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JUEVES 10 DE DICIEMBRE DE 2020 | Año XLV | Número 15.852 | EDICIÓN MADRID | Precio: 1,70 euros
El bolso es una obra de arte en el Victoria & Albert Museum P27
CULTURA
Madrid y Atlético ganan y pasan a octavos de final P31 33 CHAMPIONS
A
El rey emérito paga a Hacienda 678.393 euros de regularización Juan Carlos I hace efectivo un abono por impuestos no declarados por el uso de tarjetas con fondos opacos, para evitar que se abra una causa judicial R. RINCÓN / J. J. GÁLVEZ, Madrid Juan Carlos I anunció ayer que ha pagado a Hacienda un total de 678.393,72 euros para regularizar la deuda que reconoce tras saber que la Fiscalía del Supremo le investigaba por el uso, en-
tre 2016 y 2018, de fondos del empresario mexicano Allen Sanginés-Krause. El pago le librará, según los expertos consultados, de la causa judicial por este asunto, pues no le había sido notificada aún ninguna actuación tribu-
taria o judicial. La liquidación en Hacienda, que incluye intereses y recargos, fue hecha pública a través del abogado Javier Sánchez-Junco y se produce en el primer día hábil después de que EL PAÍS informara el domingo del
inicio del proceso para regularizar su situación fiscal. La nota del abogado añade que el rey emérito, actualmente en los Emiratos Árabes, está a disposición del ministerio fiscal para cualquier citación. PÁGINAS 16 Y 17
Hungría y Polonia dan pasos para desbloquear el fondo europeo La UE promete ser ecuánime con la regla del Estado de derecho BERNARDO DE MIGUEL, Bruselas La UE avanza para levantar el veto que imponen Polonia y Hungría al fondo de recuperación, clave para la reactivación tras la pandemia, y a todo el presupuesto comunitario. Varsovia y Budapest dieron ayer muestras de retirar sus objeciones si la UE se compromete por escrito a que la regla de cumplimiento del Estado de derecho, que será un requisito para recibir los fondos, se aplica a todos los países. La discusión centrará hoy la cumbre que se celebrará en Bruselas y que también abordará el Brexit. PÁGINAS 4 Y 5
La oposición pide a Marlaska que explique los traslados de inmigrantes
Incendio en una nave en Badalona donde vivían decenas de inmigrantes Un incendio arrasó anoche una nave industrial okupada de la localidad barcelonesa de Badalona y dejó al menos 17 heridos, dos de ellos en estado crítico. Los bomberos, que seguían trabajando contra el fuego pasada
la una de la madrugada, y los equipos de emergencias no habían podido acceder a esa hora a muchas dependencias del inmueble. En la nave suelen vivir unas cien personas, en su mayoría inmigrantes subsaharia-
Merkel: “Un precio diario de 590 muertos no es aceptable” ANA CARBAJOSA, Berlín Angela Merkel lanzó ayer desde el Bundestag (el Parlamento alemán) un dramático llamamiento a los ciudadanos de su país para que reduzcan los contactos antes de Navidad y frenar así los contagios del coronavirus. Visiblemente emocionada, la canciller aseguró: “Lo siento desde el fondo de mi corazón, pero cuando pagamos el
precio de 590 muertos en 24 horas, en mi opinión no es aceptable”. Y añadió: “Si mantenemos demasiados contactos antes de Navidad y, al final, resulta que son las últimas Navidades con los abuelos, habremos hecho algo mal”. Alemania sufre con dureza la segunda ola de la pandemia, pese al cierre decretado de bares, restaurantes, museos y teatros. PÁGINA 24
nos. Algunos de los residentes mostraron su temor de que varios de sus compañeros hayan muerto, posibilidad a la que apuntaban también fuentes de los bomberos. En la captura de vídeo, un momento del siniestro. PÁGINA 21
MARÍA MARTÍN / EVA SAIZ Las Palmas / Sevilla PP y Vox pidieron ayer la comparecencia del ministro del Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, para que explique los traslados a la Península de inmigrantes llegados a Canarias, tras conocerse imágenes del viaje en avión de algunos de ellos a Granada y otros destinos. Interior, bajo la lupa de la UE, había rechazado hasta ahora los traslados de grandes grupos a la Península. PÁGINA 20
Un centenar de países reclaman que se liberen las patentes contra la covid ALEJANDRA AGUDO, Madrid India y Sudáfrica han solicitado a la Organización Mundial del Comercio (OMC) que se suspendan los derechos de propiedad intelectual sobre las vacunas, fármacos y tecnologías contra la covid, al menos hasta que se logre la inmunidad de grupo global. De los 164 países del organismo, 99 apoyan la iniciativa. PÁGINA 22
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© 2020
DD
latimes.com
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020
State prepares to start COVID vaccines in days With the first version poised for approval, here’s how California plans to roll out initial wave of vaccinations. By Soumya Karlamangla, Maya Lau, Laura J. Nelson and Jaclyn Cosgrove
Brian van der Brug Los Angeles Times
NATIVE AMERICANS are 3.5 times more likely to contract the coronavirus than white people, according to
the CDC. Above, a man rides through a town on Navajo Nation, which spans Arizona, Utah and New Mexico.
Virus is rampant on vast Navajo Nation Long distances and rural poverty hinder contact tracers, who often know patients. By Kurtis Lee TWO GREY HILLS, N.M. — The man on the other end of the speakerphone gasped and let out a thick, phlegm-clogged cough before responding to Marlene Montoya’s question. “We got it, I think, on a quick trip to Albuquerque,” he said. “Me and my oldest boy are in bad shape.” Montoya, a COVID-19 contact tracer here on the Navajo Nation in northwestern New Mexico, leaned close to the phone and spoke in a low, soothing tone to the man, who introduced himself as Freddie. Before long, she assured him that another Navajo Nation Department of Health worker would bring him a cardboard box packed with canned food, fresh produce and water. “Please,” she told the man in his early 50s, who lives in a desolate area of the sprawling reservation, “just stay home. We need you to stay put and monitor your symptoms.” As the COVID-19 pandemic enters its 10th month in the U.S. and infection rates surge across the country to levels that are overwhelming hospitals, the situation remains especially dire on the Navajo Nation, the largest reservation in the U.S., stretching across high [See Navajo, A6]
Plan to divert police funds L.A. City Council votes to put $88.8 million cut from LAPD spending mostly into services. CALIFORNIA, B1
Cal State system readies for 2021 University unveils plan for all 23 campuses to reopen for in-person education in the fall. CALIFORNIA, B3
Weather Partly sunny. L.A. Basin: 64/48. B10 Printed with soy inks on partially recycled paper.
Antitrust lawsuits seek breakup of Facebook By Andrea Chang, Johana Bhuiyan and Suhauna Hussain In a sweeping condemnation of the world’s biggest social network and the power it has amassed, federal regulators sued Facebook Inc. and are seeking to break the company — which includes Instagram and WhatsApp — into pieces. Groundbreaking antitrust lawsuits announced Wednesday by the Federal Trade Commission and four dozen states and districts accuse Facebook of engaging in monopolistic practices to snuff out rivals and stifle competition. If the suits are successful, Facebook could be forced to divest its photo-sharing app Instagram, which it acquired in 2012 for about $1 billion, and messaging service WhatsApp, which it acquired two years later for $22 billion. Those services have become increasingly integrated into Facebook and each other, which could make disentangling them difficult. They also represent significant and growing slices of the company’s $792billion market value. “Years after the FTC cleared our acquisitions, the government now wants a doover with no regard for the impact that precedent would have on the broader business community or the people who choose our products every day,” Facebook said in a statement. Jennifer Newstead, Facebook’s general counsel,
Trent Nelson Associated Press
MARK ZUCKERBERG
is Facebook’s CEO. The suits seek spinoffs of Instagram, WhatsApp.
Top Facebook acquisitions Instagram ($1 billion)
Year
2012
Users then 30 million
Users now 1 billion *
WhatsApp ($22 billion) Users Year then 450 2014 million
Users now 2 billion
Oculus VR ($2 billion)
Year
2014 * As of 2018
Users then n/a
Users now n/a
called the FTC suit “revisionist history” that sends a “chilling warning to American business that no sale is ever final.” “Antitrust laws exist to protect consumers and promote innovation, not to punish successful businesses,” she said in a statement. Support for a crackdown on Big Tech has snowballed in the last few years as lawmakers and regulators have grown increasingly concerned about the grip Facebook, Amazon.com, Google and Apple have over everyday life and the economy. Attorneys general from red and blue states alike joined an antitrust investigation of Google last year. The Democratic-led House Judiciary antitrust subcommittee released a report on the four corporations in October, describing them as “the kinds of monopolies we last saw in the era of oil barons and railroad tycoons.” Wednesday’s separate multistate lawsuit — joined by 46 states including California, as well as Guam and the District of Columbia — accuses Menlo Park, Calif.,based Facebook of anticompetitive conduct and of abusing its position as the market leader to mine consumer data and rake in advertising dollars. New York Atty. Gen. Letitia James, who led the suit, said in a news conference that it is “critically important that we block this predatory acquisition of companies and that we restore confidence.” She said the coalition worked with the FTC [See Facebook, A9]
With U.S. approval expected this week for the first COVID-19 vaccine, California could soon begin its historic and complex rollout of millions of immunizations, a much-anticipated turning point in a state where over 20,000 people have been killed by the virus. Though it is unclear exactly when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will grant approval to the PfizerBioNTech vaccine, the move could come as soon as Thursday, Gov. Gavin Newsom said this week. California’s first shipment of vaccines will include 327,000 doses — supplying 327,000 people with their first dose — and is expected to reach hospitals between
Adverse effects in 2 who got vaccine Britain tells those with a history of allergic reactions to delay getting the Pfizer shot. WORLD, A4
Contagion, from distance of 20 feet A South Korean study’s findings raise concern that six feet apart is not safe enough. WORLD, A3
Mark Lennihan Associated Press
NEW YORK is also expecting a huge share of COVID
vaccine doses, which will be distributed by population.
Region sets pace as death toll mounts Records fall daily, and Southland officials see no letup with holidays likely to fuel new rise. By Rong-Gong Lin II, Luke Money and Maura Dolan SAN FRANCISCO — Deaths from COVID-19 in California are reaching record levels this week, a grim sign of how even ad-
Covert effort behind killer’s capture Search of private DNA data far more invasive than disclosed By Paige St. John SACRAMENTO — The dramatic arrest in 2018 of Joseph James DeAngelo Jr. was all the more astounding because of how detectives said they caught the elusive Golden State Killer — by harnessing genetic technology already in use by millions of consumers to trace their family trees. But the DNA-matching effort that caught one of America’s most notorious serial killers was more extensive than previously disclosed and involved covert searches of private DNA housed by two for-profit companies despite privacy policies, according to interviews and court discovery records accessed by The Times. [See DeAngelo, A12]
Saturday and Tuesday, he said. The vaccine requires two shots administered 21 days apart to reach the 95% effectiveness established in clinical trials. By the end of the year, California expects to have given the first dose of the vaccine to 2.16 million people who are in the group that’s first in line — healthcare workers, as well as residents of long-term care facilities. Follow-up doses will come in further shipments. “Hope is on the horizon,” Newsom said. The milestone comes as the state anticipates a [See Vaccine, A7]
Santiago Mejia San Francisco Chronicle
AFTER DNA matching led to the arrest of Joseph James DeAngelo Jr. in 2018, he
pleaded guilty to a series of murders and rapes linked to the Golden State Killer.
vances in medical care and a younger demographic of those infected are no match for the relentless spread of the novel coronavirus. Southern California and the Central Valley are by far the biggest contributors of total deaths in the last week. Of nearly 950 deaths reported in California in the last week, a Times analysis shows that more than 300 fatalities reported in Los Angeles County, followed by nearly 80 in San Bernardino County, about 70 each in Riverside and San Diego counties and nearly 60 in Orange County. Deaths were also rising in Northern California, but not at the numbers seen in the Southland. California this week broke its single-day record for COVID-19 deaths — 219 on Tuesday. The state is now averaging 135 deaths a day over a seven-day period, coming close to the all-time high of 144 set in August. Health officials expect deaths to continue soaring in the coming weeks as it’s becoming clear many people became infected during the Thanksgiving holiday. The coronavirus is now infecting mostly younger adults. But once the virus spreads into older people — those age 50 or higher — the likelihood of death is much higher. Just a few weeks ago, the chance of getting COVID-19 was relatively rare, like the chance of getting soaked while dining outside when there’s just a light sprinkle, said Dr. Robert Kim-Farley, medical epidemiologist and infectious diseases expert at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health. Now, the [See Deaths, A7]
BUSINESS INSIDE: Shares of DoorDash nearly double in price in their trading debut. A8
Nxxx,2020-12-10,A,001,Bs-4C,E1
CMYK
Late Edition Today, mostly sunny, not so chilly, breezy for some areas, high 50. Tonight, clear to partly cloudy, low 38. Tomorrow, partly sunny, mild, high 52. Weather map is on Page B12.
VOL. CLXX . . . . No. 58,903
© 2020 The New York Times Company
$3.00
NEW YORK, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020
Where Intensive Care Units Are Dangerously Strained
VIRUS BEGINNING TO OVERWHELM MANY HOSPITALS
This map shows I.C.U. occupancy for hospital service areas around the United States. 110 of these are at or above their capacity. The 20 most overtaxed areas are indicated in bold, with their percentage of occupied beds.
Everett 100% WASH.
Bismarck 95%
Hibbing, Minn. 114%
I.C.U. occupancy
Winona, Minn. 111%
0
N.D.
MONT.
75% 80
85
90
NO DATA
ORE.
MINN.
IDAHO
VT.
MICH.
WIS.
N.Y.
R.I. CONN.
Ogden 107%
PA.
IOWA
NEB.
ILL.
NEV. UTAH
MD.
OHIO COLO.
W. VA.
MO.
KAN.
Easton, Pa. 104% Abington, Pa. N.J. 102% Upland, Pa. 106% DEL.
IND.
CALIF.
MASS.
Saginaw 99%
Rapid City 99%
‘VERY UGLY VERY FAST’
N.H.
S.D. WYO.
Santa Rosa 95%
MAINE
95+
VA.
KY.
Ventura 99%
N.M.
N.C.
Rogers, Ark. 107%
OKLA.
ARIZ.
TENN. S.C.
Boaz, Ala. 106% Cullman, Ala. 131% Ashland, Ala. 115%
GA.
ARK.
Cordele, Ga. 109% LA.
ALASKA
Albuquerque 116%
El Paso 97%
MISS.
TEXAS
ALA.
Lake City, Fla. 100% Marianna, Fla. 100%
Anchorage 97%
Wailuku 100%
HAWAII
Niceville, Fla. 100%
Baton Rouge 109%
Laredo 97%
Oxford, Miss. 102%
Pompano Beach, Fla. 100%
Foley, Ala. 101% FLA.
Coral Gables, Fla. 100%
Represents seven-day averages for the week ending Thursday, Dec. 3. | Source: New York Times analysis of U.S. Department of Health and Human Services data.
THE NEW YORK TIMES
In Suits, U.S. and Over 40 States Nowhere for the Sick to Go in Rural West Texas into crisis at the same time. From Ask Court to Break Up Facebook California to Texas to Mississippi, By SARAH MERVOSH
By CECILIA KANG and MIKE ISAAC
WASHINGTON — The Federal Trade Commission and more than 40 states accused Facebook on Wednesday of buying up its rivals to illegally squash competition, and they called for the deals to be unwound, escalating regulators’ battle against the biggest tech companies in a way that could remake the social media industry. Federal and state regulators of both parties, who have investigated the company for over 18 months, said in separate lawsuits that Facebook’s purchases, especially Instagram for $1 billion in 2012 and WhatsApp for $19 billion two years later, eliminated competition that could have one day challenged the company’s dominance. Since those deals, Instagram and WhatsApp have skyrocketed
in popularity, giving Facebook control over three of the world’s most popular social media and messaging apps. The applications have helped catapult Facebook from a company started in a college dorm room 16 years ago to an internet powerhouse valued at more than $800 billion. The lawsuits, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, underscore the growing bipartisan and international tsunami against Big Tech. Lawmakers and regulators have zeroed in on the grip that Facebook, Google, Amazon and Apple maintain on commerce, electronics, social networking, search and online advertising, remaking the nation’s economy. President Trump has argued reContinued on Page A28
ALPINE, Texas — It is one of the fastest-growing coronavirus hot spots in the nation, but there are no long lines of cars piled up for drive-through testing and no rush of appointments to get swabbed at CVS. That’s because in the rugged, rural expanse of far West Texas, there is no county health department to conduct daily testing, and no CVS store for more than 100 miles. A handful of clinics offer testing to those who are able to make an appointment. Out past the seesawing oil pumpjacks of Midland and Odessa, where roadrunners flit across two-lane roads and desert shrubs freckle the long, beige horizon, the Big Bend region of Texas is one of the most remote parts of the mainland United States and one of the least equipped to handle an infectious disease outbreak. There is just
As Virus Cases Soar, Big Bend Region Is Ill Equipped
one hospital for 12,000 square miles and no heart or lung specialists to treat serious cases of Covid-19. But in a sign that the virus is surging nearly everywhere, the counties that include Big Bend ranked among the top 20 in the nation last week for the most new cases per capita. Big Bend, best known for its sprawling national park and the artist town of Marfa, offers an extreme example of the danger playing out across the country, as the virus blazes more widely and furiously than ever before, driving deaths to levels not seen since the spring and thrusting many places
hospitals are filling up and health officials in rural communities increasingly fear that they are on their own. “There is no neurologist, there is no long-term care specialist,” said Dr. J.P. Schwartz, the health authority in Big Bend’s Presidio County and a physician at a local clinic. “We have no care to help them whatsoever. There is not even a nursing home out here.” Even as hospitalizations and deaths in Texas near their summer peaks, local officials fear they have little power to intervene beyond the measures that Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, has put in place. “My hands are tied,” said Eleazar R. Cano, the judge in Brewster County, who said he had been advised against imposing a stay-at-home order or other stricter measures that could violate the Continued on Page A6
Across U.S., Admissions Have Doubled Since Start of November This article is by Lauren Leatherby, John Keefe, Lucy Tompkins, Charlie Smart and Matthew Conlen.
In El Paso, hospitals reported that just 13 of 400 intensive care beds were not occupied last week. In Fargo, N.D., there were just three. In Albuquerque, there were zero. More than a third of Americans live in areas where hospitals are running critically short of intensive care beds, federal data show, revealing a newly detailed picture of the nation’s hospital crisis during the deadliest week of the Covid-19 epidemic. Hospitals serving more than 100 million Americans reported having fewer than 15 percent of intensive care beds still available as of last week, according to a Times analysis of data reported by hospitals and released by the Department of Health and Human Services. Many areas are even worse off: One in 10 Americans — across a large swath of the Midwest, South and Southwest — lives in an area where intensive care beds are either completely full, or fewer than 5 percent of beds are available. At these levels, experts say maintaining existing standards of care for the sickest patients may be difficult or impossible. “There’s only so much our frontline care can offer, particularly when you get to these really rural counties which are being hit hard by the pandemic right now,” said Beth Blauer, director of the Centers for Civic Impact at Johns Hopkins University. Sharp increases in Covid-19 patients can overwhelm smaller hospitals, she said. “This disease progresses very quickly and can get very ugly very fast. When you don’t have that capacity, that means people will die.” The new data set, released on Monday, marks the first time the federal government has published detailed geographic information on Covid-19 patients in hospitals, something public health officials have long said would be crucial to Continued on Page A7
How Biden’s Defense Nominee ‘Finish Him!’ Ethiopians on the Run Describe Ethnic Slaughter Overcame Barriers to Diversity By ABDI LATIF DAHIR
By HELENE COOPER
WASHINGTON — Retired Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, who is on the brink of becoming the first Black man to be secretary of defense, rose to the heights of an American military whose largely white leadership has not reflected the diversity of its rank and file. For much of his career, General Austin was accustomed to white men at the top. But a crucial turning point — and a key to his success — came a decade ago, when General Austin and a small group of African-American men populated the military’s most senior ranks. As a tall and imposing lieutenant general with a habit of referring to himself in the third person, General Austin was the director of the Joint Staff, one of the most powerful behind-the-scenes positions in the military. His No. 2 was also a Black man, Bruce Grooms, a Navy submariner and rear admiral. Larry O. Spencer was a lieutenant general who was the arbiter of which war-fighting com-
HILARY SWIFT FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES
Lloyd J. Austin III would be the first Black secretary of defense. mands around the world got the best resources. Dennis L. Via was a three-star general who ran the communications security protocols across the military. And Darren W. McDew, a major general and aviator with 3,000 flight hours, was a vice director overseeing the plans the Joint Staff churns out. At one point in 2010, the men thought they should capture the moment for posterity since nothing like that had happened before and likely would not happen Continued on Page A24
TRACKING AN OUTBREAK A4-11
HAMDAYET, Sudan — The armed men who stopped Ashenafi Hailu along the dirt road dragged him by a noose so they could save bullets. Mr. Ashenafi, 24, was racing on his motorcycle to the aid of a childhood friend trapped by the Ethiopian government’s military offensive in the northern region of Tigray when a group of men on foot confronted him. They identified themselves as militia members of a rival ethnic group, he said, and they took his cash and began beating him, laughing ominously. “Finish him!” Mr. Ashenafi remembered one of the men saying. As they tightened the noose around his neck and began pulling him along the road, Mr. Ashenafi was sure he was going to die, and he eventually passed out. But he said he awoke alone near a pile of bodies, children among them. His motorcycle was gone. Mr. Ashenafi and dozens of other Tigrayan refugees fled the violence and settled outside the remote and dusty town of Hamdayet, a community of just a few
INTERNATIONAL A12-19
BUSINESS B1-6
TYLER HICKS/THE NEW YORK TIMES
Ethiopian refugees hoping to receive supplies at a United Nations compound in Hamdayet, Sudan. thousand people near the border, where I spoke to them. Their firsthand accounts, shared a month after Ethiopia’s prime minister, Abiy Ahmed, declared war on the Tigray region, detail a devastating conflict that has become a grisly wellspring of looting, ethnic an-
tagonism and killings. Many of the refugees have lingered here rather than moving on to the more established refugee camps farther into Sudan, staying closer to home so they can get any news about their towns or missing loved ones. But little information
is getting out, with mobile networks and the internet blocked for weeks by the Ethiopian government. Nearly 50,000 have fled to Sudan so far, in what the United Nations has called the worst exodus Continued on Page A19
THURSDAY STYLES D1-10
Internet Aids Cuban Dissidents
Fossil Fuel Stocks Lose Favor
Holding On Quite Well
The advent of wide access to social media has emboldened protesters to confront Cuba’s government about police repression. PAGE A12
New York State’s $226 billion pension fund will divest from many fossil fuels and sell its shares in other companies that contribute to warming. PAGE B1
The virus seemed to spell diminishing returns for the handbag, but a big show in London suggests otherwise. PAGE D1
NATIONAL A20-25, 28
Desperate Days in Dining
Being Raised in Quarantine
Tax Inquiry Targets Biden’s Son
The youngest children can’t go to parties, play dates or day care. How will it affect the next generation? PAGE A4
Hunter Biden disclosed he was being investigated over possible tax violations by the Justice Department. PAGE A23
Cooks, managers and servers at many upscale restaurants have been buffeted by the pandemic. PAGE B1 ARTS C1-8
Manning the Sewing Machine SPORTSTHURSDAY B7-9
Slugger Who Ran Out of Time The pandemic delayed a vote that could have put Dick Allen, who died Monday, in the Hall of Fame. On Baseball. PAGE B7
Covid Care in High Places
The Lure of the Lone Star
The Real Johns Hopkins
‘A Way of Life’ Goes on Hiatus
Rudolph W. Giuliani is the latest Trump ally to boast of receiving treatment that many Americans cannot get. PAGE A10
Elon Musk’s announcement that he is leaving California for Texas adds to the two states’ growing rivalry. PAGE A28
The founder of the university wasn’t as much of a fervent abolitionist as was believed, research suggests. PAGE C1
Covid outbreaks connected to youth ice hockey have led many states in the Northeast to restrict the sport. PAGE B8
A useful home art is being taken up by an increasing number of men eager to break gender stereotypes. PAGE D1 EDITORIAL, OP-ED A26-27
Nicholas Kristof
PAGE A27
U(D54G1D)y+,!"![!?!"
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 ~ VOL. CCLXXVI NO. 137
* * * * *
DJIA 30068.81 g 105.07 0.3%
NASDAQ 12338.95 g 1.9%
STOXX 600 394.90 À 0.3%
10-YR. TREAS. g 8/32 , yield 0.939%
OIL $45.52 g $0.08
WSJ.com GOLD $1,834.60 g $36.20
U.S., 46 states target Instagram, WhatsApp purchases, as well as tactics against rivals
Business & Finance
T
BY BRENT KENDALL AND JOHN D. MCKINNON
he FTC and 46 states sued Facebook, accusing the social-media company of buying and freezing out small startups to choke competition. A1 DoorDash shares surged 86% in their stock-market debut. The meal-delivery company ended its first trading day valued at about $71.8 billion. A1
WASHINGTON—The Federal Trade Commission and 46 states sued Facebook Inc. on Wednesday, accusing the social-media giant of buying and freezing out small startups to
choke competition. The FTC’s sweeping antitrust case seeks to force Facebook to unwind its acquisitions of WhatsApp and Instagram, two of its landmark deals. The states filed a separate and similar lawsuit, alleging a lack of competition has harmed consumers, including by weakening privacy protections. The lawsuits come weeks after the Justice Department brought a case alleging Google was illegally maintaining a monopoly in its search business.
Collectively, the cases reflect U.S. concern about the power of dominant online platforms. “Facebook’s actions to entrench and maintain its monopoly deny consumers the benefits of competition,” said Ian Conner, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition. “Our aim is to roll back Facebook’s anticompetitive conduct and restore competition so that innovation and free competition can thrive.” New York Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat, as-
serted that Facebook “has used its dominance and monopoly power to crush smaller rivals and snuff out competition, all at the expense of everyday users,” and made “billions by converting personal data into a cash cow.” Facebook fired back by noting the FTC had previously approved the Instagram and WhatsApp transactions. “The government now wants a do-over, sending a chilling warning to American business that no sale is ever final,” said
YEN 104.23
AT&T received bids for its DirecTV unit valuing the satellite-TV service at more than $15 billion including debt, according to people familiar with the matter. A1 GE agreed to pay a $200 million penalty to settle SEC claims that it misled investors by failing to disclose problems in its gas-turbine power and insurance businesses. B1
Campbell Soup said a surge in sales brought on by the pandemic is receding. B3
World-Wide The U.S. is about to launch one of the most daunting public-health efforts in generations: swiftly distributing a Covid-19 vaccine across all 50 states, each of which will determine who gets priority. A1 Canada became the third country to authorize use of the vaccine produced by Pfizer and BioNTech. A9 A flurry of competing proposals for another coronavirus relief package ricocheted around the Capitol as lawmakers hunted for ways to resolve a thorny debate over liability protections. A3 Biden plans to nominate Katherine Tai as U.S. Trade Representative, turning to a trade lawyer with expertise on China and proven diplomatic skills. A3 Biden’s son Hunter said the U.S. attorney’s office in Delaware is investigating his tax affairs, putting his financial dealings in the spotlight. A4 Immigrant children and families are again heading north to the U.S.-Mexico border in increasing numbers following a lull. A3 Japan plans to develop missiles that can reach North Korea, part of a defense buildup that would give Tokyo the ability to strike if it anticipates an attack. A10 Macron’s government proposed legislation to outlaw a broad array of activity in France that it defines as forms of “Islamist separatism.” A11 Google plans to lift its ban on political ads on Thursday after a blackout of more than a month. A4 Opinion.............. A17-19 Personal Journal A13-14 Sports........................ A16 Technology............... B4 U.S. News............. A2-9 Weather................... A16 World News... A10-11
>
Companies are ramping up efforts to provide equipment needed for the distribution of Covid-19 vaccines across the U.S. Above, ultralow temperature freezers are assembled Wednesday at the So-Low Environmental Equipment Co. facility in Cincinnati.
With Vaccine Set to Roll Out, States Prioritize Who Gets It The U.S. is about to launch one of the most daunting public-health efforts in generations: swiftly distributing a Covid-19 vaccine across all 50 states, each of which will determine who gets priority. By Dan Frosch, Elizabeth Findell and Peter Loftus As soon as this weekend, the Food and Drug Administration is expected to grant emergency approval to a Covid-19 vaccine from Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE. Within 24 hours of that
Singing in the Shower Gets Some Help i
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clearance, 2.9 million doses are set to be sent out to all states and the District of Columbia. For most, that initial shipment will be enough to inoculate a little under 1% of their populations. A federal official said Wednesday that an additional 2.9 million doses would be held back and shipped about three weeks later for those initial vaccine recipients to get the second of the two-dose regimen, and another 500,000 doses from the initial supply would be held in reserve in case problems arise. Most states are giving the initial batch to doctors, nurses and
The Covid Fight Greg Ip: ‘Light’ lockdowns less costly, less effective A2 Canada approves Pfizer, BioNTech shot.................. A9 Asia grapples with rise in infections......................... A10 other health-care workers who interact with infected patients. As more doses are shipped, many said they would give priority to residents of long-termcare facilities next. The bulk of the population is expected to get the vaccine in the spring or
summer, officials have said. But state vaccination plans vary widely and leave many questions unanswered. Health officials are having to prioritize among groups including older adults, teachers and minority communities disproportionately affected by Covid-19. Many states also face challenges getting the vaccine to dramatically different populations, from crowded and diverse cities to isolated rural towns. And they have to do it while coping with a surge in coronavirus cases already straining Please turn to page A8
DoorDash Inc. delivered for investors, surging 86% in its stock-market debut on Wednesday. The seven-year-old company ended its first trading day valued at about $71.8 billion, higher than many of the restaurant companies that depend on its couriers. DoorDash’s shares opened Wednesday afternoon at $182 each on the New York Stock Exchange, 78% above their higher-than-expected initial public offering price. The stock ended trading at $189.51, giving it a market value—on a fully diluted share count—that surpasses the combined worth of Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc., Domino’s Pizza Inc. and Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc. The San Francisco-based company has never turned an annual profit, but a surge in demand during the Covid-19 pandemic has helped to transform it. Revenue and orders at DoorDash more than tripled this summer and fall, compared with the year before, as consumers tired of prepping food at home and ordered more meals for delivery. A push into the suburbs also has helped DoorDash become the market leader in U.S. food delivery. Founded in 2013 by Tony Xu, who emigrated from China with his parents when he was 5 years old, DoorDash now must defend its nearly 50% U.S. market share in the competitive food-delivery industry Please turn to page A10
Airbnb Challenged by Angry Neighbors Unfavorable local regulations loom as company begins trading publicly
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AirPods enter a new, wet frontier— often by accident BY KENNY WASSUS Deven Machette’s post-run routine began like any other. She ate some blueberry vegan pancakes, turned on the shower, waited until it became appropriately scorching, then jumped in. That’s when she felt it: her AirPods still in her ears. “I completely forgot they were in,” said Ms. Machette, a 27-year-old digital-marketing strategist in Santa Barbara, Calif. “Because they’re so snug to your head, you can totally take off your clothes without them falling out.” Her Apple earbuds survived the blunder. Other AirPod owners haven’t been so lucky. For some, AirPod showers are an accident, an everyday lapse, like forgetting sunglasses are on your head. For others, they are a deliberate choice, a modern take on the shower radio. Introduced by Apple Inc. in 2016, AirPods went from being Please turn to page A12
BY PREETIKA RANA In the dozen years since it was founded, Airbnb Inc. has moved into hundreds of U.S. cities, transforming many of them into vacation-rental meccas. In response, residents across the country have ratcheted up grass-roots efforts aimed at keeping authority over short-term rentals in the hands of towns and cities.
Airbnb shares are scheduled to begin trading on Thursday on the Nasdaq Stock Market after an initial public offering. The company priced its shares at $68 apiece on Wednesday, according to people familiar with the matter, setting a valuation of about $47 billion based on a fully diluted share count and including proceeds of the offering. Airbnb has warned prospective investors that managing its success in the face of angry neighbors and unfavor-
INSIDE DNCC/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGES
Starbucks appointed investor Mellody Hobson as its next chairwoman, positioning the chain to be among the biggest U.S. firms with a Black person leading its board. B1
NICOLAS ECONOMOU/NURPHOTO/ZUMA PRESS
U.S. stocks declined, with the Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq losing 0.3%, 0.8% and 1.9%, respectively. B11
BY MICAH MAIDENBERG
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Apple and Google will ban the data broker X-Mode from collecting location information drawn from mobile devices running their operating systems after revelations about its national-security work. B1
Vice President and General Counsel Jennifer Newstead. “People and small businesses don’t choose to use Facebook’s free services and advertising because they have to, they use them because our apps and services deliver the most value. We are going to vigorously defend people’s ability to continue making that choice.” The FTC voted 3-2 to file the lawsuit, which came after an investigation that stretched more than a year. The agency’s Please turn to page A4
DoorDash Brings Big Gains In Debut Of Shares
Airbnb priced shares in its IPO at $68 apiece, setting a valuation of about $47 billion based on a fully diluted share count and including proceeds of the offering. A1
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What’s News
CONTENTS Arts in Review... A15 Business News...... B3 Capital Account.... A2 Crossword.............. A16 Heard on Street. B12 Markets..................... B11
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THE MIDDLE SEAT Despite obstacles, airlines add more long-haul flights to their schedules. A14
U.S. NEWS Hunter Biden says he is the subject of a federal tax investigation. A4
able local laws is among its biggest challenges in the U.S. and around the world. Many Silicon Valley tech giants have battled regulators in Washington, D.C., and state capitals. Airbnb’s fights are breaking out city by city. For the company, the opposition could yield slower-than-expected growth and higher costs if local authorities impose restrictions on short-term rentals. Please turn to page A12
Bids Top $15 Billion For AT&T’s DirecTV BY CARA LOMBARDO AND DREW FITZGERALD AT&T Inc. got bids for its DirecTV unit valuing the satellite-TV service at more than $15 billion including debt, said people familiar with the matter, as the widely watched auction winds toward a resolution. Among the top bidders were Churchill Capital Corp. IV, a blank-check company run by former banker Michael Klein, and private-equity firm TPG, the people said. Apollo Global Management Inc., long seen by many as the front-runner, sub-
mitted a bid valuing the business at less than $15 billion, some of the people said. The auction is in a late stage. A deal could be reached by early next year. That would allow AT&T to deconsolidate DirecTV’s worsening financial results—a major aim of the transaction— while relinquishing control even as it maintains a majority stake in the business. The Wall Street Journal rePlease turn to page A11 Sony to buy AT&T streaming service Crunchyroll...................B4