- General post (802)
- April 3, 2008: Armchair Economist gets a much-needed update
- April 3, 2008: Ghost of Herbert Hoover
- April 3, 2008: Are you smarter than a high-schooler?
- April 3, 2008: Katrina hero: Wal-Mart
- April 2, 2008: No Child Left Behind
- April 2, 2008: The poverty hype
- April 2, 2008: Oil profits
- April 2, 2008: Don's response
- April 2, 2008: Oil refinements
- April 1, 2008: My profile
Is the FTC defining the market too narrowly?
The Federal Trade Commission wants to prohibit Whole Foods acquisition of Wild Oats Markets. But is the agency defining the market too narrowly? Would this combination not also still compete with Wal-Mart, Kroger, Safeway, etc.? Of course it would. If this combination began to charge monopolistic prices, would its customers have substitutes to choose from? Of course.
The FTC is playing games. It has narrowed its scope so narrowly that a monopoly appears to be spawned with this merger. When I limit my scope, I can demonstrate that Ford has a monopoly on F-150s, Coke on its branded colas, and Dell on its computers. I, however, cannot demonstrate that Ford has a monopoly on pickups, Coke on sodas, or Dell on computers.
John Mackey, with his outspoken personality, however, is not helping matters. Read more about this story here.