Cliche actions of big cooperations

[Smoutwortel]

What's the most trope confirming action of a big cooperation you know?

I don't come further than the time Amazon made a copy of 1984 inaccessible to users who had already bought it, just like the ministry of truth in the same book.

[Brother Oni]

Last year, when Philip Morris International (a big tobacco company which owns the Marlboro brand among others) bought a pharmaceutical company who primarily develops medicines for COPD and other tobacco related diseases, effectively now owning both cure and disease.

[Manga Shoggoth]

I don't come further than the time Amazon made a copy of 1984 inaccessible to users who had already bought it, just like the ministry of truth in the same book.

I should point out that it wasn't just 1984, but a whole bunch of books by George Orwell (https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2009/jul/17/amazon-kindle-1984) that a specific seller did not have the rights to sell in the US. This wasn't censorship, and Amazon had done the same thing on many occasions without major complaint. It just made headlines because it included 1984/Orwell.


It is not the first time that Amazon has removed titles that were produced in breach of copyright and sold illegally through its store. Examples include pirated copies of Twilight books by Stephanie Meyer, Harry Potter books and the works of novelist Ayn Rand.

Although the work of Orwell - who died in 1950 - has entered the public domain in some countries, it is not yet free of copyright restrictions in the United States or Europe.

Although Amazon is believed to be in negotiations with a number of European mobile manufacturers to support the Kindle, the device has only gone in sale in the US. This means that any copy produced for it would need to have been officially licensed by the Orwell Estate - which has been careful to protect its rights in the past.

[Smoutwortel]

I should point out that it wasn't just 1984, but a whole bunch of books by George Orwell (https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2009/jul/17/amazon-kindle-1984) that a specific seller did not have the rights to sell in the US. This wasn't censorship, and Amazon had done the same thing on many occasions without major complaint. It just made headlines because it included 1984/Orwell.
I didn't know that it was not the only one.
It was still very funny.

[The_Snark]

I remember being bewildered by the Capital Couture luxury fashion line they released in conjunction with the Hunger Games films. The Capitol is a monstrously decadent society that's either uncaring or willfully blind to the horrible things done to support their comfortable lifestyle... and somebody looked at the costumes the filmmakers came up with to convey self-absorbed decadence and said "you know, we could sell these to people." Is this comically oblivious corporate greed? Biting satire? A little of both? It was part of a viral marketing campaign, blurring the line between fiction and reality is often part of the point for those... but on the other hand, they still actually made and sold the things.

[Manga Shoggoth]

I didn't know that it was not the only one.
It was still very funny.

Oh, I agree that it was hilarious. I found out about it from El Reg, and they were not light on the humour...

[Vinyadan]

I can only think of puns, like how French assault jets are built by Dassault, or how Bombardier used to build military aircraft and water bombers. Or when Lucky Strike sponsored motorsports, so that cars and riders that lost control had a good chance to strike a Lucky Strike placard.

[Scarlet Knight]

Footballs teams that wink & give big contracts to wife beaters but manage to wear pink shoes to show their support for women.