When we talk of natural monopolies, the usual suspects tend to be utilities like power, gas, waterworks etc. Dominant firms in such industries can easily notch up huge market shares and thwart competition. No wonder then, these industries tend to be regulated around the world.
According to CNNMoney, US regulators are beginning to wonder if Google is a natural monopoly. That seems like a bit of a stretch. After all, isn't the internet a perfectly competitive market place? But 76% dominance of the search market does raise the question whether there's more than meets the eye. However, the company presents several points in its defense. First, 'competition is just one click away'. If internet users turn to Google, it is due to the power of habit and not because the company prevented them from turning to other search engines. Second, it doesn't lock anyone into its software like Google Docs. The software formats are open, so users can move content to rival products.
Because of these reasons, regulators have not been able to make a convincing case so far. Their best chance would have been if Google partnered with a rival like Yahoo. But that's not on the cards. For now, everyone simply has to acknowledge the fact that it is a great business - with a strong competitive advantage.
The more things change, its turn out to be the same as it ever was. A new book about the history of work reveals that today’s workers have much in common with all those who have come before them over the past 12,000 years. People’s appetites drive them to produce more than they need, and they build political and economic institutions to help them do it. Then those institutions drive them to do more. NYT ( see the story in the link) also talks about Gluttons for punishment. We work so much because we want so much. That was anthropologist James Suzman’s conclusion after studying hunter-gatherers in the Kalahari Desert who satisfied their survival needs with roughly 15 hours of weekly labor. But modern, urban societies cause us to develop unlimited desires, which lead us to endless labour https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/29/podcasts/transcript-ezra-klein-interviews-james-suzman.html?cid=other-eml-onp-mip-mck&hlkid=38845d000b404e829c41b7395739f39a&...
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