Looking Ahead…

Looking Ahead…

As 2022 segues into 2023, here are our recommendations for what stories to keep your eyes on in the world of tech.

Microsoft is going to be duking it out against the FTC this year, as the agency’s early Christmas present was to announce it wants to block its $69 billion acquisition of gaming giant Activision Blizzard. While Microsoft is facing a headache, Wedbush predicts tech M&A will in fact rise next year.

The analyst firm also sees increased shareholder activism in store for next year, especially at Tesla and Salesforce, which it believes will see pressure on margins, buybacks, and strategy.

While we gear up for Microsoft versus the FTC, this year will also see a resurgence of Apple versus… pretty much everyone. Major developers including Spotify, Epic Games and Facebook have been unhappy with Apple for years over how it runs its App Store, particularly the 15-30% tax it places on in-app purchases. Musk looked like he might enter the fray in November, but quickly un-declared war on Apple. This was no doubt a disappointment for stalwarts who saw Musk’s intervention as a kind of Han Solo moment that failed to materialize, but the beef is far from squashed.