comments about the best teams and drivers.

All that and much more in this episode of MGR Unplugged.What do you think?  Take a listen and let us know your thoughts.

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