As Big Tech and major retail firms move into healthcare they bring promises of convenience and innovation they claim will benefit consumers — but the move also raises questions about the ever-growing power and influence of such firms and their real motivation for getting into healthcare.

Google and Amazon in recent months made a series of moves to expand their presence in the healthcare sector via services such as Google Health and Amazon Care.

In addition to introducing technological innovations designed to transform smartphones into personal health examination devices, the two tech behemoths also announced a new series of acquisitions and hiring's to further expand their footprint in the realm of health services.

Meanwhile, Walmart, better known for its retail services, also entered the online healthcare services world, leveraging new technological innovations of its own.

As Big Tech and major retail firms move into the healthcare realm they bring promises of convenience and innovation they claim will benefit consumers.

But the moves also raise questions about the ever-growing power and influence of such firms and their real motivation for getting into healthcare.

These companies already collect massive amounts of personal consumer data — are they getting into healthcare so they can expand their access to personal health data?

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