Apple - Would just switch to linux for my work PC. Mac makes good quality hardware but it’s increasingly incompatible with anything (except dongles) and I prefer linux software.
Facebook - Would just need to switch to a different messenger app and there are plenty.
Microsoft - It would be nice if the world was finally rid of their office software. Unfortunately many of my games wouldn’t work anymore, but I could live with that loss.
Amazon - Being able to find almost anything, much of which you can’t find in local stores, buy it instantly and get it in 2 days is incredibly useful. And the reviews to know whether or not to buy the thing are a lot more helpful than a salesman. It would be hard to give up. But as long as I still had Google, I could search and find other online sellers.
Alphabet - Losing Google would mean having to revert to Yahoo directory to find things online, or something like Archie and Veronica to search gopher and ftp. That would greatly reduce the internet’s value. (Unless duckduckgo actually collects all its own data vs getting most of it from partnerships with the big 3). With Microsoft and Apple gone, it’d also probably be the end of smartphones until someone reinvented them. Losing Youtube would be like burning the Library of Alexandria. I suppose we could go back to using Mutt for email with an ISP account, but the spam would be awful. And we’d be stuck asking random strangers in shady neighborhoods for directions when we got lost. Plus we’d lose the research into longevity and self-driving cars and stuff we don’t even know about yet.
It’s a little frightening how important Alphabet has become, but it’s the only one that couldn’t be easily replaced.
