Editing Monopoly (section)

==== 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.