I don’t think Facebook should have shut down WSB but that doesn’t make them a monopoly.
As for monopoly in general, there’s Tiktok, Snapchat. Clubhouse just raised a big round.
The blue facebook app is actually anything but a monopoly, as Instagram (a facebook property) gets much more enthusiasm. There’s no “natural” monopoly for Facebook blue there.
It’s easy to pick a concept and try to apply it everywhere, but Facebook can act objectionally without being “a natural monopoly”.
Why not?
It fits the definition from the article. “An industry in which high infrastructural costs and other barriers to entry give the largest supplier in an industry an overwhelming advantage over potential competitors”
In case of FB the infrastructural cost is less of an issue, at least not anymore. I think Amazon and Microsoft are capable of hosting at least a dozen Facebooks each on their clouds should they want to. The main barrier to entry which causes that overwhelming advantage is network effect.
Many laws and public discussions related to monopolies in general, as opposed to natural monopolies, are focused on pricing. FB can argue by saying "that's not applicable because our product is free for users".
> It's not at all obvious why FB cannot instantly die like all social media companies before.
About 35% of global population use facebook at least once a month. Global population counts newborn babies, and 10-15% of adults who can't read or write.
None of the prior social media companies achieved that size of their network.
- Ban businesses engaged in online advertising from compiling real world data / mixing physical world data with the online profiles of users
- Ban businesses engaged in online advertising from building profiles of people who have not opted into their platform; require permanent removal of all data within 30 days of any user leaving their platform
- Require businesses provide human based appeal process to any user or business that spends or earns $1,000 in a year before suspending or terminating an account
These could even be done at the state proposition level, absent state authority
I agree about social networks, but I'm not sure how good of an argument this is. In the US all those things (railroads, water networks, landline) have gone to crap.
It would be solvable with the free market as long as we don't allow big companies to consistently purchase their own competition.
Facebook is trivial to leave (I haven’t been on it in years now). It was not trivial to change to a different railroad, plumbing provider, etc.
That gets brought up a lot however:
* MySpace never had the revenue of Facebook
* Far more people are on Facebook than were ever on MySpace. There are not that many of my personal friends/family were ever on MySpace. Now however, almost every one of my personal friends and family members is on Facebook.
* MySpace did not spend billions acquiring potential social network competitors. The two biggest c(non Chinese) social networks that might have challenged Facebook were acquired for billions (Instagram and WhatsApp) and the other network (SnapChat) had an offer, and when it was turned down, a competing service was created by Facebook.
* As a market matures, it becomes harder to unseat incumbents. The social media market is far more mature than it was before.
* as an example, Google dethroned AltaVista and Lycos rather easily. However, I would bet money that 10 years from now, absent regulation, Google will still have the dominant search engine. In the same way, 10 years from now, I would bet that Facebook will still have the dominant social network.
Your experience (and mine fwiw) does not generalise. It is significantly harder for many people to do so while keeping up with familial and social obligations. Not to mention some business obligations for many. Facebrick is trying ever harder to make being a citizen impossible without a Facebook account. Government departments have Facebook accounts and use it for communication. WhatsApp is used for payments on much of the world. Don't kid yourself it's as easy for everyone as it is for you and I.
That said. Delete your Facebook account. Plan it. Do it. It feels so, so very good pushing the button and your quality of life improves significantly. Facebrick is as vile as any serious addiction tends to be once it has hold of you.
No matter how they treat users, people won't leave due to network effect.
I don't believe the problem is solvable with more tech or free market. I think the only way forward is political, with laws and regulations.
Long ago railroad networks, water pipes networks, and landline phone networks were private companies free to do whatever they please with the property they own.
It's time to add social networks to the list.