[gwright]

Let me see if I can be a bit clearer. A market with high barriers to entry that are defined by regulations and legislative constraints is not a free market. It is a market, just not a free market.

Blaming high prices in this situation on a failure of the market mechanism is simply inaccurate. The high prices are a result of the constraints that prevent competition and the emergence of a free market.

I'm not sure what to say about your assertion that price isn't a component of a competitive market. Certainly competitors try to compete on 'value' of which price is a component among many others (ease of use, features, reputation, availability, etc.).

I don't know what you are defining as 'unregulated markets', but I'm not advocating for the removal of legal frameworks that prevent fraud, negligence, collusion, and so on.