Editing Monopoly (section)

== Historical monopolies ==
=== Origin ===
The term "monopoly" first appears in [[Aristotle]]'s [[Politics (Aristotle)|''Politics'']]. Aristotle describes [[Thales of Miletus]]'s cornering of the market in [[Olive oil extraction|olive presses]] as a monopoly (''μονοπώλιον'').<ref>{{cite book | title = Politics | author = Aristotle | edition = 350 B.C.E | url = http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/politics.html}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | url = https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0057&layout=&loc=1.1259a | page = 1252α | author = Aristotle | title = Politics}}</ref> Another early reference to the concept of "monopoly" in a commercial sense appears in [[Demai (Talmud)|tractate Demai]] of the [[Mishna]] (2nd century CE), regarding the purchasing of agricultural goods from a dealer who has a monopoly on the produce (chapter 5; 4).<ref name=Soncino>{{cite book |last1=Segal |first1=M.H.|editor1-first=I. |editor1-last=Epstein |editor1-link=Isadore Epstein |title=The Talmud|volume= Zeraim vol. II |year=1948 |publisher=The Soncino Press |location=London |isbn= 9789562913447 |pages=69|quote=Rabbi Judah agrees that if a man bought from a monopolist, he must tithe every heap.|chapter=Demai: Translated into English with Notes }}</ref> The meaning and understanding of the English word 'monopoly' has changed over the years.<ref>{{cite journal | last = Richardson | first = Gary | date = June 2001 | url = http://works.bepress.com/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1007&context=gary_richardson | title = A Tale of Two Theories: Monopolies and Craft Guilds in Medieval England and Modern Imagination | journal = Journal of the History of Economic Thought | volume = 23 | issue = 2 | pages = 217–242 | doi = 10.1080/10427710120049237 | s2cid = 13298305 | access-date = 5 June 2013 | archive-date = 3 January 2014 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140103155017/http://works.bepress.com/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1007&context=gary_richardson | url-status = dead }}</ref>

=== Monopolies of resources ===
==== Salt ====
{{See also|Salt March}}
Vending of common salt ([[sodium chloride]]) was historically a natural monopoly. Until recently, a combination of strong sunshine and low humidity or an extension of peat marshes was necessary for producing salt from the sea, the most plentiful source. Changing sea levels periodically caused salt "[[famine]]s" and communities were forced to depend upon those who controlled the scarce inland mines and salt springs, which were often in hostile areas (e.g. the [[Sahara]]) requiring well-organised security for transport, storage, and distribution.

The [[Salt Commission]] was a legal monopoly in China. Formed in 758, the commission controlled salt production and sales in order to raise [[tax]] revenue for the [[Tang dynasty]].

The "[[Gabelle]]" was a notoriously high tax levied upon salt in the [[Kingdom of France]]. The much-hated levy had a role in the beginning of the [[French Revolution]], when strict legal controls specified who was allowed to sell and distribute salt. First instituted in 1286, the Gabelle was not permanently abolished until 1945.<ref>{{cite journal | first= Jean | last = Chazelas | title = La suppression de la gabelle du sel en 1945 | journal = Le rôle du sel dans l'histoire: Travaux préparés sous la direction de Michel Mollat | publisher = Presses universitaires de France | year = 1968 | pages = 263–65 | oclc = 14501767 }}</ref>

==== Coal ====
Robin Gollan argues in ''The Coalminers of New South Wales'' that anti-competitive practices developed in the coal industry of Australia's [[Newcastle, Australia|Newcastle]] as a result of the [[business cycle]]. The monopoly was generated by formal meetings of the local management of coal companies agreeing to fix a minimum price for sale at dock. This collusion was known as "The Vend". The Vend ended and was reformed repeatedly during the late 19th century, ending by recession in the business cycle. "The Vend" was able to maintain its monopoly due to trade union assistance, and material advantages (primarily coal geography). During the early 20th century, as a result of comparable monopolistic practices in the Australian coastal shipping business, the Vend developed as an informal and illegal collusion between the steamship owners and the coal industry, eventually resulting in the High Court case ''[[Adelaide Steamship Company|Adelaide Steamship Co.]] Ltd v. R. & AG''.<ref>{{cite book | first = Robin | last = Gollan | title = The Coalminers of New South Wales: a history of the union, 1860–1960 | location = Melbourne | publisher = Melbourne University Press | year = 1963 | pages = 45–134}}</ref>

==== Persian filoselle (raw silk) ====
In the 17th century, Shah Abbas established New Julfa (a suburb in the capital of Isfahan) to concentrate [[Armenia]]n financial capital in Iran. Accordingly, he gave [[Armenia]]ns various privileges, including the monopoly to trade Persian filoselle (raw silk). Armenians exported it all over the world, including Asia, Europe, and America. By the 1750s, Armenia already controlled 75% of the total silk trade in the area. This resulted in a boom in Armenian commerce, which lasted for the next 150 years.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Bakhchinyan|first=Artsvi|date=2017|title=The Activity of Armenian Merchants in International Trade|url=https://src-h.slav.hokudai.ac.jp/rp/publications/no14/14-03_Bakhchinyan.pdf|journal=Hokudai|pages=24}}</ref>{{Better source needed|reason=The current source is insufficiently reliable ([[WP:NOTRS]]).|date=September 2023}} At present, as it happens, Armenia's own economy is itself highly monopolized; in fact, with 19% of its economy monopolized, Armenia was the most monopolized country in Eastern Europe and Central Asia in 2009.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Mikaelian |first=Hrant |date=2015 |title=Informal Economy of Armenia Reconsidered |url=https://www.academia.edu/14915579 |journal=Caucasus Analytical Digest |issue=75 |pages=2–6 |via=Academia.edu}}</ref>

==== Petroleum ====
[[Standard Oil]] was an American [[petroleum|oil]] producing, transporting, refining, and marketing company. Established in 1870, it became the largest oil refiner in the world.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.exxonmobil.com/Corporate/history/about_who_history.aspx |title=Exxon Mobil – Our history |access-date=2009-02-03 |publisher=Exxon Mobil Corp.}}</ref> [[John D. Rockefeller]] was a founder, chairman and major shareholder. The company was an innovator in the development of the business [[trust (monopoly)|trust]]. The Standard Oil trust streamlined production and logistics, lowered costs, and undercut competitors. "[[Trust-busting]]" critics accused Standard Oil of using aggressive pricing to destroy competitors and form a monopoly that threatened consumers. Its controversial history as one of the world's first and largest [[multinational corporation]]s ended in 1911, when the [[United States]] [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] ruled that Standard was an illegal monopoly. The Standard Oil trust was dissolved into 33 smaller companies; two of its surviving "child" companies are [[ExxonMobil]] and the [[Chevron Corporation]].

==== Steel ====
[[U.S. Steel]] has been accused of being a monopoly. [[J. P. Morgan]] and [[Elbert Henry Gary|Elbert H. Gary]] founded U.S. Steel in 1901 by combining [[Andrew Carnegie]]'s [[Carnegie Steel Company]] with Gary's Federal Steel Company and [[William Henry "Judge" Moore]]'s National Steel Company.<ref>Morris, Charles R. ''The Tycoons: How [[Andrew Carnegie]], [[John D. Rockefeller]], [[Jay Gould]], and [[J.P. Morgan]] invented the American supereconomy'', H. Holt and Co., New York, 2005, pp. 255–258. {{ISBN|0-8050-7599-2}}.</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/united-states-steel-corporation-history/ | title = United States Steel Corporation History | publisher = FundingUniverse | access-date = 3 January 2014}}</ref> At one time, U.S. Steel was the largest steel producer and largest corporation in the world. In its first full year of operation, U.S. Steel made 67 percent of all the steel produced in the United States. However, U.S. Steel's share of the expanding market slipped to 50 percent by 1911,<ref name="post">{{cite web|url=http://old.post-gazette.com/businessnews/20010225ussteel2.asp|title=Steel Standing: U.S. Steel celebrates 100 years|last=Boselovic|first=Len|date=February 25, 2001|work=PG News – Business & Technology|publisher=post-gazette.com – PG Publishing|access-date=6 August 2013|archive-date=12 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181012210047/http://old.post-gazette.com/businessnews/20010225ussteel2.asp|url-status=dead}}</ref> and antitrust prosecution that year failed.

==== Diamonds ====
[[De Beers]] settled charges of price-fixing in the diamond trade in the 2000s. De Beers is well known for its monopoloid practices throughout the 20th century, whereby it used its dominant position to manipulate the international diamond market. The company used several methods to exercise this control over the market. Firstly, it convinced independent producers to join its single channel monopoly, it flooded the market with diamonds similar to those of producers who refused to join the cartel, and lastly, it purchased and stockpiled diamonds produced by other manufacturers in order to control prices through limiting supply.

In 2000, the De Beers business model changed due to factors such as the decision by producers in Russia, Canada and Australia to distribute diamonds outside the De Beers channel, as well as rising awareness of [[blood diamond]]s that forced De Beers to "avoid the risk of bad publicity" by limiting sales to its own mined products. De Beers' market share by value fell from as high as 90% in the 1980s to less than 40% in 2012, having resulted in a more fragmented diamond market with more transparency and greater liquidity.

In November 2011, the Oppenheimer family announced its intention to sell the entirety of its 40% stake in De Beers to [[Anglo American plc]] thereby increasing Anglo American's ownership of the company to 85%.[30] The transaction was worth £3.2&nbsp;billion ($5.1&nbsp;billion) in cash and ended the Oppenheimer dynasty's 80-year ownership of De Beers.

=== Utilities ===
A [[public utility]] (or simply "utility") is an organization or company that maintains the [[infrastructure]] for a [[public services|public service]] or provides a set of services for public consumption. Common examples of utilities are [[Electric utility|electricity]], [[Natural gas utility|natural gas]], [[Water utility|water]], [[Water industry|sewage]], [[cable television]], and [[telephone]]. In the United States, public utilities are often [[natural monopoly|natural monopolies]] because the infrastructure required to produce and deliver a product such as electricity or water is very expensive to build and maintain.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.answers.com/topic/public-utility |title=West's Encyclopedia of American Law |publisher=Answers.com |date=2009-06-28 |access-date=2011-10-11}}</ref>

[[Western Union]] was criticized as a "[[price gouging]]" monopoly in the late 19th century.<ref>{{citation | url = https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/12/how-the-robber-barons-hijacked-the-victorian-internet.ars/2 | publisher = Ars technica | title = How Robber Barons hijacked the "Victorian Internet": Ars revisits those wild and crazy days when Jay Gould ruled the telegraph and ... | first = Matthew | last = Lasar | date = May 13, 2011}}</ref> [[AT&T Corporation|American Telephone & Telegraph]] was a telecommunications giant. AT&T was broken up in 1984. In the case of [[Telecom New Zealand]], [[local loop unbundling]] was enforced by central government.

[[Telkom (South Africa)|Telkom]] is a semi-privatised, part state-owned [[South Africa]]n telecommunications company. [[Deutsche Telekom]] is a former state monopoly, still partially state owned. Deutsche Telekom currently monopolizes high-speed VDSL broadband network.<ref name=IHT110908>Kevin J. O'Brien, [http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/11/09/technology/telecoms10.php IHT.com] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081126073943/http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/11/09/technology/telecoms10.php |date=26 November 2008 }}, Regulators in Europe fight for independence, ''[[International Herald Tribune]]'', November 9, 2008, Accessed November 14, 2008.</ref> The [[Long Island Power Authority]] (LIPA) provided electric service to over 1.1&nbsp;million customers in [[Nassau County, New York|Nassau]] and [[Suffolk County, New York|Suffolk]] counties of [[New York (state)|New York]], and the [[Rockaway, Queens|Rockaway Peninsula]] in [[Queens]].

The [[Comcast]] Corporation is the largest [[mass media]] and [[communications]] company in the world by revenue.<ref name="mediadb.eu">[http://www.mediadb.eu/en/data-base/international-media-corporations/comcastnbcuniversal-llc.html IfM – Comcast/NBCUniversal, LLC] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180608214927/http://www.mediadb.eu/en/data-base/international-media-corporations/comcastnbcuniversal-llc.html |date=8 June 2018 }}. Mediadb.eu (2013-11-15). Retrieved on 2013-12-09.</ref> It is the largest [[cable television|cable]] company and home [[Internet service provider]] in the United States, and the nation's third largest home [[telephone service provider]]. Comcast has a monopoly in [[Boston]], [[Philadelphia]], and many small towns across the US.<ref name="islr.org">[https://ilsr.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/2020_08_Profiles-of-Monopoly.pdf Profiles of Monopoly: Big Cable and Telecom] ilsr.org (2020-08). Retrieved on 2024-05-30.</ref>

=== Transportation ===
The [[United Aircraft and Transport Corporation]] was an aircraft manufacturer holding company that was forced to divest itself of airlines in 1934.

[[Iarnród Éireann]], the Irish Railway authority, is a current monopoly as [[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]] does not have the size for more companies.

The [[Long Island Rail Road]] (LIRR) was founded in 1834, and since the mid-1800s has provided train service between [[Long Island]] and [[New York City]]. In the 1870s, LIRR became the sole railroad in that area through a series of acquisitions and consolidations. In 2013, the LIRR's [[commuter rail]] system is the busiest commuter railroad in North America, serving nearly 335,000 passengers daily.<ref>{{citation | url = http://www.apta.com/resources/statistics/Documents/Ridership/2013-q1-ridership-APTA.pdf | title = TRANSIT RIDERSHIP REPORT: First Quarter 2013 | date = 24 May 2013 | publisher = American Public Transportation Association | first = Matthew | last = Dickens | access-date = 3 January 2014}}</ref>

=== Foreign trade ===
[[Dutch East India Company]] was created as a legal trading monopoly in 1602. The ''Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie'' enjoyed huge profits from its spice monopoly through most of the 17th century.<ref>{{cite web |last=Van Boven |first=M. W. |title=Towards A New Age of Partnership (TANAP): An Ambitious World Heritage Project (UNESCO Memory of the World – reg.form, 2002) |work=VOC Archives Appendix 2, p.14 |url=http://portal.unesco.org/ci/en/files/22635/11546101681netherlands_voc_archives.doc/netherlands%2Bvoc%2Barchives.doc }}</ref>

The British [[East India Company]] was created as a legal trading monopoly in 1600. The East India Company was formed for pursuing trade with the [[Indies|East Indies]] but ended up trading mainly with the [[Indian subcontinent]], [[North-West Frontier Province (1901–55)|North-West Frontier Province]], and [[Balochistan]]. The Company traded in basic commodities, which included [[cotton]], [[silk]], [[indigo dye]], [[salt]], [[Potassium nitrate|saltpetre]], [[tea]] and [[opium]].

=== Professional sports ===

==== Baseball ====
In 1922, the [[Supreme Court of the United States|US Supreme Court]] ruled in [[Federal Baseball Club v. National League]] that baseball was not the kind of commerce intended to be affected by federal antitrust, thus making baseball exempt from antitrust laws.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Baade |first=R.A |date=2018 |title=The Curious Case of Baseball's Antitrust Exemption |journal=Journal of Sports Economics |volume=19 |issue=4 |pages=438–455}}</ref> The Supreme Court maintained their original ruling in both 1953 and 1972 when the issue was brought up in court. As a legal monopoly, the MLB has not had any competition in the American market since the early 1960s, from the defunct [[Continental League]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hylton |first=J. Gordon |date=1999 |title=Why Baseball's Antitrust Exemption Still Survives |url=https://scholarship.law.marquette.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1430&context=sportslaw |journal=Marquette Sports Law Review |volume=9 |issue=2 |at=Article 11}}</ref>

==== American Football ====
After mergers in 1949 with the [[All-America Football Conference|AAFC]] and 1970 with the [[American Football League|AFL]], the [[National Football League]] was facing competition USFL following their successful first season in [[1983 USFL season|1983]]. The USFL initially operated as a spring league, beginning their season approximately one month after the NFL season had concluded and would finish the season approximately one month prior to the start of NFL preseason games. With an increasing popularity and ability to sign big names, such as the 1982-84 Heisman Trophy winners [[Herschel Walker]], [[Mike Rozier]] and [[Doug Flutie]], the [[New Jersey Generals]] owner [[Donald Trump]] persuaded other owners to move the season so it directly competed with the NFL's. At the same time an antitrust lawsuit was filed against the NFL as it convinced the [[Big Three (American television)|3 major American television channels]] against broadcasting any USFL games. The trial lasted 42 days and the jury found the NFL has indeed acted monopolistically and violated antitrust laws but as the NFL was not directly responsible for the financial difficulties of the league, the USFL was awarded $1 in damages, which was tripled to $3 due to it being an antitrust case. The USFL announced it would forego the 1986 altogether to appeal the decision; however, the league would fold within a week of the trial ending. The US Supreme Court would, four years later, allow the original ruling to stand and order the NFL to pay damages and to include interest, bringing the total to $3.76.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Rohan |first=Tim |date=12 July 2016 |title=Donald Trump and the USFL: A 'Beautiful' Circus |url=https://www.si.com/nfl/2016/07/12/donald-trump-usfl-new-jersey-generals-owner |magazine=Sports Illustrated}}</ref> The NFL did previously survive an antitrust lawsuit in the 1960s.

=== Examples of possible/potential monopolies ===
<!-- This list is too long, please keep it to six -->
* [[Microsoft]] has been the defendant in multiple antitrust suits on strategy ''[[embrace, extend and extinguish]]''. They settled antitrust litigation in the U.S. in 2001. In 2004 Microsoft was fined 493&nbsp;million euros by the [[European Commission]]<ref>[http://ec.europa.eu/competition/publications/consumer_en.pdf EU competition policy and the consumer] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090310195945/http://ec.europa.eu/competition/publications/consumer_en.pdf |date=2009-03-10 }}</ref> which was upheld for the most part by the [[General Court (European Union)|Court of First Instance]] of the [[European Communities]] in 2007. The fine was US$1.35&nbsp;billion in 2008 for noncompliance with the 2004 rule.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.forbes.com/home/markets/2008/02/27/microsoft-eu-fines-markets-equity-cx_po_0227markets08.html |title=Microsoft Gets Mother Of All EU Fines |last=Cendrowicz |first=Leo |date=2008-02-27 |work=[[Forbes]] |access-date=2008-03-10 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080302140118/http://www.forbes.com/home/markets/2008/02/27/microsoft-eu-fines-markets-equity-cx_po_0227markets08.html |archive-date=March 2, 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://money.cnn.com/2008/02/27/technology/eu_microsoft.ap/ |title=EU fines Microsoft record $1.3 billion |publisher=[[Time Warner]] |date=2008-02-27 |access-date=2008-03-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080303135125/http://money.cnn.com/2008/02/27/technology/eu_microsoft.ap/ |archive-date=2008-03-03 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
* [[Monsanto]] has been sued by competitors for antitrust and monopolistic practices. They have between 70% and 100% of the commercial GMO seed market in a small number of crops.{{citation needed|date=May 2021}}
* [[AAFES]] has a monopoly on retail sales at overseas U.S. military installations.{{citation needed|date=May 2021}}
* The [[alcohol monopoly|State retail alcohol monopolies]] of Norway ([[Vinmonopolet]]), Sweden ([[Systembolaget]]), Finland ([[Alko]]), Iceland ([[Vínbúð]]), Ontario ([[LCBO]]), Quebec ([[Société des alcools du Québec|SAQ]]), British Columbia ([[Liquor Distribution Branch]]), among others.
* [[The Walt Disney Company]] is one of the largest mass media and entertainment conglomerates in the world, and has acquired [[List of assets owned by The Walt Disney Company|huge amounts of assets, companies and corporations]] – both national and international. The 2019 [[Acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney|purchase]] of the majority of [[20th Century Fox]]'s assets sparked controversy.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://prospect.org/power/time-to-break-up-disney-monopoly/|title=It's Time to Break up Disney|date=October 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ntdaily.com/disneys-massive-monopoly-is-troubling-for-the-entertainment-industry/|title=Disney's massive monopoly is troubling for the entertainment industry|work=North Texas Daily |date=24 October 2019 |last1=Moreno |first1=Matthew }}</ref>