Definition of Monopoly

What is a "monopoly"? What is the definition of the term "monopoly"?

A "monopoly" occurs when one single company completely dominates the market for a good or service.

A "monopoly" has no real competitors. Thanks to the lack of competition, would-be competitors have an extremely tough time entering the market, due to the prohibitive costs involved.

If a product had over 95% of the market and an extremely recognizable brand, how you would feel about trying to compete with them? The amount of money that you would need to spend on building a brand would almost certainly break your company.

A product that has a "monopoly" over the market has no real competition.

Competition laws in many countries seek to "regulate anti-competitive conduct". These competition laws seek to prevent the willful exclusion of competitors from a market, which will often result in subpar and shoddy products/services (thanks to a lack of competition, companies with monopolies over a market can often get "lazy", price gouge, etc.)

When large companies such as Google and Microsoft purchase companies, you will often hear that there are "anti-trust concerns". Antitrust laws seek to prohibit anti-competitive behavior and unfair business practices. Often companies will need to make changes to a proposed transaction in order to get it to go through.

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Davemanuel.com Articles That Mention Monopoly:

A Microsoft / Yahoo Merger Would Only Mean Good Things for the Search Engine Industry Over Time

There is Only One Way to Stop Google: A Government Mandated Break-Up

October Search Engine Market Share: Google Continues to Dominate