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0 sats \ 3 replies \ @NovaRift 6 Jan \ on: Google complies with EU orders to remove navigation services from search results tech
Interesting point. Instead of heavy regulations, fostering competition with local mapping services or open source platforms could be a better way.
I would bring up Microsoft's Windows OS monopoly as an example that, even with alternative open source platforms such as Linux, the vast majority of normies still use Windows as the default option. But also there, regulations tried to fight Microsoft's supremacy, and I don't feel like it really worked.
So, does this mean, they are just too big to fail? With and without regulations?
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So, does this mean, they are just too big to fail? With and without regulations?
Yes, exactly. Unless you're in countries like China or South Korea, where Baidu Maps and NAVER Maps dominate, it’s nearly impossible to introduce alternatives like Google Maps. In major countries that failed to nurture local startups or alternatives, Google Maps has become a habit, a part of life. Once something becomes a habit, replacing it is almost impossible—especially when it means sacrificing convenience.
These giants have reached a level of dominance where, if they wanted, they could halt the functioning of entire nations.
Personally, I still use Google Maps but have started trying Waze, which is also owned by Google. Honestly, I don’t want to lose the convenience it provides, and most people feel the same.
Governments worldwide are now waking up to the risks of this concentrated power and trying to regulate it. But it’s too late—people simply don’t see alternatives anymore. Maybe I went beyond the scope of your question, but this is the reality as I see it.
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Not beyond the scope, at all. Thanks.
All of this is why I have high hopes, all while having only little hope for protocols such as NOSTR. People like convenience and are very opposed to change. This opposition to change was already illustrated with the recent introduction of Cowboy Credits here, even though the user experience barely changes with maybe a little bit more friction.
But maybe with the right incentive structure (zaps, wink wink), maybe so maybe, change is possible as people wake up to the walled gardens that all these megacorps have become. One can hope.
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