What is a natural monopoly? Provide a real-world example.

What will be an ideal response?


Student answers will vary. A sample answer follows:

In some instances, the government will grant one firm the right to be the sole supplier of a product or service. This is often done to incentivize a company to engage in a venture that would not be profitable if there was more than one supplier. For example, public utilities incur huge fixed costs to build plants and to supply a certain geographic area. Public utilities supplying water, gas, and electricity to businesses and homes are frequently monopolists. For example, Georgia Power is the only supplier of electricity for over 2.5 million customers in the southeastern United States. Philadelphia Gas Works is the only supplier of natural gas in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, serving some 500,000 customers. These are so-called natural monopolies. Without them, the governments involved believe the market would not supply these products or services at all.

Business

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Indicate whether the statement is true or false

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Fill in the blank(s) with correct word

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Fill in the blank(s) with the appropriate word(s).

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________ data consist of information collected for the specific purpose at hand

A) Primary B) Secondary C) Derived D) Archival E) Historical

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