Ah, that was pre-deregulation in the US. Now we know what happens with de-regulation. At first, there are lots of new entrants in the industry. Gradually, the new entrants go bust or consolidate. The industry reduces to an unregulated oligopoly with four or less major players.
Examples:
- Wireline telephony. (AT&T, Verizon)
- Cellular telephony. (AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile)
- Cable TV (Comcast, Charter, AT&T).
- Banks. (Bank of America, Citigroup, Chase, and maybe Wells Fargo)
- Package delivery (FedEx and UPS, plus USPS).
- Airlines (United, American, Southwest, and Delta)
Price competition seems to disappear at 3 or less direct competitors, from an EU study.
Examples:
- Wireline telephony. (AT&T, Verizon)
- Cellular telephony. (AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile)
- Cable TV (Comcast, Charter, AT&T).
- Banks. (Bank of America, Citigroup, Chase, and maybe Wells Fargo)
- Package delivery (FedEx and UPS, plus USPS).
- Airlines (United, American, Southwest, and Delta)
Price competition seems to disappear at 3 or less direct competitors, from an EU study.