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aclockworkporridge t1_ixexxc1 wrote

I also think it's good to note that the Postal service keeps private services from price gouging. Even if it doesn't turn a profit, if forced the leading corporations to compete against a third actor, which prevents them from colluding.

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Ancient_Boner_Forest t1_ixf2m8l wrote

Why do you think that fedex and ups would be engaging in illegal price fixing schemes if it were not for the USPS?

Most companies don’t have a government competitor and these sorts of activities are rare and result in serious penalties.

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aclockworkporridge t1_ixfv7rz wrote

These activities are absolutely not rare. They are rarely prosecuted, but they are absolutely not rare. Fuel is a great example, both on a global level and a local one. Every year some local consortium of gas stations gets nailed for price fixing, and almost every industry has a landmark price fixing case that occurred in the last 20 years.

Internet is the current hot button topic in that regard, especially in Cambridge. A duopoly can be just as bad as a monopoly, because all it takes is an off the record game of golf and you've created massive profits with no risk of anti-trust or monopoly crackdown.

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Ancient_Boner_Forest t1_ixg3c9b wrote

Do you have a source, like an article, discussing the high prevalence of price fixing?

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WikiSummarizerBot t1_ixh47n1 wrote

Wine and Spirits Fair Dealing Act

>The Wine and Spirits Fair Dealing Act, also known as the Wirtz Law, was an infamous Illinois state law passed in 1999 that prevented distillers and wineries from changing distributors without "just cause". Distributors stated that the law was required to prevent producers from severing ties with Illinois distributors and "outsourcing" their deals, ostensibly resulting in thousands of job losses throughout the state. After the law was passed, all Illinois distributors raised their prices. The Federal Trade Commission actively lobbied against the law, to no avail.

DRAM price fixing scandal

>In 2002, the United States Department of Justice, under the Sherman Antitrust Act, began a probe into the activities of dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) manufacturers in response to claims by US computer makers, including Dell and Gateway, that inflated DRAM pricing was causing lost profits and hindering their effectiveness in the marketplace. To date, five manufacturers have pleaded guilty to their involvement in an international price-fixing conspiracy between July 1, 1998, and June 15, 2002, including Hynix, Infineon, Micron Technology, Samsung, and Elpida.

Lysine price-fixing conspiracy

>The lysine price-fixing conspiracy was an organized effort during the mid-1990s to raise the price of the animal feed additive lysine. It involved five companies that had commercialized high-tech fermentation technologies, including American company Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), Japanese companies Ajinomoto and Kyowa Hakko Kogyo, and Korean companies Sewon America Inc. and Cheil Jedang Ltd. A criminal investigation resulted in fines and three-year prison sentences for three executives of ADM who colluded with the other companies to fix prices.

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