FAANG is an acronym for five of the world’s most prominent tech companies: Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, and Google. In addition to the diversity and range of their services, the FAANG companies managed to either maintain their financial holdings or expand during the coronavirus pandemic.
Going into 2021, the FAANG companies are focusing on global events, competition, innovation, and efficiency to retain their strong positions in the global markets. Though there is a strong emphasis on the coronavirus pandemic and its economic impacts, the FAANG companies are also poised to release new technologies and revamp their operations for both customers and employees.
Global Internet Standards
Currently, individual countries pass legislation and taxes that govern and place limits on their citizens’ internet usage. Companies including Google and Facebook have called for an international set of standards that all countries would enforce in order to simplify internet governance and establish a level playing field for internet businesses.
Facebook has specifically mentioned opposition to current localized measures such as France’s digital services taxes and data restrictions that China places upon African countries that receive Chinese support. Google’s vice president for government affairs and policy has stated on-record: “As this pandemic has shown, we can’t solve big issues alone. This is why we will urge governments to restore multilateralism.”
Increasing Internet Access in the United States
One of Amazon’s main foci in 2021 is launching its Project Kupier satellite program. The project received FCC clearance in July 2020, and its stated purpose is to provide low-cost internet access to areas with poor broadband coverage. Amazon intends to spread Project Kupier worldwide if it succeeds in the United States.
Significant Changes in Interviewing for FAANG Jobs
Economists predict that a surge of job seekers will apply to FAANG companies, making competition for jobs fierce. The prominence of remote work will also increase the job applicant pool on a global scale due to the decreased emphasis on physical locations.
The FAANG companies will prefer remote interviews over in-person interviews, posing technical challenges to applicants including establishing rapports with interviewers and increased scrutiny for technical questions. The FAANG companies intend to increase the prevalence of code questions for technical roles, even for jobs with minimal coding involvement such as test engineers.
The FAANG companies will also prioritize interview prep, submitting outlines and expected topics to job seekers, giving job seekers adequate time to prepare and to seek professional training for their upcoming interviews.
Apple’s M1 Processor
In November, Apple announced the creation of the M1 processor, a hybrid of CPU, GPU, and AI processing that Apple claims will yield computers that operate faster than 98% of modern PC laptop computers. Apple is counting on the parallel processing achieved by combining the processor types and dramatically increasing the number of processing cores to outpace Intel’s processing capabilities. Apple hopes to increase its presence in cloud data and cloud businesses, where low power consumption and high processing power are revered.
Amazon’s Investment to Expand Its Deliveries and Technical Reach
In December of 2020, Amazon purchased aircraft from both Boeing, Delta Airlines, and WestJet Airlines to increase its Amazon Air cargo fleet. Amazon has also signed deals with Apple for its M1 processors and with Twitter to provide global cloud infrastructure for Twitter’s timelines. Two of Amazon’s priorities in 2021 will be to increase the efficiency of its shipping network and to gain a prominent position in the cloud computing industry.
Netflix Compensating for Content Loss in 2021
Although Netflix experienced record growth in 2020, the emergence of rival streaming services such as HBO Max, Disney Plus, and Peacock threatened Netflix’s hold on new and existing customers. Complicating matters further for Netflix was the loss of content as Netflix’s rivals pulled their movies and shows from Netflix to their own services.
One of Netflix’s solutions is Netflix Direct, a free streaming service that plays Netflix-original series and movies. One of the goals of Netflix Direct is to dramatically increase the number of viewers that Netflix-original series receive.
Netflix also plans on making changes to how it acquires licenses for non-Netflix-original media, focusing on media that may receive nominations and awards as well as “hidden treasures” such as cult classics and other shows that may attract larger audiences via a re-release or a revival.
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