What Is a Monopoly?

There is a saying in business that if a company is trying to prove that it is a monopoly, then it is not one. But if a company is trying to prove that it is not a monopoly, it may very well be.

Holding a monopoly gives a company an unfair advantage, which is good for the company but usually bad for consumers and society as less (or no competition) leads to less (or no) innovation.

Lately, Facebook, Amazon, Google, and Apple are all facing legal actions to hinder their monopolistic position. So, in this Business Design Jam, we talked about:

• what exactly is a monopoly,

• how common business practices may lead to a monopoly,

• and what impact market-dominating positions have on customers and society.

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