Factors influencing Oligopoly and Monopoly Competition in Australia

Question

Briefly describe the concepts of Oligopoly, Monopoly and Monopoly Competition in Australia.

Answer

Introduction
A variety of industries in the current Australian market, are following different market structures including Oligopoly, Monopoly and Monopoly Competition in Australia. The strategy, which is utilized for the management of the operations of an organization, can be identified by analyzing and researching the different market structures prevalent in the market. In this paper, the Australian Post has been researched on, and it has been analyzed that the market operations of the Australian Post are of monopolistic nature. Another aspect that has been analyzed and researched upon is the impact of these strategies on other SME’s. In this study paper, it has been aimed to understand the position of various small scale participants such as small scale business as well as other SME’s, within in the Australian Postal Industry, by understanding the strategies as implemented by the Australian Post. Additionally, in order to facilitate a better understanding of the different market structures that effect a market, the three major and prevalent market structures of the Australian market have been touched upon briefly (Kehoe, 2016). Another noteworthy aspect is that the Australian Post follows a business structure, which is monopolistic in nature. A detailed description of the same can be found in an article by Broede Carmody, which highlights the patterns and concepts of such organizations (Carmody, 2015).

Different Australian Market Types
Though there are a variety of market styles in the world, every country or region is dominated by certain styles of market. In Australia for instance, the three major types of markets are Oligopoly, Monopoly and Monopoly Competition in Australia. Multiple differentiating factors segregating these markets from one another. These factors include the price mechanism as well as the sellers influence on the demand and the consequent supply of goods in the market (Dasgupta & Ushio, 2011).

Oligopoly
As per studies, traditionally Australia has been a great hub for Oligopolistic market structures in most industries. The basic characteristic of an Oligopoly is the presence of a small number of sellers of similar products, and the market is dominated by this group. A basic consequence of oligopoly is reduced competition among sellers due to their collusions, and heightened prices of products for the consumers. In layman terms, Oligopoly may be understood as a kind of monopoly where there are more than two leaders controlling the market. Bridgestone, Coca-Cola, Carlton United, Dulux, Dunlop, Hoyts and Kelloggs are prime Oligopoly Competition Examples in the Australian market. Another important feature of Oligopoly markets s due to the absence of competition, the major players avoid any sorts of price wars or stiff competition. Consequently, any increase in price is done by all major players in the Oligopoly market, to avoid the previously mentioned scenarios (Eldor & Zilcha, 2010). As a deterrent against the malpractices of the Oligopolistic market, the Australia Government introduced the Trade Practices Act in 1995 (Carmody, 2015).

The government of Australia has been since, trying to incorporate measures and policies, which would promote a more competitive market, which would be welcoming for more and more players to enter the market freely and be a part of it (Bose & Gupta, 2012). Consequently, the market scenario has changed, as price wars and stiff competition are becoming more and more part of the market. This it can be safely held that the Australian market in a variety of industries is turning into a perfect competition. The companies in the Australian market that are model Oligopoly Competition Examples, have had to change their tactics and start competing with new players.

Monopoly
By analyzing and comparing the textbook definition of Monopoly and the example of the Australia Post, it can be easily concluded that the Market for the Australian Postal Industry is heavily dominated by the Australian Post, thereby creating a Monopoly in their favor. Under their powers, they have restricted the delivery of letters and parcels into the post offices controlled by the government. Additionally, they also exercise control over the entrance and expansion of private players into the Australian Postal Industry. These monopolistic practices by the Australian Post has severely detrimented the growth of the Postal Industry on Australia (Carmody, 2015). Consequently, there are no benefits to the consumers, which would otherwise arise out of a competitive market. There is nether any choice in neither terms of quality of service nor any choices in terms of competing prices. Apart from the Australian post, similar examples of monopoly businesses in their respective industries are the water and the railway services of the government of Australia (May, 2015).

As mentioned previously, in the absence of any competition, the power of negotiation does not lie with the consumer, and the prices of services are determined by the government. In addition, due to the necessary nature of these services and their characteristic of being irreplaceable, the consumers are bound with these services (Mankiw, 2016). These are prime examples of the existence of monopoly in certain markets in Australia. Due to their monopolistic characteristic as well as their legislative authority, these industry leaders, restrict the entrance of any possible contestant in the industry (Misiolek, 2010).

Monopoly Competition in Australia
In recent times the Australian market, in a majority of industries has seen a rise of stiff competition and price wars, implying that there is a heavily competitive market has carved its niche out of the traditionally Monopolistic and Oligopolistic market. Due to the regulations and policies, which have been adopted by the government of Australia, the major Oligopolistic players have been pushed out of their comfort zone and have been thrown right into the middle of a fiercely competitive market scenario, with new players emerging and trying to make their way regularly. The only way to succeed in a market situation like this is to be highly competitive and give the best to the consumers. This has ripped off any sort of Oligopolistic advantage from these major players. Consequently, the Monopoly Competition in Australia is slowly weaning away. The sectors that have been influenced the most due to these policies are Airways, Education, Financial services, Health, Restaurant and Food, Retail, and Telecommunication (Smith, 2015). Advancement of technology and the growth of infrastructure have also aided in this revolutionary change. The benefits of competition are being made use of, by analyzing the tendencies of customers and their behavioral patterns. By the utilization of different marketing and pricing strategies, as well offering various additional benefits, every participant has the opportunity to take advantage of the competitiveness of the market. The introduction of competition has forced former Oligopolistic players from industries such as oil and gas, coal and mining, as well as other industries pertaining to unique services, to compete fiercely.

Conclusion
After carefully analyzing various organizations performing under different market structures, a number of conclusions can be drawn. Industries where there is a Monopolistic market representing a single player such as the Australian Post in the Australian Postal Services, the market has been dominated by this single player. On the other hand, in Oligopolistic market structures, there has been an increase in the competitiveness amongst the existing players, due to the introduction of new participants. Thus the Australian market, barring a very few industries is moving towards a more competitive model. Monopoly market assignments are being prepared by our marketing assignment help online experts from top universities which let us to provide you a reliable best assignment help service.

References
Bose, A. & Gupta, B. (2012). Mixed markets in bilateral monopoly. J Econ, 110(2), 141-164. https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00712-012-0310-8

Carmody, B. (2015). Australia Post is hurting small businesses with PO Box monopoly, says delivery company Sendle - SmartCompany. SmartCompany. Retrieved August 2016, from https://www.smartcompany.com.au/growth/49035-australia-post-hurting-small-businesses-with-po-box-monopoly-says-delivery-company-sendle/

Dasgupta, P. & Ushio, Y. (2011). On the rate of convergence of oligopoly equilibria in large markets.Economics Letters, 8(1), 13-17. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0165-1765(81)90086-0

Eldor, R. & Zilcha, I. (2010). Oligopoly, uncertain demand, and forward markets. Journal Of Economics And Business, 42(1), 17-26. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0148-6195(90)90017-7

Kehoe, M. (2016). Quality Uncertainty and Price in Monopoly Markets. The Journal Of Industrial Economics, 44(1), 25. https://dx.doi.org/10.2307/2950558

Mankiw, N. (2016). Principles of microeconomics. Australia: Thomson Nelson.

May, D. (2015). Export instability when international agricultural markets operate under oligopoly.International Journal Of Trade And Global Markets, 8(2), 142. https://dx.doi.org/10.1504/ijtgm.2015.069424

McEachern, W. (2012). Microeconomic principles. Australia: South-Western Cengage Learning.

Misiolek, W. (2010). Effluent taxation in monopoly markets. Journal Of Environmental Economics And Management, 7(2), 103-107. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0095-0696(80)90012-1

Smith, M. (2015). The death of the oligopoly: Australia's incumbents face new rivals. Financial Review. Retrieved August 2016, from https://www.afr.com/brand/chanticleer/the-death-of-the-oligopoly-australias-incumbents-face-new-rivals-20150421-1mq11b