Political/economic consequences of mistaken concept of monopoly

It is generally established that the concept of monopoly refers to an existence of a single company operating on the relevant market. This interpretation, though commonly accepted and echoed by all textbooks, is incorrect. The fact of being a single supplier is not essential in forming the concept of monopoly. The essential feature of monopoly is not the fact of a single company as such but the fact of the government physical force (i.e. law) mandating the privilege of exclusivity and keeping potential competitors out of an industry. But the defect in traditional conception of monopoly had to wait - until economists invented the theory of perfect competition - before it could lead to the routine attacks against the very nature of business through the government anti-trust legislation. The concept of monopoly must be redefined and reconstructed and the vitally important distinction between economic power of business and political power of government must be recognized.

Keywords: monopoly, perfect competition, antitrust policy