So how many major studios do you feel are appropriate? Once again, despite the opinions of HN, the definition of a monopoly is not “a company does something I don’t like”.
As I said previously, there is nothing stopping anyone from distributing content via a multitude of channels.
The definition of "monopoly" doesn't matter that much though. What matters is whether new players can realistically enter a market and compete on merit. That's what creates incentives for innovation and low prices.
I agree with you that the film industry itself doesn't currently have a monopoly or oligopoly problem, especially not internationally. But the fact that there are huge problems in related areas of digital content distribution and discovery (app stores, search, social networks, network operators specifically in the US) is cause for alarm in my view.
The problem is spreading rapidly and it wouldn't be a surprise if the film industry was one of the next victims.
Digital content distribution - as far as movies, music, and books anyone can put up a website, provision some servers and sell content in standardized formats that can be consumed anywhere.
Search - nothing is stopping anyone from going to other search engines. It’s not like Bing is backed by one or two people with no financial backing.
Social networking - the social networks pre- Facebook failed because people chose a better experience.
On none of those cases are corporations forcing people to do anything nor or any of them essential services for which there is no alternative.
And the “definition” does matter. Once people in power can make up their own definitions it leads to government overreach.
It doesn't matter what people could do in purely technical terms. What matters is whether there is an economically viable way to enter a market and create real competition. It's not a theoretical question. It has to actually happen for the benefits of free markets to accrue.
Currently, that seems unrealistic in some areas like app stores where you can see egregious misuse of dominant market positions.
It's ineffective in other areas like social networks because all new market entrants are swiftly taken over by incumbents without any resistance by regulators.
The definition of monopoly is important in some respects but not for the question of whether or not we can reap the benefits of markets or suffer the consequences of dysfunctional markets. It doesn't take a clearcut monopoly to render a market dysfunctional.
(I'm not sure which people in power you are talking about)
It's ineffective in other areas like social networks because all new market entrants are swiftly taken over by incumbents without any resistance by regulators.
You act as if it isn’t the goal of every startup that takes VC funding to get acquired. Yeah going public is the other route, but statistically it hardly ever happens. Look no further than YC. Only two YC backed companies have ever gone public.
VCs wouldn’t invest in companies if they thought their only exit strategy was navigating via the very unlikely road of going public. If it were harder to sell a company to a larger tech company, most of these investments would never happen.
The definition of monopoly is important in some respects but not for the question of whether or not we can reap the benefits of markets or suffer the consequences of dysfunctional markets. It doesn't take a clearcut monopoly to render a market dysfunctional.
Facebook came in and took on MySpace with a better product - not government regulation.
I'm not sure which people in power you are talking about
The government. Everyone likes government power as long as their side is in charge.
So now we want to pass a regulation that any company that has a market of more than 5% should be broken up? Then how do you define a market? It amazes me how many people trust the government and want more government power.
And what do they have “power” over? Movie creation? Movie distribution? What part of the antitrust law are the five movie studios breaking?
What “power” do they have?
The difference between corporate power and government power is that a corporation can’t forcible take your money, property and liberty. I can choose whether to give my money to a corporation. I can’t choose whether to give my money to the government.
A corporation has a lot less “power” than the government. If a corporation makes a decision I don’t like, I don’t give them my money. I don’t have that choice with the government.