This sort of thing is actually one of the reasons the public stock markets bother me. I do, in fact, believe that someone who has an ownership interest in a cor

This sort of thing is actually one of the reasons the public stock markets bother me. I do, in fact, believe that someone who has an ownership interest in a corporation should be privy to such information (and much more). That said, it's up to the shareholders of a company whether they will force the company to release the information, and I can't blame them for choosing not to widely disseminate information that could be useful to competitors. I can blame them for being shareholders in companies with such fractured ownership, but I must blame myself, as well, for I also own stock in such companies. In this case, however, there is no direct competition, and the "shareholders" of the public sector have wisely decided that they shall have access to this information.