As More People Worry About Monopolies, an Economist Explains What Antitrust Can and Can’t Do

Posted by Harvard Business Review

As More People Worry About Monopolies, an Economist Explains What Antitrust Can and Can’t Do

By Walter Frick

According to a growing chorus of critics, America has a “monopoly problem.” Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz has said as much, as has Democratic US Senator Elizabeth Warren. President Trump has called Amazon a “no-tax monopoly”. In response, pundits, politicians, and think tanks are renewing their interest in antitrust policy.

But is America really dominated by monopolies? And is antitrust the answer? Carl Shapiro is a professor at the Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley, an expert in antitrust, and served at the Department of Justice during the Obama and Clinton administrations. He also served on the Council of Economic Advisors under President Obama.

In a new paper, he reviews the evidence of growing concentration in the US economy, discusses whether that constitutes a decline in competition, and outlines the role he sees for antitrust going forward. I spoke to Shapiro by phone and email. What follows is excerpts from our conversation, edited for length and clarity.

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