Monopolies have the option of using their excess profit to enrich a few people at the expense of the customer. But it is not a requirement and that is also a g

Monopolies have the option of using their excess profit to enrich a few people at the expense of the customer. But it is not a requirement and that is also a good way to have the monopoly destroyed. Another option is to use the market power paternalistically, giving people services they didn't know they needed, planning for the future, performing basic research and R&D outside their current scope. Arguably there was a time when AT&T and its subsidiaries Western Electric and Bell Labs were doing this sort of thing. But they were also charging people an arm and a leg to rent a durable but low-functionality handset and preventing third party devices from connecting directly to the lines.