Technology Giants, the Moligopoly Hypothesis and Holistic Competition: A Primer

Abstract

This paper shows that the technology giants that antitrust agencies tend to characterize as entrenched monopolists can also be seen as firms engaged in a process of vibrant oligopolistic competition. Those firms - we refer to them as "moligopolists" - compete against the non-consumption in search of new and low-end market footholds. The failure of the antitrust structure to see that rivalry – its intensity may vary from one company to another – originates both in mainstream economics and applied competition theory. We believe those defects can be cured with a rechanneling of antitrust policy towards certain types of restraints, in certain types of market settings.

Keywords: Technology, Digital Economy, Monopoly, Antitrust, Economics, Strategy, Disruption

JEL Classification: K00, K20, K21, K40, K42, L40, L41