Monopoly
A type of commercial advantage enjoyed by one business entity that lets it determine to a significant extent the terms on which products or services may be obtained in a given region. For example, a monopoly would exist if a single supplier of gasoline in a state could significantly hike prices without serious competition.
See Antitrust Law for more information.
Definition from Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary
When a business controls so much of the production or sale of a product or service to control the market, including prices and distribution. Business practices and/or acquisitions that tend to create a monopoly may violate various federal statutes that regulate or prohibit business trusts and monopolies or prohibit restraint of trade, such as the Clayton Act. Public utilities such as electric, gas, and water companies may hold a monopoly in a particular geographic area since it is the only practical way to provide the public service; they are regulated by state public utility commissions.
Definition provided by Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary.
August 19, 2010, 5:20 pm
