Sirius and drive other players into bankruptcy. Clearly the association between the board game and the definition of the term is literal. The term monopoly is defined as “exclusive control of a good or service in a particular market, or control that makes price manipulation possible” (Dictionary.com, 2008). Monopolies were quite common in the early days when businesses had no guidelines. When the U.S. Supreme Court stepped in to break up Standard Oil's business in the late 1800s and enacted the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 (Wikipedia 2001), it set a precedent for many cases that would be raised against it for years to come. Such as the case of two major players in the entertainment community of Sirius and XM who both have a majority of the market in the satellite radio industry and their talks to consolidate both businesses into one. This article in Ars Technica (Lasar, 2008) delves into the idea that these corporate entities should not be allowed to merge into one company, but more importantly should be fined for even entertaining the idea in back rooms and in closed meeting rooms. Using the model case of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act in Standard Oil, the company hovered around 85% to 95%. With these numbers, XM and Sirius would fall into the numerical category that meets that monopoly condition. Since this debate is still ongoing, many people argue both sides of the pros and cons story. Many argue that failure to break up monopolies actually increases competition from companies that are trying to get into some of the market share that the monopoly already holds, more than the free market that exists now. Supporters of the Sherman Anti-Trust Law argue that “absolute power corrupts absolutely” (Martin, 1996), as originally quoted by Baron Acton. The idea that no competition in business creates risks and rewards is part of the entrepreneurial spirit of the United States. The United States Constitution and the Sherman Anti-Trust Act have very little to do with laws, but more to do with eliminating the concept of non-compete. If the merger between XM and Sirius is approved, it would allow two large corporate entities that have already established much of the customer base in their field of expertise.

Topic > Sirius and drive other players into bankruptcy. Clearly the association between the board game and the definition of the term is literal. The term monopoly is defined as “exclusive control of a good or service in a particular market, or control that makes price manipulation possible” (Dictionary.com, 2008). Monopolies were quite common in the early days when businesses had no guidelines. When the U.S. Supreme Court stepped in to break up Standard Oil's business in the late 1800s and enacted the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 (Wikipedia 2001), it set a precedent for many cases that would be raised against it for years to come. Such as the case of two major players in the entertainment community of Sirius and XM who both have a majority of the market in the satellite radio industry and their talks to consolidate both businesses into one. This article in Ars Technica (Lasar, 2008) delves into the idea that these corporate entities should not be allowed to merge into one company, but more importantly should be fined for even entertaining the idea in back rooms and in closed meeting rooms. Using the model case of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act in Standard Oil, the company hovered around 85% to 95%. With these numbers, XM and Sirius would fall into the numerical category that meets that monopoly condition. Since this debate is still ongoing, many people argue both sides of the pros and cons story. Many argue that failure to break up monopolies actually increases competition from companies that are trying to get into some of the market share that the monopoly already holds, more than the free market that exists now. Supporters of the Sherman Anti-Trust Law argue that “absolute power corrupts absolutely” (Martin, 1996), as originally quoted by Baron Acton. The idea that no competition in business creates risks and rewards is part of the entrepreneurial spirit of the United States. The United States Constitution and the Sherman Anti-Trust Act have very little to do with laws, but more to do with eliminating the concept of non-compete. If the merger between XM and Sirius is approved, it would allow two large corporate entities that have already established much of the customer base in their field of expertise.