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Economics 243 Fall 2018

Britain’s Retail Banking Oligopoly

A recent article in the Economist describes how a newly revived bank – TSB – is hoping to dampen the detrimental oligopolistic effects the British banking industry experiences.  Analysis of the banking industry in 2000 pointed to market inefficiency as a result of prices and profits that were above perfect competition levels.  Increased concentration levels further underscore industry inefficiency: in 2008 the four largest firms controlled 65% of the market, which quickly increased to 75%. 

Economic Beer – I can add nothing to this blog post from New Zealand!

Technology Giants Try to Match Apple’s Success

Over the past couple years, major technology companies have taken steps towards vertically integrating themselves in an attempt to imitate Apple’s success.  In order to manufacture smartphones and television set-top boxes, Google acquired mobile device maker Motorola Mobility.  Amazon created the Kindle Fire tablet to bridge hardware and e-commerce.  Oracle bought Sun Microsystems in order to create integrated hardware and software devices.  Also, Microsoft now makes hardware for its Xbox gaming system.  These are recent examples of technology companies trying to emulate Apple.