KACHARAGADLA

On August 19 the Business Roundtable issued an open letter titled “Statement on the Purpose of a Corporation.” One of the preeminent business lobbies in the United States, the Business Roundtable (BR) includes the CEOs of leading U.S. companies from Apple to Walmart. Sandwiched between the spare title and 181 signatures was a one-page declaration that ended as follows: “Each of our stakeholders is essential. We commit to deliver value to all of them, for the future success of our companies, our communities, and our country.” On its own, this sentence is indistinguishable from the anodyne commentary that fills the annual reports of many Business Roundtable members. For those actively following this topic, however, it represents a very public rebuke of the Milton Friedman worldview that guides business decisions behind closed doors. Friedman, the renowned University of Chicago economics professor, penned a famous 1970 New York Times essay, “The Social Responsibility Of Business Is to In

1.  Google could see even more investigations from Europe's antitrust regulators.   Margrethe Vestager gave an interview in which she said that the EU is looking at a broad range of services from Google and parent company Alphabet. 2.  Microsoft has opened a big flagship store in New York.  This is what it's like inside. 3.  Apple will announce its Q4 results tonight.  Here's our big preview of what to expect. 4.  JPMorgan Chase & Co said it will launch a competitor to Apple Pay.  The largest US bank is launching software that will let customers pay for things using their smartphones, just like Apple Pay does. 5.  Google is about to get a lot more serious about designing and potentially building chips.  A job posting suggests that Google is expanding its hardware business. 6.  The European Parliament will vote today on net neutrality rules.  As well as rules on broadband speed, the proposals also include a plan to abolish mobile roaming charges. 7.  Poli