I believe this has to do more with how the large public perceive a certain corporation or a certain brand, how large was the impact of the lawsuits, litigation, defamation, intellectual property etc.
I will try next to explore some of the "bad and ugly" from the most famous high tech companies which I believe can set each and every company in its own evil corner. Next are some well known facts:
- United States v. Microsoft (1998 - 2006) - it alleged that Microsoft abused monopoly power on Intel-based personal computers in its handling of operating system sales and web browser sales. The issue central to the case was whether Microsoft was allowed to bundle its flagship Internet Explorer (IE) web browser software with its Microsoft Windows operating system. As a result of this trial Microsoft was not severely punished but it acquired the image of the ruthless monopoly.
- Apple and AT&T Mobility antitrust class action - In the class action filed in 2008 against Apple, Inc. and AT&T Mobility In re Apple & AT&T Mobility Antitrust Litigation, the plaintiffs claim that Apple and AT&T illegally restrained competition, locked consumers into agreements with AT&T, and punished consumers if they tried to leave. In their complaint filed with the court, the plaintiffs alleged violations of the Sherman Antitrust Act, breach of warranty under the Magnuson–Moss Warranty Act, and other violations of consumer protection laws; the plaintiffs also alleged that these violations occurred when consumers were offered iPhones by Apple only if they signed a two-year service agreement with AT&T Mobility, but that unknown to consumers at the time of purchasing the iPhones, the two companies agreed to technologically restrict voice and data service in the aftermarket for continued voice and data services after the consumers' initial two-year service period expired, while at the same time continuing to share revenue stemming from provision of voice and data services to iPhone users.
- U.S. Files Antitrust Lawsuit Against Apple, Hachette (2012) - The U.S. sued Apple Inc. (AAPL), Hachette SA, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin and Simon & Schuster in New York district court, claiming the publishers colluded to fix eBook prices.
- Google Possible ties to the CIA and NSA - in February 2010 Google was reported to be working on an agreement with the NSA
to investigate recent attacks against its network. And, while the deal
did not give NSA access to Google's data on users’ searches or e-mail
communications and accounts and Google was not sharing proprietary data
with the agency, privacy and civil rights advocates were concerned.
In October 2004 Google acquired Keyhole, a 3D mapping company. In February 2004, before its acquisition by Google, Keyhole received an investment from In-Q-Tel, the CIA's investment arm.[60] And in July 2010 it was reported that the investment arms of both the CIA (In-Q-Tel) and Google (Google Ventures) were investing in Recorded Future, a company specializing in predictive analytics—monitoring the web in real time and using that information to predict the future. And, while private corporations have been using similar systems since the 1990s, the involvement of Google and the CIA with their large data stores raises privacy concerns.
In 2011, a federal district court judge in the United States turned down a Freedom of Information Act request, submitted by the Electronic Privacy Information Center. In May 2012, a Court of Appeals upheld the ruling. The request attempted to disclose NSA records regarding the 2010 cyber-attack on Google users in China. The NSA stated that revealing such information would make the US Government information systems vulnerable to attack. The NSA refused to confirm or deny the existence of the records, or the existence of any relationship between the NSA and Google. - Google Buzz - on February 9, 2010, Google launched Google Buzz, Google's microblogging service. Anyone with a Gmail account was automatically added as a contact to pre-existing Gmail contacts, and had to opt out if they did not wish to participate.The launch of Google Buzz as an "opt-out" social network immediately drew criticism for violating user privacy because it automatically allowed Gmail users' contacts to view their other contacts.
- Apple iPod, iTunes antitrust litigation - The case In re Apple iPod iTunes Antitrust Litigation was filed as a class action in 2005 claiming Apple violated the U.S. antitrust statutes in operating a music-downloading monopoly that it created by changing its software design to the proprietary FairPlay encoding in 2004, resulting in other vendors' music files being incompatible with and thus inoperable on the iPod. Apple has de facto monopoly on the iPod music.
- Google "don't be evil" - this corporate motto started as an albatross and ended up as a boomerang as the company slowly monopolized the online advertizing.
- Facebook cooperation with government search requests - government authorities rely on Facebook to investigate crimes and obtain evidence to help establish a crime, provide location information, establish motives, prove and disprove alibis, and reveal communications even without warrant.
- Microsoft censorship in China - Microsoft has been cooperating with Chinese government in implementing an Internet censorship. Microsoft has been criticized by human rights advocates such as Human Rights Watch and media groups such as Reporters Without Borders.
- Labor Group Finds Poor Working Conditions at Apple Supplier Foxconn (2012) - An investigation by the Fair Labor Association into factories operated by Apple supplier Foxconn in China found poor working conditions and worker abuse, leading Foxconn to pledge it will make improvements.
- Google Book Search settlement gives Google a virtual monopoly over literature - the Authors Guild -- which represents a measly 8000 writers -- brought a class action against Google on behalf of all literary copyright holders, even the authors of the millions of "orphan works" whose rights holders can't be located. Once that class was certified, whatever deal Google struck with the class became binding on every work of literature ever produced. The odds are that this feat won't ever be repeated, which means that Google is the only company in the world that will have a clean, legal way of offering all these books in search results.Now my final question here is; who is more evil than others?My personal belief here is that profits and power are all that matters for a huge corporation.
