Episode 178 — More Ergonomic

Ben and James discuss the downsides of monopoly, and Apple. Then, why there is no absolute answer when it comes to integration or modularization, and why different approaches require different types of organizations and different types of leaders. Links Ben Thompson: Integration and Monopoly — Stratechery Ben Thompson: Facebook and the Cost of Monopoly — Stratechery John Gruber: 16-Inch MacBook Pro First Impressions: Great Keyboard, Outstanding Speakers — Daring Fireball Ben Thompson:...

Episode 177 — Principle Stacks

Ben and James discuss the origins of the First Amendment, what a culture of free expression means, and Facebook’s ad policy. Links Ben Thompson: Tech and Liberty — Stratechery Randall Munroe: Free Speech — xkcd Pat Kerr: Why I think xkcd is wrong about Free Speech — Medium Ben Thompson: The China Cultural Clash — Stratechery The Federalist Papers : No. 84 — Yale Law Rep. Ocasio-Cortez questions Mark Zuckerberg on when Facebook will fact check — YouTube Jon Gertner: The Very,...

Episode 176 — The Second Estate Era

Ben and James discuss how the Internet’s impact will be like the printing press’s, and what that means for how we should think about Facebook. Note: We apologize for the slight audio discrepancy between Ben and James Links Ben Thompson: The Internet and the Third Estate — Stratechery Ben Thompson: Zuckerberg’s Speech, Facebook Versus China, The Structure of Free Expression — Stratechery Ben Thompson: TV Advertising’s Surprising Strength — And Inevitable Fall — Stratechery...

Episode 175 — The Abyss Stares Back

Ben and James discuss the NBA and Apple in China and the long-term implications of doing business with authoritarian governments. Links Ben Thompson: The China Cultural Clash — Stratechery r/HongKong: List Of Companies Under China’s Censorship Orders (So Far). Credit To U/Lebe — Reddit Sam Dastyari Quits As Labor Senator Over China Connections — The Guardian Rejected three times due to fear of Beijing, controversial book on China’s secret influence will finally be published —...

Episode 174 — Distracted at Facebook

Ben and James discuss Facebook from multiple angles, including child sexual abuse material, encryption, Oculus, and a leaked all-hands meeting.   Links Ben Thompson: Friction — Stratechery The Internet Is Overrun With Images of Child Sexual Abuse. What Went Wrong? — New York Times Ben Thompson: Child Sexual Abuse Material Online, The Problem With Community, Towards More Friction — Stratechery Casey Newton: Read The Full Transcript of Mark Zuckerberg’s Leaked Internal Facebook...

Episode 173 — The Exponent IPO

Ben and James discuss Cloudflare and what it is like going through an IPO, as well as what has gone wrong with WeWork.   Links Ben Thompson: Netflix and the Conservation of Attractive Profits — Stratechery Ben Thompson: Cloudflare’s S-1 — Stratechery Daily Update Ben Thompson: AWS and the Impact on Venture Capital — Stratechery Ben Thompson: WeWork Delays IPO — Stratechery Daily Update Ben Thompson: The WeWork IPO — Stratechery Ben Thompson: Why WeWork Isn’t AWS —...

Episode 172 — Game of Phones

Ben and James discuss WWDC keynote and why it was so important for Apple to move past the iPhone.   Links Ben Thompson: Apple’s Audacity — Stratechery Ben Thompson: Apple’s Middle Age — Stratechery Letter from Tim Cook to Apple investors — Apple Ben Thompson: Strategy Credit — Stratechery Updates to the App Store Guidelines — Apple Ben Thompson: Antitrust, the App Store, and Apple — Stratechery Hosts   Ben Thompson, @benthompson, Stratechery James Allworth,...

Episode 171 — An Intra-west Debate

Ben and James discuss the U.S.-China trade war and the fundamental issues facing both countries generally and tech specifically. Links Ben Thompson: China, Leverage, and Values — Stratechery We Were Pirates, Too — Foreign Policy How China Uses High-Tech Surveillance to Subdue Minorities — ...

Episode 170 — A Perfect Meal

Ben and James discuss the Zoom and Slack IPOs in the context of Microsoft’s current success and long-term challenges. Links Ben Thompson: Microsoft, Slack, Zoom, and the SaaS Opportunity — Stratechery Ben Thompson: The State of Technology at the End of 2018 — ...

Episode 169 — Family-Friendly Disney

Ben and James discuss Disney’s recent announcements on streaming and what it says about not just TV but strategy broadly in the Internet era. Links Ben Thompson: Disney and the Future of TV — Stratechery Ben Thompson: Disney and the Value of the Consumer Relationship, Disney’s Consolidation of Hulu, Comcast and AT&T — ...