Antitrust: Fair Competition

Name: Antitrust: Fair Competition
Author: KnowledgeCity

How to understand the need for competition.

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Course: On-Demand

(upbeat music) Let's explore the concept of competition, including the benefits, monopolies, mergers, and joint ventures, and the red flags to look out for. Antitrust, simply put, is a set of laws that govern fair competition in business. The exact laws may vary from country to country, but they are all aimed at the same idea, promoting competition in business. Antitrust laws have many other names all around the world, whether they are called anti-monopoly laws, competition laws, or trade practices laws, they all refer to the same idea of making sure organizations will not be able to put consumers at a disadvantage. Have you ever played the board game Monopoly? In this game, we try to own every square on the board. Antitrust laws aim to prevent that from happening in real life, where one or a few organizations control an entire industry. Countries all around the world have antitrust laws. Individuals and organizations can both be found in violation of these laws. The penalties for violating these laws can vary from country to country. But they can include fines, not being allowed to bid on public projects, criminal penalties including jail time, being prohibited from holding managerial positions, or losing any government funding. You may be wondering why these are called antitrust laws. Well, in the 19th century, organizations would form trusts to control their businesses. These trust were monopolies that controlled or threatened to control entire industries. To prevent this, the government created the antitrust laws. Antitrust laws have been used against several big companies. Here are a few examples. Google. Google has faced several antitrust lawsuits. One of these resulted in a $5 billion fine from the European Union for abusing market dominance. Google was found guilty of forcing Android users to use the Google Chrome search engine and apps. Google was forcing phone makers to pre-install Google apps in order to produce the phone. Kodak. At one point, Kodak was the biggest name in the camera industry and faced several antitrust cases. One of these occurred in the 1950s. Kodak was the first to develop color film, but the organization made it so it was the only one that could sell and process the film. This prompted an antitrust lawsuit from the United States government. Kodak was found to have a monopoly and was forced to license the ability to process color film. Standard Oil. Standard Oil was once one of the biggest oil companies in the United States. The organization controlled 90% of the production in the US. An antitrust lawsuit forced the company to split into 34 separate companies. One of those companies became ExxonMobil.

Essential Provider : KnowledgeCity 5 Lessons · 15m in Arabic, German, English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Chinese

Course Description

Fair competition benefits consumers and organizations alike. Antitrust laws around the world are in the place to help ensure there is a fair, competitive market. You will learn why competition is good for organizations and consumers alike as well what monopolies are. Monopolies were once prevalent. But antitrust laws have put an end to many of them. Some monopolies still exist or come to be. You will learn how this can happen and why monopolies are sometimes allowed to exist. You will also learn the red flags to watch for that may signal anticompetition behaviors are happening. Being aware of these signs can prevent your organization from accidentally engaging in these behaviors. Finally, you will gain an understanding of how joint ventures and mergers can present unique challenges in avoiding anticompetition behaviors.

What You'll Learn

Understand the benefits of fair competition for consumers and organizations
Learn why antitrust laws exist and the markets they protect
Identify what monopolies are and how some come to exist or are allowed
Recognize antitrust red flags that signal anticompetition behaviors
Examine how mergers and joint ventures present unique anticompetition challenges

Key Takeaways

Fair competition benefits consumers and organizations alike, and antitrust laws around the world help ensure a fair, competitive market.
Monopolies were once prevalent, but antitrust laws have put an end to many of them, though some still exist or come to be and are sometimes allowed.
Being aware of antitrust red flags can prevent an organization from accidentally engaging in anticompetition behaviors.
Joint ventures and mergers can present unique challenges in avoiding anticompetition behaviors.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does this course cover?

The course covers what antitrust is, the benefits of competition, monopolies, mergers and joint ventures, and antitrust red flags.

What will I learn about monopolies?

You will learn what monopolies are, how some still exist or come to be, and why monopolies are sometimes allowed to exist.

How does this course help prevent anticompetition behavior?

It teaches the red flags to watch for that may signal anticompetition behaviors, so awareness of these signs can prevent your organization from accidentally engaging in them.

What skills does this course build?

It builds skills in antitrust law, competition law, competitive analysis, fair competition, unfair competition, and case competition.