Oligopoly and a Monopoly: Viewed in Light of the AT& T. And SBC Prospective Merger

Since the Gilded age of the robber barons ended with the enforcement of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, corporate monopolies have had a bad name in American commerce. However, a monopoly is not synonymous with the abuse of consumer welfare. A monopoly is simply is the exclusive control by one group, often a company, of the means of producing or selling a commodity or service, although it arises frequently from government support or from collusive agreements among individuals, in the words of Milton Friedman. ("Monopoly," Answers.com, 2005) Sometimes, monopolies are conferred, often in the case of limited natural resources such as oil, or in industries with difficulty physical or economic barriers to enter the market. This was previously true of the telephone communications industry. The monopolistic right to dominate the industry was granted by the government,...
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