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To my knowledge, American monopoly laws focus more on the welfare of the consumer and whether customers are being negatively affected rather than the companies
by partingshots 8y ago
To my knowledge, American monopoly laws focus more on the welfare of the consumer and whether customers are being negatively affected rather than the companies themselves. There’s nothing wrong with having a monopoly, but where issues arise is when consumers start to be hurt.
In this context, how do Elizabeth Warren’s comments mesh out?
- ocdtrekkie 8y agoMonopolies are inherently harmful to consumers, as reduced competition means less parties can compete for the best offering, or push to create a better product. The myth that a monopoly "isn't hurting anyone" is nonsense. It's existence is enough, and yes, impacting other competitors negatively directly harms consumers. There has been an outdated focus on price specifically, which is why many free services have evaded the law for so long. That being said, Warren directly states something tech companies should be competing on: Privacy. An issue with direct consumer impact, that due to monopoly status, these companies have largely not set as a priority.
- decebalus1 8y agoI recommend listening to Planet money's series on antitrust. You'll see why your statement was indeed the rationale behind not enforcing the monopoly regulations. Spoiler: it wasn't the care for the welfare of the consumer. https://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=697060225 https://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?stor...