on the whole i agree with you, but pragmatically these companies generally hold most of their markets hostage in monopolies. yes, windows can be replaced with l

on the whole i agree with you, but pragmatically these companies generally hold most of their markets hostage in monopolies. yes, windows can be replaced with linux distros and office with alternatives, but in reality this will not happen for at least 5 years, and microsoft will continue selling a licence with every personal computer sold during that time. google (the product) is replaceable nowadays by for example kagi, but in reality it won't. for as long as this is true, these companies can extract a lot of money from their users without consequence and their stock price will reflect that. ford, to take your example, could be replaced overnight if for example another pinto happens and users wil both still have their cars and be able to buy new ones from other manufacturers and the power vacuum will be relatively minor. if tomorrow microsoft dissolves through an act of god, the power vacuum of "who will get $100 everytime hp, dell et al sell a computer" will be gigantic.