Things To Worry About
Business & Economic Monopolies
But rust never sleeps, and the Oligarchy forever engages in the Class War, with the goal of returning society to feudalism. So I.B.M. was 'unbundled' in the late 1960s, phone company AT&T was broken up in the 1980s, and the Department of Justice sued Microsoft in the 1990s.
Part of the hold that the Oligarchy has on the U.S. economy today is the creation of not-quite-monopolies that control major industries here with similar connections within the European Union and among the multinational mega-corporations around the globe.
A true monopoly is when one corporation (or an individual) controls all of an industry, or all of a product or commodity, and performs dastardly acts to stifle competition.
The mega-corporations of the XXIst Century are more subtle – half a dozen entities buy up a majority of an industry and merely work in seeming concert to stifle smaller, independent companies. A key factor are the business barons who serve on the inter-locking boards of many corporations a kind of 'team-style' monopoly.
Perfectly legal: no violation of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, the Clayton Anti-Trust Act, and other statutes. But the result is the same as a monopoly.
Accurate data on these 'team-style' monopolies has so far been difficult to uncover; research continues. Even the Departments of Commerce and Transportation and Energy obscure such matters as 'gross annual revenue' by industry. For example, online statistics on the U.S. oil industry are displayed by barrels (of crude oil), not by annual revenue at least so far as I have been able to locate. The data for each industry reported below may be a few years old, but the situation has not gotten better since each group of figures were collected.
podcast by economist Robert B. Reich on "The Monopolization of America"
watch 5/2018 podcast [11:03] free online at YouTube
"It is time to revive anti-trust {enforcement}." ~~~ economist Robert B. Reich
 | "Anti-Monopoly" board game [ages 8-15; 1973] Created by Ralph Anspach
"The Real Estate Game for the 21st Century" Created because the Monopoly board game seemed to promote monopolies & banks as positive actors in the economy; trademark infringement lawsuits from Parker Brothers followed, which creator Anspach settled (i.e. won); revised in 1984 as Anti-Monopoly II and re-released in 2005 without the number suffix. For 2 to 6 players, ages 8 and up; includes game board, plastic playing pieces, cards, and play money game entry at Wikipedia University Games set made in China - in 10"x15" box [2016] for $14.55 University Games set made in China - in 7½x4¾" tin travel box [2016] for $9.98 35th Anniv Edition: University Games set - in 10½"x10½" box [2008] out of prodn/used |
Reading Material
Corporate Crime Reporter newsletter & blog [est. 1987]
 | "Antitrust Law: An Economic Perspective" [1976, rev 2001] by Richard A. Posner Kindle Edition from Univ Chicago Press [2nd edition 4/2009] for $55.19 {sic} Univ Chicago Press 2nd edition 9x6 hardcover [12/2001] for $64.18 Univ Chicago Press 8¾x5¾ pb [2/78] out of print/used Univ Chicago Press 8½x5½ hardcover [12/76] out of print/used | |
 | "The Antitrust Paradox: A Policy At War With Itself" [1978, rev 1993] by Robert H. Bork [1927-2012], with New Introduction & Epilogue (since 1993 editions) Amazon's database is rife with botched details; case in point: this book on anti-trust by Robert Bork was all interwoven by covers and details from a book about the Huguenots of France; coded here as best I could determine in 2018, seems corrected since then "By now, other wise writers have exposed and thoroughly discredited the tragic unpragmatism of Robert Bork's formalist legal theory." — per one hopeful Amazon reviewer (haven't found those books yet, 5/2018) Kindle Edition from Bork Publng, LLC [5/2021] for $19.99 Bork Publng, LLC 8½x5½ pb [4/2021] for $29.39 Free Press 2nd edition 8½x5½ pb [1/93] out of print/used Free Press 2nd edition 8¾x6 hardcover [1/93] out of print/used Bork Publng, LLC 8½x5½ hardcover [4/2021] for $35.95 Basic Books 9¼x6 hardcover [4/78] out of print/used author entry at Wikipedia book entry at Wikipedia | |
 | "The Antitrust Revolution: Economics, Competition, and Policy" [orig 1989] by John E. Kwoka & Lawrence J. White Oxford Univ Press 7th edition 9x6 pb [DUE July 2018] for $79.95 {sic} Oxford Univ Press 6th edition 9x6 pb [7/2013] for $76.23 {sic} | |
 | "The Antitrust Enterprise: Principle and Execution" [2005] by Herbert Hovenkamp Kindle Edition from Harvard Univ Press [2006 edition] for $17.88 Harvard Univ Press 8¾x5¾ pb [3/2008] out of print/many used Harvard Univ Press hardcover [2005] - overpriced ! | |
 | "Antitrust Stories" [2007] Edited by Eleanor Fox & Daniel Crane narrative descriptions of 13 important cases: Standard Oil Co. v. United States; Dr. Miles Medical Company; United States v. Socony-Vacuum; United States v. Alcoa; United States v. Arnold, Schwinn & Co.; Continental TV v. GTE-Sylvania; United States v. Topco Associates; Broadcast Music, Inc. v. Columbia Broadcasting System; Aspen Skiing v. Aspen Highlands Skiing; Federal Trade Commission v. Superior Court Trial Lawyers; United States v. Microsoft; Federal Trade Commission v. Staples; the General Electric/Honeywell Merger; and Hoffman-LaRoche v. Empagran Kindle Edition from Foundation Press [2007 edition] for $36.99 {sic} Foundation Press 9¾x6¼ pb [8/2007] for $45.00 | |
 | "Cornered: The New Monopoly Capitalism and The Economics of Destruction" [2010] by Barry C. Lynn (of the New America Foundation [est. 1999]) "Brilliantly argued and meticulously reported, Cornered has changed my view of what's gone wrong with American capitalism." — Barbara Ehrenreich Kindle Edition from Wiley [1/2010] for $10.49 John Wiley & Sons 8¾x6 pb [12/2011] for $13.79 John Wiley & Sons 9½x6½ hardcover [1/2010] for $25.60 John Wiley & Sons hardcover [1/2010] out of print/many used |
Some Aggregate Monopoly Statistics
As-of year-end 2012: Four airlines control 69 percent of domestic U.S. air travel; Amazon, Inc. sells 27 percent of consumer books in USA, and Barnes & Noble
sells 16 percent; Wal-Mart, Inc. sells 57 percent of all groceries in USA; Universal Music Group controls 38 percent of the global recorded music market;
and AnheuserBusch-InBev sells 39 percent of all beer in the U.S.A., while Miller-Coors sells 26 percent.
Why are things expensive?
Four companies control 55% to 85% of the meat market.
Four airlines control 80% of U.S. air travel.
Three companies control 92% of the soda pop market.
Three companies control 73% of the breakfast cereal market.
Why don't we hear about it?
Six companies control 90% of the news.
— per internet graphic posted in April 2024
MOTION PICTURE EXHIBITION INDUSTRY
The industry group N.A.T.O. {National Assn. of Theater Owners} says that 2004 box office for the U.S.
was $9.53 billion dollars, with total U.S. screens of 36,652. Statistics gleaned from their website show
that six corporations own 50 percent of the movie screens in America.
. . . . . . 18,455 screens ๗ 36,652 total = 50.4%!
Total box office revenue for 2005 was $8.75 billion, which is down from $9.53 billion in 2004.
The obvious reasons are the stagnant economy and ticket prices, which only go up. Usually, ticket prices
are first raised in New York City, and within a week or two, prices go up across the country.
MOTION PICTURE DISTRIBUTION INDUSTRY
Domestic (U.S. & Canada) Box Office Receipts for 2006
These ten companies control a combined 92 percent of the domestic (U.S. & Canada) market.
BROADCAST MEDIA INDUSTRY
"Five conservative companies own 90 percent of the media in America." — per talk show host Ed Schultz
The top five radio companies in America [2009] are Clear Channel, Entercom, Citadel, C.B.S. Radio & Cox Radio
The rule of thumb for buying a radio station is now down to 8 times earnings.
In 2015, just six corporations - Time Warner, Disney-ABC, News Corporation-Fox, Viacom-MTV-Paramount,
Comcast-NBC-Universal, and CBS - control roughly 90 percent of all media in the U.S.
NEWSPAPER INDUSTRY
"Thirteen newspaper chains own 54 percent of our country's daily print media."
— Dennis Herrick, University of New Mexico
"More than 80 percent of newspapers [in America] are owned by chains, with far more allegiance to Wall Street
than to the towns [that] they allegedly serve." — Richard McCord, journalist of Santa Fe, New Mexico
|
"The New Media Monopoly: A Completely Revised and Updated Edition With Seven New Chapters" [orig 1983, rev 2004] by {editor & journalist} Ben H. Bagdikian Kindle Edition from Beacon Press [9/2014] for $14.04 Beacon Press 20th Edition 8½x5½ pb [5/2004] for $24.71 Beacon Press 20th Edition pb [5/2004] out of prodn/used Beacon Press 20th Edition pb [5/2004] out of prodn/used |
RAILROAD FREIGHT INDUSTRY
There are only seven Class I railroads in the U.S.A., and according to Trains Magazine, they handle 91 percent
of all railroad freight business, which in 2004 was total operating revenue of $40.5 billion. In Canada, the situation is similar,
with large portions of C.N. and C.P. revenue coming from their U.S. subsidiaries.
{Figures below are in millions of U.S. dollars.}
. . . and of course, Amtrak [est. 1971] is the heavily-subsidized interstate passenger rail transportation monopoly.
PETROLEUM INDUSTRY
Five U.S. petroleum companies control 56.3 percent of the market and the top ten companies
own 83.3 percent (per January 2006 Senate testimony by Tyson Slocum of Public Citizen).
The breakdown for 2004 is as follows:
... for a total of 83.3%
leaving independent oil companies with only 16.7% !!
BOOK PUBLISHING INDUSTRY
The number of independent booksellers has declined from 3250 in 1999 to 1400 today; independent stores account for 10 percent of the market,
chains (like B&N or Borders) account for 30 percent, superstores (like Wal-Mart & Target) account for 45 percent, with 15 percent sold 'online and other'.
— per American Booksellers Assn. in 2010
If the same book is available in paper and e-book formats at Amazon, 40 percent of their customers
now order the electronic version. — per New Yorker Magazine, April 2010
"Although [e-books] account for only an estimated 3 to 5 percent of the market, their sales increased 177 percent in 2009."
— per New Yorker Magazine, April 2010
According to Publishers Weekly in June 2014, Amazon sells 41% of all new books that are sold in America;
Amazon also sells 65% of all books purchased online, whether digital or print.
The top ten publishers in the 'trade' category for 2008 were:
... so that the top ten publishers control 70 percent of the market,
and the top five control 53.5 percent of the market
OUTDOOR ADVERTISING
U.S. outdoor advertising gross revenue for 2006 {per OAAA} was $6.81 billion.
The top three companies control 54.2 percent of the U.S. market.
Outdoor Advertising Association of America, Inc. [est. 1891]
FIRST PLACE: Clear Channel Communications of Phoenix, Arizona
$1.341 billion in U.S. revenue for 2006 = 19.7% of the U.S. market (also #1 worldwide)
entry at Wikipedia
company website
SECOND: C.B.S. Outdoor of Phoenix, Arizona
$1.23 billion in revenue for 2006 = 18% of the U.S. market
entry at Wikipedia
company website
THIRD: Lamar Advertising Company of Baton Rouge, Louisiana
$1.120 billion in revenue for 2006 = 16.5% of the U.S. market
entry at Wikipedia
company website
FOURTH: Van Wagner Communications of New York City [re-formed 1997]
company website
FIFTH: JCDecaux Group [est. 1964] of Paris, France
also second place worldwide (after Clear Channel)
entry at Wikipedia
company website
AGRI-BUSINESS INDUSTRY
| "A century ago, there were 15,000 kinds of apples in America; now there are 1500. Among the varieties that have disappeared are 96 percent of corn, 95 percent of cabbages, and 81 percent of tomatoes. Today, four giant suppliers (Monsanto, Syngenta, Limagrain & DuPont/Pioneer Hi-Bred) control more than half of the [U.S.] seed market." — Novella Carpenter in Mother Jones Magazine
"Cargill has cornered about a quarter of global grain production. Two companies, Monsanto & Pioneer, control 60 percent of the U.S. corn & soybean seed market. The top four beef packers dominate 83 percent of the market; four pork packers control 64 percent of the pork market; and the top four poultry producers account for 50 percent of that market." |
The four biggest poultry companies - Tyson Foods, Pilgrim's, Perdue, and Sanderson Farms - control nearly 60% of the chicken market. (June 2016)
PACKAGED FOODS INDUSTRY
| This section is new in 2013 and incomplete: What data I could find is all 'apples and oranges', with 2011 & 2012 annual results and 2013 quarterly results, some before and some after recent mergers & splits, etc. The data here is boiled down and inaccurate, but is a display of the shape of the packaged foods industry in the U.S. |
The top ten companies (in order) up thru 2012 are Kraft Foods Group {$18.339B revenue in 2012}, General Mills
{$14.88B revenue in 2011}, Kellogg Company {$13.2B revenue in 2011}, ConAgra Foods {$13.3B revenue
in 2012}, Smithfield Foods, H.J. Heinz Company, Dean Foods, Hormel Foods {$7.9B revenue in 2011},
Campbell Soup, and Ingredion; the second ten companies are J.M. Smucker, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters,
Gruma, Dole Food, Mead Johnson Nutrition, McCormick & Company, Hillshire Brands (formerly Sara Lee)
{nearly $4B annual sales}, Flowers Foods, WhiteWave Foods, and Sanderson Farms.
Rough analysis: the top ten companies have a 28% market share, and the top twenty have a 37% market share.
circa 2020: 64% of the flour market is controlled by just four massive millers, making generic All-Purpose Flour only.
TELECOMMUNICATIONS INDUSTRY
In the United States, 11,000 companies provide telecommunication services –landline, wireless, cable & satellite –
with $518 billion in revenues. The largest 50 companies hold nearly 90 percent of the market. — per Hoovers
The data below is incomplete & for different years:
AT&T et al .................... $119.3 billion (2008)
Verizon ....................... $93.78 billion (2007)
Sprint Nextel ................. $35.64 billion (2008)
Comcast ....................... $34.26 billion (2008)
German-owned T-mobile .... $17.1 billion (2006)
Per this rough data, these five companies hold 56% of market share by revenue (AT&T alone has 23%).
COMMODITIES MARKETS
About one-fourth of the world's aluminum is stored in Goldman Sachs warehouses in Detroit, Michigan; the raw materials are being released as a daily trickle
that has shortened the supply and driven up the price. Goldman Sachs makes $165 million in storage fees per year, as well as profits from trading the
essentially-cornered commodity. — per Reuters, July 2011
The BEER MONOPOLY
The United States ranks 13th in per capita beer consumption at 81.6 liters, and is second in total volume against #1 China.
Beer accounts for roughly 85% of all alcohol volume sold in the United States and annually generates over $91 billion in retail sales. South African company Breweries-Miller
became the largest brewing company in the world when it acquired Royal Grolsch in 2002; InBev was then the second-largest beer-producing company in the world,
and Anheuser-Busch was third. But when Anheuser-Busch acquired InBev in November 2008, the new Anheuser-Busch InBev company became the largest brewer in the world.
UPDATE 2012: AnheuserBusch-InBev sells 39 percent of all beer in the U.S.A., Miller-Coors sells 26 percent
which leaves
35 percent of the market to all the other commercial and craft brewers in the country.
American Beer, Wine & Booze Pages at Spirit of America Bookstore
2010 brand statistics from Beverage Industry Magazine, March 2011
Anheuser-Busch InBev places first:
Molson Coors places second:
SAB-Miller places third:
#1 Bud Light 28.5% market share
#2 Budweiser 11.4% market share
#5 Natural Light 6.0% market share
#6 Busch Light 4.0% market share
#7 Busch 3.6% market share
#10 Natural Ice 1.9% market share
— for a total of at least 55.4 percent share of the U.S. beer market
#3 Coors Light 10.2% market share
#9 Keystone Light 2.6% market share
— for a total of 12.8 percent share of the U.S. beer market
#4 Miller Lite 9.1% market share
#8 Miller High Life 2.7% market share
— for a total of 11.8 percent share of the U.S. beer market
... which adds up to three corporations controlling at least 80 percent of the U.S. beer market.
PERSONAL COMPUTER INDUSTRY
Microsoft has 90 percent of the personal computer market, though hundreds of other vendors make the products and receive the actual revenue.
'Poor' Apple/Mac is still only 10% of the PC market; their main business is now the fantastically successful iPod, iPhone, iPad, etc.
Back in mid-2010, Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser had a 63 percent market share in the U.S.; Mozilla's free Firefox browser
was second with 20 percent; Apple's fast-rising Safari browser had 10 percent; and Google's Chrome browser was in fourth place.
Worldwide, estimates gave Internet Explorer 53 percent, Firefox 29 percent, Chrome 8 percent, Safari 6 percent, and Opera 2 percent.
New browser statistics as-of May 2013: Google's Chrome has 52.9% of the market (up from 48.4% in January); Firefox is second with 27.7% (down from
30.2% in January); Microsoft's Internet Explorer is third with 12.6% (down from 14.3% in January); with Safari at 4.0% and Opera at 1.6%.
As-of mid-2014, Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser had 58% of the market, Google's Chrome browser had 21%,
Mozilla's free Firefox browser had 15%, Safari had 5%, and Opera had 1%.
As-of June 2015, the top seven browsers according to StatCounter Global Stats: Google Chrome has 44% market-share;
Safari (Apple OS only) has 13.4%; Internet Explorer {down from 53% in 2010} has 12.2%; Firefox has 10.7%; Android Browser has 6.3%;
Opera (mostly in Africa) has 5.16%; UC Browser has 5.16%; and the browsers after that are below 1% each.
SEARCH ENGINES
During August 2009, Google handled almost 71 percent of [worldwide] internet search inquiries; Yahoo! placed a distant
second with 17.2%; Microsoft's new Bing engine is already receiving 8.6%; Ask placed fourth with 2.4%
– and in fifth place is Everybody Else with a teeny 0.92%.
Search engine usage statistics for May 2012: Google handled 66.7 percent of searches; Bing was distant second with 15.4 percent
(vs. 14.1 percent a year prior); Yahoo was third with 13.4% (vs. 15.9% a year prior); Ask did 3%; AOL did 1.5%.
Search engine global usage statistics for October 2015: Google was used for 69¼% of online searches; Bing 12¼%;
Yahoo 9.2%; China's Baidu 6½%; A.O.L. 1.1%; Ask 0.24%; with Lycos & Excite each showing zero usage.
INTERNET REVENUE
Just five corporations earned 70% of the $300B in revenue generated by all internet companies over the past year: Amazon, Inc. and Alphabet, Inc. (Google) took in
a combined 57%; the others are Facebook, Inc., eBay, and Q.V.C. owner Liberty Interactive. — per USA Today (Nov 2015)
WM Worry / Internet Freedom Page
RETAIL / DEPARTMENT STORES
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. [est. 1962] is the world's largest public corporation by revenue, and is so large that its 2008 U.S. sales
were almost 50 percent more than its seven closest competitors combined, including Target and Sears.
THE CARPET INDUSTRY
About 70 percent of the world's tufted carpet is produced in the vicinity of Dalton, Georgia, USA.
WORLDWIDE SODA POP INDUSTRY
The Coca-Colaฎ Company, with all their various brands & flavors,
sells 51 percent of the world soda pop market (February 2004).
 | "Soda Politics: Taking On Big Soda (and Winning)" [2015] by Dr. Marion Nestle, Foreword by Neal Baer, Afterword by Mark Bittman book won the 2016 James Beard Award for Writing & Literature Oxford Univ Press 9¼x6½ hardcover [10/2015] for $19.46 Oxford Univ Press hardcover [10/2015] out of print/used Oxford Univ Press hardcover [10/2015] out of print/used |
THE CANDY INDUSTRY
In 2008: Mars Candy controls 14 percent of the U.S. candy market; Cadbury controls 10 percent;
Nestl้ controls 7.5 percent; Hershey has 4.5 percent; Kraft Foods 4 percent (per Time Magazine)
– which gives 40 percent of the U.S. market to five corporations.
Spirit of America Bookstore's Candy & Nuts & Gum Page
LANDFILLS / WASTE
Three companies operate 40 percent of the landfill / waste removal industry, and they have no interest in
environmental restrictions. The greenhouse gas methane traps 21 times more heat than carbon dioxide does
(per the E.P.A.), with much methane now being produced in landfills and by agribusiness.
BANKING & CREDIT INDUSTRY
Three too-big-to-fail banks – Bank of America, Citigroup & JPMorganChase –
control 58 percent of the U.S. credit card market. (2009 data)
"In 1956, 56 percent of profits in the U.S. economy derived from manufacturing, while 8.3 percent came from
the financial sector. In 2007, manufacturing produced 10 percent of profits, while the financial sector produced
26 percent of profits." — The Washington Spectator
lots more info on the Banks, Bankers & Investors Page at Spirit of America Bookstore
Want to know where you can move your checking and savings accounts away from the Big Banks?
Check out free website www.MoveYourMoney.info [2010-2015]
www.MoveOurMoneyUSA.org {last update 2012}
'move your money' tag archive at Institute for Local Self-Reliance {last update 2012}
F.F.E.I.C. list of total assets of the Top 50 Bank Holding Companies
ELECTRICAL POWER INDUSTRY
U.S. energy consumption is 44 percent coal, 24 percent natural gas, 20 percent nuclear,
7 percent hydroelectric, and 5 percent other. — per Time Magazine pie chart, Feb 2010
"U.S. electric utilities [use] seven times more water than all U.S. homes, 1½ times the water used by all the farms
in the country. In fact, 49 percent of all water use in the United States is for power plants." — Charles Fishman
U.S. electricity generation in 2013 was 39.1 percent from coal, 27.6% natural gas, 19.5% nuclear, 6.7% hydro, 4.2% wind, 2.0% solar,
1.0% wood, 0.7% petroleum, 0.5% waste, and 0.4% geothermal per pie chart by Institute for Energy Research
GAMING / GAMBLING / BETTING INDUSTRY
"Reservation-based casinos are the red man's revenge on the white man." – G.E. Nordell
Americas gambling industry gross revenue in 2021 was $53 billion; that figure breaks the previous record from 2019 by more than 20 percent, making 2021
the highest-grossing year ever; despite some restrictions related to COVID-19 and the Omicron variant, gambling surged mainly due to massive increases
in sports betting, online gambling, and traditional gaming at casinos.
MUSIC INDUSTRY
Just three music giants control the majority of the music industry, with Universal-E.M.I. in control of nearly forty percent (2012).
PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY
In 2014, the pharmaceutical industry spent over $250 million on lobbying and campaign contributions - far more than any other industry in America.
Later in 2016, Pfizer – the countrys largest pharmaceutical company, with nearly $1 billion in annual government contracts – plans to renounce its U.S. citizenship by
merging with Allergan, an Irish-based company. This would allow Pfizer to dodge the $35 billion tax bill it owes on its stash of untaxed offshore profits.
lots more info on the Working Minds / Things To Worry About / Big Pharma (-ceuticals) Page
AIR TRANSPORTATION INDUSTRY
Only four airline giants control 80% of domestic U.S. seats: American, Delta, Southwest, and United; the airline industry hauled off $33B in profits in 2015, nearly 90% over the prior year.
PACKAGE DELIVERY INDUSTRY
Only three package delivery giants control 90% of domestic U.S. shipping: U.S.P.S. has a market share of 38%, U.P.S. has a 33% share, FedEx has a 19% share,
international giant D.H.L. has a U.S. market share of 2%, and Amazon Shipping has a U.S. market share of 1% (2021 Statista survey).
Ranked by annual revenue, U.P.S. is #1 with $97.287B, D.H.L. Group is #2 with a global $90B, FedEx is #3 with $83.96B, U.S.P.S. is #4 with $77.041B,
LaserShip/OnTrac is a distant #5 with $1.7B, and Purolator is #6 with $1.646B.
D.H.L. Logistics [founded in 1969]
D.H.L. is a German logistics company providing courier, package delivery, and express mail service;
D.H.L. is the worlds leading logistics company, delivering over 1.7 billion parcels each year.
D.H.L. was founded in San Francisco, USA in 1969; Deutsche Post began to acquire shares in D.H.L. in 1998, acquired a controlling interest in 2001, and by the end of 2002 had acquired all of D.H.L.'s remaining stock.
The D.H.L. Aviation division is responsible for providing air transport capacity.
http://www.dhl.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DHL
FedEx Corporation [founded in 1971, renamed 2000]
Founded in Little Rock, Arkansas as Federal Express Corporation (19711997), then was F.D.X. Corporation (19972000); today's FedEx Corp. is an American multinational conglomerate holding company based in Memphis, Tennessee. The company is focused on business services, express delivery, freight transportation, and logistics services; it is best known for its air delivery service, FedEx Express. FedEx Corp. acquired privately-held Kinko's, Inc. [est. 1970] in February 2004 and re-branded it FedEx Kinko's, then renamed the service FedEx Office in 2008.
http://www.FedEx.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FedEx
United Parcel Service of America, Inc. [founded in 1907]
U.P.S. is based in Sandy Springs (Atlanta), Georgia and operates its main international hub in Louisville, Kentucky; the company is
primarily known for its ground shipping services as well as the U.P.S. Store retail chain. U.P.S. operates globally, serving over 220 countries and territories worldwide; in the United States, UPS has an extensive network of over 22,000 locations and 5,800 authorized service providers.
http://www.UPS.com/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Parcel_Service
U.S.P.S. / United States Postal Service [founded in 1775, independent agency since 1970].
The USPS is the most used parcel shipping service in the country, with a market share of 38%.
http://www.usps.com/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Postal_Service
Amazon Shipping has a U.S. market share of only 1%; it is known for its fast and reliable delivery times, especially for Prime members;
however, the service is only available to Amazon sellers, limiting its reach compared to its competitors.
![political cartoon of John D. Rockefeller [1839-1937] and the Standard Oil Monopoly](images/cartoonStandardOilMonopoly.jpg "political cartoon of John D. Rockefeller [1839-1937] and the Standard Oil Monopoly")
![political cartoon from "Puck Magazine" about Cornelius Vanderbilt [1794-1877] as 'The Modern Colossus'](images/cartoonVanderbiltColossus.jpg "political cartoon from \"Puck Magazine\" about Cornelius Vanderbilt [1794-1877] as 'The Modern Colossus'")
here on the 'Things To Worry About' Business & Economic Monopolies Page
at Working Minds Philosophy of Empowerment
top of page essay agri-business beer billboards book publishing commodities movies & TV & radio
packaged foods PCs & internet petroleum railroads telecom other monopolies
. . . and yes, we finally created a page about the Parker Brothers Monopoly Game in 2016.
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