omplete Information. Often, once a company gains control of a particular market, that company does not disclose complete information in regard to their products. Such is the case in the current Microsoft antitrust case. Microsoft not only does not disclose complete information on their software products, but also goes one step further by making their software products incompatible with other operating systems. As a result, the consumer has no choice but to buy Microsoft software products exclusively.Once a company has successfully dominated a business market, they can use that control to move into other markets by:Squeezing out competitorsDominating sales of the product Controlling prices of the productAcquiring additional companies, inside and outside, of the fieldEnforcement. The Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice is responsible for protecting the competitive process through enforcement of antitrust laws. The Division has challenged barriers to American companies' ability to compete in the market. They have broken up criminal conspiracies that increased consumers' prices for products. They have obtained civil consent decrees that will contribute to lower prices and improved quality for such products. In addition, they have also worked with businesses to restructure mergers in order to protect competition in the American marketplace.Predatory PricingPredatory pricing is a tool that is used to achieve market power. It is the practice of pricing below cost. This can foster market power in three simple ways, by eliminating rivals, by disciplining rivals who refuse to cooperate in keeping prices at monopoly levels, or by depressing the market value of rivals' assets so that a predator can purchase these assets at below market prices. Predatory pricing does not allow the market to work freely. It is a way of controlling the market.Conglomerate MergersThere are three broad types of mergers: horizontal, vertical, and ...
