Even though most analysts assume that the separate parts are worth more than the whole, could the opposite be true? Breakups could destroy value. Synergies would evaporate, points out Amit Daryanani of Evercore ISI, a financial firm. Apple may no longer be able to offer a tightly integrated package of hardware, software and services, which is its main competitive advantage. If Amazon were shorn of cloud-computing arm, it would lose its most profitable business, making whatever is left a less attractive investment. It is also unclear how markets would react if divestitures were to weaken network effects, the economic forces that let big firms get bigger and are pervasive in the digital world.

Second, practical difficulties will act as a further drag. In other industries “line-ofbusiness” prohibitions, of the sort Ms Warren wants to impose on Amazon and Apple, have been used to avoid abuse of a dominant position. American railways were banned from carrying commodities they produced themselves and banks from engaging in commerce. In the digital world, these borders are more arbitrary and fluid.

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